waltersanford's photoblog

Red-winged Blackbird (male, calling)

Sun, 27 May 2012 02:00:00 -0700

A Red-winged Blackbird (Agelaius phoeniceus) spotted during a photowalk through Huntley Meadows Park, Fairfax County, Virginia USA. This individual is a male, as indicated by its red and yellow shoulder patches, calling its mate.

See the full gallery on Posterous

Permalink | Leave a comment »

Great Blue Skimmer dragonflies (female)

Fri, 25 May 2012 02:00:00 -0700

A couple of female Great Blue Skimmer dragonflies (Libellula vibrans) spotted during photowalks through Huntley Meadows Park, Fairfax County, Virginia USA on May 17-18, 2012.

See the full gallery on Posterous

Both female dragonflies were perched on grasses in a meadow located at least 100 yards from the wetlands.

See the full gallery on Posterous

Permalink | Leave a comment »

Great Spangled Fritillary butterfly

Wed, 23 May 2012 02:00:00 -0700

Great Spangled Fritillary butterflies (Speyeria cybele) spotted during two photowalks through Huntley Meadows Park, Fairfax County, Virginia USA. These individuals are feeding on Purple Milkweed flowers (Asclepias purpurascens). See also "Purple Milkweed," one of my Posterous photoblog posts.

See the full gallery on Posterous

Permalink | Leave a comment »

Spangled Skimmer dragonfly (female)

Mon, 21 May 2012 02:00:00 -0700

A Spangled Skimmer dragonfly (Libellula cyanea) spotted during a photowalk through Huntley Meadows Park, Fairfax County, Virginia USA. I got one shot of this beautiful female before she flew away -- I was SO LUCKY the dragonfly is clearly in focus!

Two anatomical features are visible in the photo: the black and white pterostigma located near each wing tip; and the female terminal appendages located at the end of the abdomen.

See the full gallery on Posterous

Permalink | Leave a comment »

Red Admiral butterfly

Sat, 19 May 2012 02:00:00 -0700

A Red Admiral butterfly (Vanessa atalanta) spotted during a photowalk through Huntley Meadows Park, Fairfax County, Virginia USA. Photo 3 of 3 shows the butterfly feeding on Rubus sp. flowers, possibly a species of Dewberry plant.

See the full gallery on Posterous

Permalink | Leave a comment »

Barred Owl (predator-prey)

Thu, 17 May 2012 02:00:00 -0700

A Barred Owl (Strix varia) spotted during a photowalk through Huntley Meadows Park, Fairfax County, Virginia USA. The owl is eating an unknown smaller bird it just captured. Photo 3 of 4 features the best view of the unknown bird -- can anyone identify its species?

See the full gallery on Posterous

Permalink | Leave a comment »

Question Mark butterfly

Tue, 15 May 2012 02:00:00 -0700

A Question Mark butterfly (Polygonia interrogationis) spotted during a photowalk through Huntley Meadows Park, Fairfax County, Virginia USA. One of two "punctuation mark" butterflies, the Question Mark is so named because of the question mark that appears on the underside of its wings; Comma butterflies (Polygonia c-album) feature a comma shape on the underside of their wings. See also "Comma butterfly," one of my Posterous photoblog posts.

See the full gallery on Posterous

Permalink | Leave a comment »

Great Blue Heron ("head shot")

Sun, 13 May 2012 02:00:00 -0700

A Great Blue Heron (Ardea herodias) spotted during a photowalk through Huntley Meadows Park, Fairfax County, Virginia USA. This individual was unusually close to the boardwalk that goes through the wetlands, affording a great opportunity for a close-up "head shot."

Permalink | Leave a comment »

Red-bellied Woodpecker nest

Fri, 11 May 2012 02:00:00 -0700

A Red-bellied Woodpecker (Melanerpes carolinus) nest located in a tree cavity at the Belle Haven picnic area, Fairfax County, Virginia USA. This individual is an adult male.

See the full gallery on Posterous

This is the first time I spotted an active Red-bellied Woodpecker nest. The male shown in the preceding gallery was hyperactive, going in and out of the nest for quite a while. It appears he may have been preparing the nest in order to attract a female.

Permalink | Leave a comment »

Red-tailed Hawk (Buteo jamaicensis)

Wed, 09 May 2012 02:00:00 -0700

A Red-tailed Hawk (Buteo jamaicensis) spotted in the wild during a photowalk through Dyke Marsh Wildlife Preserve, a wetland area located in Fairfax County, Virginia USA near the Nation's Capital. The hawk is on the look-out for smaller birds that were harassing the larger raptor, as shown below in Gallery 1/Photo 1 and Gallery 2/Photo 2. The hawk was so concerned with me and my camera (see Photo 2 and 3) that it didn't notice the Blue Jay about to launch a sneak attack from behind!

