We’ll begin (as we often do) with the photos of Stephen Barnard in Idaho, who is following the adventures of his “pet” bald eagles, Desi and Lucy (Haliaeetus leucocephalus), as they prepare to nest and breed. Here are two photos of the pair, with the first an enlargement of the second. There are also camera notes:
This photo was taken with Lou Jost’s favorite camera, the Panasonic DMC-FZ200. I really like the sharpness of this camera, even hand-held at 600mm (equivalent) and full automatic mode. Plus, it weighs almost nothing. I highly recommend it for anyone looking for a relatively inexpensive, flexible camera (about $600).
Professor Ceiling Cat also has a Panasonic Lumix (not the FZ200), and I love it. It has a Leica lens as well. The DMCFZ200 recommended by Stephen and Lou is now only $399 at Amazon.
A red-tailed hawk (Buteo jamaicensis), with Barnard’s title, “The last thing a vole sees”:
From reader Sarah Crews, we have a dragonfly, the Blue-eyed Darner, Rhionaeschna multicolor, from Lava Beds National Monument in California. Look at the size of those eyes! And its wings look like a stained-glass construction.
A contemplative Eastern chipmunk (Tamias striatus) by Diana MacPherson:
And reader Keira McKenzie sent a bee and a flower. The flower is grevella, which she identifies as “most likely Grevillea banskii, everywhere – cultivated and not.” If anyone knows the bee, weigh in below:
Oh that dragonfly!
The dragonfly is one of the darners, genus Aeshna. There are several regional species. The bee is the honey bee, Apis mellifera.
Reblogged this on Jenniferhopewells141's Blog and commented:
Check out these photos. Their amazing
“If I stand here like this . . . I can keep this one foot out of the snow.”
-Chipmunk Genius
Oh, and I love the photo of the hawk.
Death from above!
Love the second eagle photo: “No, Lucy, you can’t be in the show tonight!”
I know the bee. It’s Eric
Or maybe Cyril Connelly
I had a feeling the bee (comment) wouldn’t weigh much. =D
There are a lot of good bridge cameras. Some of my birder friends swear by the Canon SX50 and SX60. The SX60 has an astonishing 65x optical zoom (21mm-1365mm equivalent). I chose the Lumix because of the sharpness and speed of the Leica lens.
So far, all camera manufacturers except Panasonic have designed their bridge camera lenses so that their maximum apertures (which determine the amount of light entering the lens) decrease significantly at higher focal lengths. They often advertise “f/2.8” which is a very good maximum aperture, but in the fine print they will admit that this aperture drops to f/5.6 or so when the lens is zoomed to its maximum focal length. f/5.6 does not let much light in, so longer shutter speeds or higher ISO will be needed. Longer shutter speeds mean more subject movement and camera motion blur, while higher ISO means more noise or graininess.
The camera manufacturers make this design decision because it lets them use smaller, cheaper lenses. The only bridge camera on the market that does things differently is this Panasonic FZ200, which remains an ultra-fast f/2.8 even at 600mm.
Although Australia has a lot of cool native bees, I believe this is the non-native European honey bee (Apis mellifera).
Diana does a great job catching such sweet faces! I also love the chipmunk’s little feet! Also, any ideas on why the eagle’s head is white? Sexual selection???
Those are Bald Eagles. Their dark head feathers are replaced with white ones as they mature.
I’m sure red was wondering why they have the specific pattern they do, in evolutionary terms, not how it comes about now. 🙂
Sorry, red, I’ve never heard anyone discuss that.
I suspect it’s to distinguish mature birds from juveniles. Don’t know about sexual selection. The females and males are nearly indistinct except for size, the females a bit larger.
I considered that, discarded it since some raptors will breed while still in immature plumage, then decided to actually look it up since you put it out there.
According to Birds of North America, they do not start to breed until they are 4 and have their definitive (adult) plumage, so you could easily be right. 🙂
The fledgling eagles from three years ago have been hanging around, getting whiter in their heads, and Desi and Lucy are looking long in the tooth (if they had teeth, which they don’t). It will be interesting to see what happens.
Indeed!
It is such a privilege to be able to follow a pair over several seasons!
I used to know the bee but he buzzed off. It really stung.
I’m here all week.
Great photos. Thanks.
Agreed!
The dragonfly’s eyes are indeed huge, but what’s going on with those mouthparts?
“If anyone knows the bee, weigh in below”
I think it’s Beatrice, although I don’t know her personally.