Rondeau Ric

Eastern Towhee, Rondeau Provincial Park, Ontario, Canada, Nov 5, 2019. A female or immature eastern towhee in the pond earlier this month. Pipilo erythrophthalmus Eastern Towhees tend to be pretty solitary, and they use a number of threat displays to tell other towhees they’re not welcome. You may see contentious males lift, spread, or droop one or both wings, fan their tails, or flick their tails to show off the white spots at the corners. Studies have shown that male towhees tend to defend territories many times larger than needed simply to provide food.

Red phalarope, Nov 24, 2019, Erieau, Ont. It is getting harder to get a life bird without traveling long distances. This red phalarope was an exception. phalaropus fulicarius  A brilliant red bird with a white face and yellow bill in summer, the Red Phalarope becomes a subdued gray-and-white speck on the open ocean in the nonbreeding season. Red Phalaropes sometimes gather around gray and bowhead whales to feed in the plumes of muddy water the great mammals stir up. Whalers once called Red Phalaropes “bowhead birds” and looked for the flocks when searching for whales.

Quito, Ecuador, March 16, 2016. From the archives. Ensifera ensifera This is the only bird species with a bill length that exceeds the body length.

Brown creeper, Nov 14, 2019, Rondeau Provincial Park, Ontario, Canada. A slightly grainy image of a brown creeper having a bath. First time I have seen one in the water. Certhia americana Brown Creepers burn an estimated 4–10 calories (technically, kilocalories) per day, a tiny fraction of a human’s daily intake of about 2,000 kilocalories. By eating a single spider, a creeper gains enough energy to climb nearly 200 feet vertically. source - Cornell Lab of Ornithology.

What are you doing here? Baltimore Oriole, Nov 13, 2019, Rondeau Provincial Park, Ontario, Canada. He's been around the yard for 3 days now feeding on peanuts. Dug out a grape jelly feeder hoping he will fuel up and move out. If you put out jelly use small amounts so they don't foul their feathers. Survived a very cold night, supposed to warm up starting Thursday. Icterus galbula Baltimore Orioles sometimes use their slender beaks to feed in an unusual way, called “gaping”: they stab the closed bill into soft fruits, then open their mouths to cut a juicy swath from which they drink with their brushy-tipped tongues.

Birds are hiding in the snow laden hedge, water is still flowing in the water feature. Rondeau Provincial Park, Nov 12, 2019, Ontario, Canada.

Eastern bluebird, Nov 9, 2019, Rondeau Provincial Park, Ontario, Canada. Sialia sialis Eastern Bluebirds eat mostly insects, wild fruit and berries. Occasionally, Eastern Bluebirds have also been observed capturing and eating larger prey items such as shrews, salamanders, snakes, lizards and tree frogs.

A poor photo through the window of a Baltimore Oriole, Nov 7, 2019, Rondeau Provincial Park, Ontario, Canada. I don't recall having an oriole in the yard this late in the year. He checked out the peanuts then flew off. Icterus galbula Unlike robins and many other fruit-eating birds, Baltimore Orioles seem to prefer only ripe, dark-colored fruit. Orioles seek out the darkest mulberries, the reddest cherries, and the deepest-purple grapes, and will ignore green grapes and yellow cherries even if they are ripe. source - Cornell Lab of Ornithology.

Red-headed woodpecker, Nov 5, 2019, Rondeau Provincial Park, Ontario, Canada. According to our records this is the latest that we have had a red-headed woodpecker in the yard. It is very cautious and it takes two or three passes before it will settle on the feeder. Through the Wonderful Wildlife Window. Melanerpes erythrocephalus The Red-headed Woodpecker is one of only four North American woodpeckers known to store food, and it is the only one known to cover the stored food with wood or bark. It hides insects and seeds in cracks in wood, under bark, in fence posts, and under roof shingles. Grasshoppers are regularly stored alive, but wedged into crevices so tightly that they cannot escape. source - Cornell Lab of Ornithology.

Hermit thrush, Nov 4, 2019, Rondeau Provincial Park, Ontario, Canada. Late in the day we had a flurry of birds, including this hermit thrush, coming into the water feature in the yard. Catharus guttatus Hermit Thrushes sometimes forage by “foot quivering,” where they shake bits of grass with their feet to get insects. They also typically begin to quiver their feet as they relax after seeing a flying predator. Some scientists think the quivering happens as the bird responds to conflicting impulses to resume foraging or continue taking cover. source - Cornell Lab of Ornithology.

Black and white warbler, sept 29, 2019, Rondeau Provincial Park, Ontario, Canada. The birds are using the pond as a splash pad, everybody gets wet. Mniotilta varia Black-and-white Warblers have an extra-long hind claw and heavier legs than other wood-warblers, which help them hold onto and move around on bark.