See the full gallery on Posterous

The hawk flew to a nearby tree (shown below); the smaller birds followed. Hide in plain sight must be this hawk's modus operandi, 'cuz it was a sitting duck at its new location. The hawk's hackles are raised in Photo 3, indicating it is angry after being pecked by a mockingbird. (The idiom "get your hackles up" means "to get angry.") Hey, life is not necessarily a picnic at the top of the food chain!

See the full gallery on Posterous

Permalink | Leave a comment »

Red-tailed Hawk (female), redux

Mon, 07 May 2012 02:00:00 -0700

A Red-tailed Hawk (Buteo jamaicensis) shown by Kent Knowles, president of The Raptor Conservancy of Virginia. This beautiful "teaching bird" has several disabilities that make it unsuitable for release to the wild: the hawk was probably hit by a car, causing multiple wing injuries; the bird is almost non-flighted as a result.

See the full gallery on Posterous

The hawk was one of several birds featured in a raptor demonstration at the Belle Haven picnic area, Fairfax County, Virginia USA. The event was hosted by Friends of Dyke Marsh, National Park Service, and The Raptor Conservancy of Virginia. The following gallery features photos that highlight the hawk's red tail (a beautiful shade of cinnamon) and sharp talons.

See the full gallery on Posterous

The hawk is featured in a previous post: Red-tailed Hawk (female).

Permalink | Leave a comment »

Barred Owl (female), redux

Sat, 05 May 2012 02:00:00 -0700

A Barred Owl (Strix varia) shown by Kent Knowles, president of The Raptor Conservancy of Virginia. This "teaching bird" has several disabilities that make it unsuitable for release to the wild: the owl's left hip was crushed when it was hit by a car; the bird has limited use of its very fragile left leg as a result.

See the full gallery on Posterous

The owl was one of several birds featured in a raptor demonstration at the Belle Haven picnic area, Fairfax County, Virginia USA. The event was hosted by Friends of Dyke Marsh, National Park Service, and The Raptor Conservancy of Virginia.

The owl is featured in a previous post: Barred Owl (female).

Permalink | Leave a comment »

Falcon (hybrid)

Thu, 03 May 2012 02:00:00 -0700

A falcon shown by Kent Knowles, president of The Raptor Conservancy of Virginia. This "teaching bird" is a hybrid. Hybrid birds cannot be released to the wild, as per federal regulation, plus the bird has a human imprint that is not reversible and precludes release.

See the full gallery on Posterous

The falcon was one of several birds featured in a raptor demonstration at the Belle Haven picnic area, Fairfax County, Virginia USA. According to Mr. Knowles, ...

The falcon hybrid is very likely part Peregrine Falcon (Falco peregrinus) and part Merlin (Falco columbarius), a much smaller falcon species. This is the consensus opinion of a number of biologists and very experienced falconers. However, I cannot be sure without a [cost-prohibitive] DNA analysis. The gender of the hybrid falcon is unknown. Being a hybrid, there is no weight scale for his 'species.' I suspect he is a male by his behavior, but I cannot be sure without DNA analysis.

The event was hosted by Friends of Dyke Marsh, National Park Service, and The Raptor Conservancy of Virginia.

See the full gallery on Posterous

Permalink | Leave a comment »

American Kestrel (male)

Tue, 01 May 2012 02:00:00 -0700

An American Kestrel (Falco sparverius) shown by Ms. Gabby Hrycyshyn, volunteer bird handler from The Raptor Conservancy of Virginia. This "teaching bird" has several disabilities that make it unsuitable for release to the wild. The kestrel flew head-first into a security window at the U.S. Capitol building in Washington, D.C.; it was found unconscious on the ground. The kestrel sustained radial nerve damage in its left wing, and is essentially non-flighted as a result of the accident.

See the full gallery on Posterous

The kestrel was one of several birds featured in a raptor demonstration at the Belle Haven picnic area, Fairfax County, Virginia USA. The event was hosted by Friends of Dyke Marsh, National Park Service, and The Raptor Conservancy of Virginia.

See the full gallery on Posterous

Permalink | Leave a comment »

Eastern Screech-Owl (female)

Sun, 29 Apr 2012 02:00:00 -0700

A rufous Eastern Screech-Owl (Otus asio) shown by Ms. Gabby Hrycyshyn, volunteer bird handler from The Raptor Conservancy of Virginia. This "teaching bird" has several disabilities that make it unsuitable for release to the wild: the Screech-Owl was hit by a car, resulting in permanent structural damage to both eyes.

