Blue Grosbeaks - 22 Jul 2019
Tonight is a late work night, so I decided to drive down to the Antennae Farm to look for the Blue Grosbeaks that are nesting in the trees just north of the fenced-in farm. Parking on the side of the road I set up the scope on the north side of the tree line and scanned the ditch for birds.
An adult female Blue Grosbeak was seen foraging along the ditch near the 2nd and 3rd telephone poles. I was able to get some long-distance digiscoped images before she disappeared somewhere in the ditch. It would turn out to be a concern because just moments later I spotted a Peregrine Falcon blasting by with a fresh kill in its talons. I was too slow with the camera to get any pics, but suddenly had a bad feeling about the female grosbeak.
Luckily, a few minutes later she reappeared in the ditch. As I observed her the adult male Blue Grosbeak appeared nearby. I managed a few digiscoped images before he disappeared.
I then noticed a smaller bird nearby. A baby Blue Grosbeak! The bird appeared to be a recently fledged or an immature hatch-year bird. Note the 80's hair-band feathers atop juvenal plumage with tan-tipped wing and back feathers. The thick bill differentiates it from the nearby Red-winged Blackbirds.
Antenna Farm, Monroe, Michigan, US
Jul 22, 2019 7:00 AM - 8:00 AM
Protocol: Traveling
0.5 mile(s)
Checklist Comments: Mild, humid, partly cloudy.
7 species
Red-tailed Hawk (Buteo jamaicensis) 2
Peregrine Falcon (Falco peregrinus) 1 Adult bird flying across Haggerman Rd. with a fresh kill (unknown). Flying southeast. Heavy mask on large falcon unmistakable.
Eastern Kingbird (Tyrannus tyrannus) 1
Bobolink (Dolichonyx oryzivorus) 1
Red-winged Blackbird (Agelaius phoeniceus) 24
Blue Grosbeak (Passerina caerulea) 3 Adult female, adult male, and juvenile bird digiscoped from Haggerman Rd. near tree line north of antennae farm. Female was first spotted along road in ditch foraging for insects, then on road, where it caught a green darner dragonfly. Bluish-brown bird with tan wing bar, thick beak with lower mandible light blue. Adult male then seen nearby perched on wildflowers. Larger than Indigo Bunting with black face and thick bill, red wing bar. Then saw juvenile/fledgling bird with 80's hairband feathering atop tan-tipped primaries and secondaries. Thick finch-bill and overall bluish hue to feathering differentiated the bird from juvenile blackbirds nearby.
Dickcissel (Spiza americana) 4
View this checklist online at https://ebird.org/checklist/S58405241
This report was generated automatically by eBird v3 (https://ebird.org/home)
Jul 22, 2019 7:00 AM - 8:00 AM
Protocol: Traveling
0.5 mile(s)
Checklist Comments: Mild, humid, partly cloudy.
7 species
Red-tailed Hawk (Buteo jamaicensis) 2
Peregrine Falcon (Falco peregrinus) 1 Adult bird flying across Haggerman Rd. with a fresh kill (unknown). Flying southeast. Heavy mask on large falcon unmistakable.
Eastern Kingbird (Tyrannus tyrannus) 1
Bobolink (Dolichonyx oryzivorus) 1
Red-winged Blackbird (Agelaius phoeniceus) 24
Blue Grosbeak (Passerina caerulea) 3 Adult female, adult male, and juvenile bird digiscoped from Haggerman Rd. near tree line north of antennae farm. Female was first spotted along road in ditch foraging for insects, then on road, where it caught a green darner dragonfly. Bluish-brown bird with tan wing bar, thick beak with lower mandible light blue. Adult male then seen nearby perched on wildflowers. Larger than Indigo Bunting with black face and thick bill, red wing bar. Then saw juvenile/fledgling bird with 80's hairband feathering atop tan-tipped primaries and secondaries. Thick finch-bill and overall bluish hue to feathering differentiated the bird from juvenile blackbirds nearby.
Dickcissel (Spiza americana) 4
View this checklist online at https://ebird.org/checklist/S5
This report was generated automatically by eBird v3 (https://ebird.org/home)
