Camera Critters #211

I can finally say spring has arrived on the High Desert.  While out on a photo safari Friday, I noticed my first butterfly sighting.  It was a beautiful Mourning Cloak.  As I approached it to get a photo, I saw another, different butterfly flit past me.
At the same time, the Mourning Cloak too off and I turned my attention to the new arrival, which had landed not far from me.

When I took the image above, my mind was saying anglewing, as I have photographed similar leps in the general area this image was taken.
However, when I showed the image to Misty, the meme’s founder and owner, she mentioned it looked like one of the punctuation butterflies.
After a discussion, I realized that she was correct.  The butterfly I photographed was not an anglewing, but instead, a Hoary Comma.
Although they look similar (see this image), the obvious difference is in the wing at the base where it meets the body.  On the butterfly above, the wing is basically straight across with a very slight angle.  The butterfly at the link has an obvious angle at that point.  Hence the name anglewing.
Misty Dawn’s Camera Critter Meme is a great way see critters the world over. Go to the homepage here to see more. Then join the fun and add your own.

Camera Critters #210

During a recent visit to Fireman’s Pond in Redmond, Oregon, I was able to photograph one of my favorite waterfowl species.

Personally, I call them Daffy Ducks because of their extremely large bills, but most people know them as Northern Shoveler, or Anas clypeata.

The shoveler is the duck in the foreground.  Behind it is a non-breeding plumage American Wigeon.

Misty Dawn’s Camera Critter Meme is a great way see critters the world over. Go to the homepage here to see more. Then join the fun and add your own.

Camera Critters #209

A couple of weeks ago, we had a break in our rotten weather and I decided I would head out for a walk around town, with my camera in hand, of course.

As I walked through a new city park, I heard the screeching of a Red-tailed Hawk.  Glancing around, I spotted one circling and as I raised my camera, it glided in for a landing on the top of a nearby tree.

I snapped off a few shots and noticed the large mass below the hawk at the top of the tree.  Looking closer, I realized it might be a nest.  As I walked around looking at the top of the tree, I felt more and more confident of my conclusion.

 

At one point, a second, smaller, Red-tailed Hawk, probably a male, circled the area.  After a few minutes, the perched hawk took off and joined the other hawk.  The pair headed to the northeast and I lost sight of them.

Since the possible nest is not far from my place, I have kept an eye on it.  The pair of Red-tailed Hawk tend to stay in the area of that tree, but I have yet to notice any sitting on the nest.

Misty Dawn’s Camera Critter Meme is a great way see critters the world over. Go to the homepage here to see more. Then join the fun and add your own.