See the full gallery on Posterous

The Screech-Owl was one of several birds featured in a raptor demonstration at the Belle Haven picnic area, Fairfax County, Virginia USA. According to Mr. Kent Knowles, president of The Raptor Conservancy of Virginia, ...

The Eastern Screech Owl is a female. We can tell that by weight, not plumage. The males in that species weigh about one third less than the females.

The event was hosted by Friends of Dyke Marsh, National Park Service, and The Raptor Conservancy of Virginia.

See the full gallery on Posterous

In the preceding gallery, Photos 1-2 show the Screech-Owl with a Red-tailed Hawk (Buteo jamaicensis); Photo 3 shows the Screech-Owl with a Barred Owl (Strix varia). Ms. Gabby Hrycyshyn handled the Screech-Owl in all three photos; Mr. Kent Knowles handled the two larger birds. Photo 1 is captioned, "Yikes, Gabby -- PLEASE don't let that BIG bird eat me!"

Permalink | Leave a comment »

Red-shouldered Hawk

Fri, 27 Apr 2012 02:00:00 -0700

A Red-shouldered Hawk (Buteo lineatus) shown by Kent Knowles, president of The Raptor Conservancy of Virginia. This "teaching bird" has several disabilities that make it unsuitable for release to the wild: the hawk was hit by a car, fracturing its right wing through the elbow joint; the bird has almost no wing extension on its right side as a result.

See the full gallery on Posterous

The hawk was one of several birds featured in a raptor demonstration at the Belle Haven picnic area, Fairfax County, Virginia USA. According to Mr. Knowles, ...

There is no way to tell a Red-shouldered male from a female by sight or weight. Since this one is relatively small I would guess it is a male, but that is only a guess. It is a third-year bird.

The event was hosted by Friends of Dyke Marsh, National Park Service, and The Raptor Conservancy of Virginia. Mr. Knowles' extraordinary rapport with raptors is clearly evident in the following photos!

See the full gallery on Posterous

Ms. Gabby Hrycyshyn, assisting Mr. Knowles with the raptor demonstration, is shown holding an American Kestrel (Falco sparverius) in Photo 6 of 7 in the preceding gallery. The kestrel is featured in a follow-up post: American Kestrel (male).

Permalink | Leave a comment »

Red-tailed Hawk (female)

Wed, 25 Apr 2012 02:00:00 -0700

A Red-tailed Hawk (Buteo jamaicensis) showing off with a little encouragement from Kent Knowles, president of The Raptor Conservancy of Virginia. This beautiful "teaching bird" has several disabilities that make it unsuitable for release to the wild: the hawk was probably hit by a car, causing multiple wing injuries; the bird is almost non-flighted as a result.

See the full gallery on Posterous

Ms. Gabby Hrycyshyn, assisting Mr. Knowles with the raptor demonstration, is shown holding an American Kestrel (Falco sparverius) in all of the photos in the preceding gallery. The kestrel is featured in a follow-up post: American Kestrel (male).

Permalink | Leave a comment »

Barred Owl (female)

Mon, 23 Apr 2012 02:00:00 -0700

See the full gallery on Posterous

Permalink | Leave a comment »

Another great catch, Great Egret!

Sat, 21 Apr 2012 02:00:00 -0700

A Great Egret (Ardea alba), a large white heron with long black legs and yellow-orange bill, spotted during a photowalk through Huntley Meadows Park, Fairfax County, Virginia USA. Can anyone identify the fish in the bird's bill? If I were to make a wild guess, then I'd say the fish is some type of sunfish.

See the full gallery on Posterous

Editor's Note: I consulted David Lawlor, Resource Manager, Huntley Meadows Park, Fairfax County Park Authority, for help in identifying the fish. According to David, ...

I would say you are correct -- the fish is a sunfish of some type and my first guess would be a green sunfish, but it is hard to tell from the picture.

David's tentative species identification is supported by maps showing the distribution of sunfish at Fairfax County monitoring sites. Thanks, David!

See also Great catch, Great Egret!, one of my Posterous posts.

Permalink | Leave a comment »

Common Whitetail dragonfly (female, oviposition)

Thu, 19 Apr 2012 02:00:00 -0700

A four-image time series showing a female Common Whitetail dragonfly (Libellula lydia, Plathemis lydia) laying eggs by the process of oviposition. The female dragonfly skims the water repeatedly (see Photo 4), picking up drops of water that are used to flick fertilized eggs toward the shore (see Photo 3). The process typically lasts a few seconds to a few minutes.

See the full gallery on Posterous

This individual was spotted during a photowalk through Huntley Meadows Park, Fairfax County, Virginia USA.

Permalink | Leave a comment »