It’s Sunday, and that means we have a new batch of bird photos from John Avise. John’s notes and IDs are indented, and you can enlarge the photos by clicking on them.
Poland Birds, Part 2
This week’s post shows several more of the birds that I photographed on an extended seminar trip to Poland in the spring of 2012.
Eurasian Jay (Garrulus glandarius):
Lesser Spotted Eagle (Clanga pomarina):
Mandarin Duck (Aix galericulata), an introduced species:
Middle Spotted Woodpecker (Leiopicus medius):
Mute Swan (Cygnus olor):
Northern Shrike (Lanius borealis):
Red-backed Shrike (Lanius collurio):
Short-toed Treecreeper (Certhia brachydactyla):
Song Thrush (Turdus philomelos):
Spotted Flycatcher (Muscicapa striata):
Eurasian Tree Sparrow (Passer montanus):
White Stork (Ciconia ciconia):
White Wagtail (Motacilla alba):
White-winged Tern (Chlidonias leucopterus):
Willow Warbler (Phylloscopus trochilus):
Common Woodpigeon (Columba palumbus):
Yellowhammer (Emberiza citrinella):
Ahhhh
Needed this….
Beautiful!
I wish I could contribute photos but I have no way to do so. I know you are running low, but could you not maybe show some hits from the past? I would enjoy seeing some of those gorgeous bird photos many times over.
The White Stork looks like s/he was on the way to an important business meeting, but then just having those long legs might make it look like it was in a hurry.
Love to see my humble home turf birds here for a change.
Fantastic birds expertly photographed against striking backgrounds, as always – thanks! The Eurasian Jay and Mandarin Duck bring whole new dimensions of beauty to the concepts of “jay” and “duck” 🙂
Thanks Susan. The more I photograph birds, the more I find myself paying explicit attention to the backgrounds. It’s always nice to get a “clean” shot that enhances (or at least does not detract from) the bird itself.
I’m curious about the “introduced’ duck. Was it introduced to serve a particular function? I know there are several grasses that were introduced to our region (southeastern AZ) that ended up wreaking havoc on the native flora. Does a species classification ever change from “introduced” to “invasive”? I’ve also often wondered about birds being called (named) terms like “lesser” and “greater”. Our “Greater Roadrunner”, for example. Is there a “lesser” one somewhere? I’m obviously a novice. God, do I love birds! Thank you.
Yes, when there’s a Greater X there usually is a Lesser X counterpart somewhere. The Mandarin Duck is native to Asia but has been introduced into many other places around the world, no doubt because of its exceptional beauty.
Introduced = a species that is in a given location because modern humans moved it there
Naturalized = an introduced species that persisted in its new location, even without any further human tending
Invasive = a naturalized species that keeps spreading and has substantial negative effects, either ecological or economic or both
Thank you for answering that definitely for me. Appreciate it.
Beautiful photos, as always, John! Thanks!
Keen, as always, thanks!
Nice to see the birds of my youth again! I don’t know what became of it, but when I was little we had a newspaper clipping of an article written by my grandmother before the Great War concerning the yellowhammer, and his call, which she reproduced as a “little-bit-of-bread-and-no-cheese”!
I grew up with great flocks of lapwings (we called them “pee-wits”) and such lovely larksong up on the Marlborough Downs. Larks, sheep and the wind – very heaven on a warm summer day!
I like that stork.