Baby, It’s Cold Outside…..

Holy Cow!  20° as I begin to write this.  If you can believe this, but at 2:00 yesterday afternoon it was 78°.  By 6:00 it was 30°.  A rip roaring cold front blasted it’s way in.  A good excuse to stay in today and write a post to this blog.  Lot’s of catching up to do.

We have been getting out most every morning lately.  The birding is really improving.  A good sign of that was that a few days ago, Ann and I counted 40 species……..all at Spring Creek Park.   Believe it or not, the Great Kiskadees are still here, or at least until yesterday.  I don’t know if they decided to head south again after last night.  I will keep you updated on that.  Here is my last photo of one that I captured about three days ago.  We were driving through Spring Creek Park and Ann said she heard one calling.  I thought that she was having effects from a glass of wine she drank the previous evening.  She said, “No, it sounds like this”.  She had her iPad turned on and she played the bird’s call.  The bird apparently heard that and answered her.  It flew into a tree right overhead.  I was able to capture the photo before it flew away over the water.

Great Kiskadee

In other news, as I mentioned in my last post, I am up uploading photos for purchase.  You can buy framed prints, or home decor with my photo art.  It makes it easier for you that have wanted to purchase my art.  Click here – http://pixels.com/artists/1+bob+zeller

For un-framed prints, my 2017 Calendars, or my book, “Birds, Beasts and Buttes” contact me at bobzeller@pobox.com.

Okay, I am done self-promoting.  (hey, someone’s gotta do it 🙂 ).  Now onto my images that I have captured for you the past week or so.  All were taken with my Canon 7D Mark II and Tamron 150-600mm Gen2 lens.  Please click on any image to see some beautiful enlargements.

Blue-gray Gnatcatcher.  1/1600 sec. @ f6.3, ISO 1250.

Yellow-rumped Warbler. 1/1000 sec @ f6.3, -0.3 EV,  ISO 5000.

Black-crowned Night Heron, juvenile. 1/1000 sec. @ f6.3, ISO 6400.

American Kestrel. 1/1250 sec. @ f6.3, +0.7 EV, ISO 2500.

Belted Kingfisher. 1/1600 sec. @ f6.3, +0.3  EV, ISO 2500.

Savannah Sparrow. 1/1000 sec. @ f7.1, ISO 320.

Ruby-crowned Kinglet. 1/1250 sec. @ f6.3, ISO 500.

Hermit Thrush. 1/640 sec. @ f6.3, ISO 1600

White-faced Ibis. 1/1000 sec. @ f7.1, -0.3 EV, ISO 1250.

Great Egret. 1/1600 sec. @ f10, -0.3 EV, ISO 100.

Well, that’s it for this post.  Stay warm.  Merry Christmas and Happy Birding!!!