Just Birds

This is the last day before we enter the “critical period”. This is the time when we start tracking against the haunted trail project plan – set tasks that have to be completed for each day or we run the risk of not being ready for the extravaganza. So many things to do, but if not done in the right order at the right time, we start to stumble over ourselves and we end up clipping a root and face-planting on the trail. Those familiar with Intrigued know all too well how that turns out ha. The good news is, we are finishing up all the new props for this year and for the most part all the scares that broke during the event last year have been fixed – all that early year work pays off. In the midst of the trail prep, I happened to notice we were a post down from our self-imposed monthly quota. Although busy, we definitely can’t let a decade plus streak go down without a fight, so jumped on the computer and figured I would end the month with some one-offs from our Arizona trip back in January of 2024. There will be limited commentary due to time constraints, so simply sit back and enjoy the shots.

Hit the jump to see some miscellaneous shots that didn’t have enough companion images to make their own post or not an interesting enough back story to keep you entertained.

My mother’s favorite bird was the Northern Cardinal. She loved listening to their calls and enjoying seeing their brilliant red feathers at her feeder. Always think of her whenever I spot a Cardinal while out in the field.

Definitely not going to see this next Goose get its own feature here at Intrigued. I do not typically take a lot of pictures of “domestic birds” as they do not count towards our Average Year (or ABA lists) and to be honest, they just do not captivate me much. Loosed pets, exotic store escapees, urban park ornaments and the like are like the Heinz 57 of the pet world. Case in point, this Chinese Goose is as ornamental as it gets.

The Say’s Phoebe is one of those wintering birds we get to see quite frequently on our January trips down to Texas. We changed it up a bit last year and went to Arizona in January and then back to Texas in the late March early April timeframe. It was fun to see an old friend in a different state.

The Curve-Billed Thrasher is a consistent southwest resident. Our Midwest variety, the Brown Thrasher doesn’t stray down into the southwest very far so whenever I see one out there I have to remind myself it is a different species. If it has the same coloring as our Browns, I know it is the Long-Billed variety, but the grey tones of the Curved are a good tell for what you are looking at.

There is something about this shot that makes me chuckle whenever I would pass over it in the photo queue. “Is it miniature Wigeons or a big-ass golf ball?” I will let you decide ha.

As a whole, the Grebe family is just plain cute. Plenty of diversity between the various species and their thick coverage across the states means everyone gets a chance to enjoy one or more of them over the course of the season. With the exception of a small area in the upper northwest, the Pied-Billed Grebe can be found in just about every body of water.

Ever have one of those birds you looked and looked and looked for and when you finally found one…you started seeing them everywhere? The Lesser Goldfinch is that bird for me. Thanks to a visit to Guadalupe River State Park, just north of San Antonio, I saw my very first Lesser several years back. They were enjoying the feeders at their bird blind. Since then, we have been seeing them pretty consistently on our travels out west.

Just a cute little Goldfinch – have to say I do like the distinct black cap on the males, the females tend to blend in with the rest of the Goldfinch females.

Okay, I will do it…

These days it takes a LOT for me to photograph a Butter-Butt – even more to take the time to highlight one on the blog. The amount of shots that I have taken of this species is quite staggering and those are mostly due to mistaken identity. The females (above) have a habit of fooling me in the field as their coloring can deceive me into thinking they are a different Warbler. I’ll catch a glimpse of the female, get all excited and then chase the damn thing until I finally get clear shot at the butt – Ron knows exactly when that happens as he is familiar with the resulting string of colorful words that follow.

In complete contrast to that confusion, the Black Phoebe is very distinct! When you see that black vest and the clean white underparts you know what you got. Brad calls them the “Tuxedo” bird and I think that is the perfect description (link here).

As Gary Larson once proclaimed – “Bird of Prey know they are cool!” This Cooper’s Hawk may not be wearing shades, but you know it’s only Grey Poupon for it.

Although not as deadly as the Cooper’s, the State bird of Texas is up for a fight all day any day to protect its home. The Northern Mockingbird was an excellent choice to honor the residents of Texas.

We were at Sweetwater Wetlands in Tucson when I spotted this young Black-Crowned Night Heron hiding near the reeds in one of their larger ponds. Guessing it was nearing adulthood as it already had acquired its red eye, but still showing the browns of the juvenile plumage. By its stare, it didn’t seem too happy to be found.

Not too far away from the Nigh Heron was another member of the Heron family, the Green Heron. This one had taken up a perch on a rock in the middle of the pond. I probably took 50 pictures of this specimen with the beautiful light washing over from behind. Got into the digital darkroom and all 50 shots looked EXACTLY the same – the bird didn’t even move a single feather the entire time.

Guessing 98% of you will immediately proclaim Mallard when you see this next shot. 1% will likely guess it as a Mottled Duck (those being in/from Texas). That leaves 1% of you that will correctly call this as a Mexican Duck. I have to admit, these three options can be difficult to discern in the field.

Now, this distinguished duck needs no introduction. In my opinion, the Northern Pintail is the prettiest bird on the water.

The Scaups are fairly easy to distinguish as a family. Their stippled back feathers and white sides are easily seen – add in the black notch on the bill and you should be ready for the check…well, you will have to figure out if it is Lesser or a Greater variety. Best way for that is to get a good shot of the profile to see if it has the peaked head of the Lesser.

Survey says…. Lesser.

I happen to like the Ruddy duck a lot. We have a kindred spirit being of similar small stature and big-“billed”.

Destination unknown
Ruddy, Ruddy, Ruddy, Ruddy, Soho

…admittedly a bastardization of a great song.

For our friends across the pond, here is one of your regulars, the Eurasian-Collard Dove. One of the transplants I don’t mind having – more of these, less Starlings I say.

This is one of those species that I feel the female doesn’t get enough attention. Granted, compared to the male Bufflehead, they are rather subdued, but come on, that little patch on their check and those dainty feature … makes me melt every time.

My life list is missing checks next to the Florida Scrub-Jay the California Scrub-Jay and until this last March, the Mexican Jay (consider that a foreshadowing ha). What I definitely have checked off is the Woodhouse’s. A staple on our many trips to Spring Mountain Ranch State Park outside Las Vegas.

Another staple at that state park is the Juniper Titmouse. Oddly enough, I was not able to find one while we were out there this year. Fortunately able to get that checked off thanks to a hike in Sedona.

I will end this blast of birds with a tip of the hat to the upcoming event. No haunt would be complete without a Raven to send chills up your spine. Poe has a big tombstone in our Trail of Fears Cemetery, complete with a large Raven to keep him company in the afterlife. If you are wondering, our Poodle Raven is named in honor of that famous poem (mainly because Linda nixed my suggestion of Anubis).

Hope you enjoyed this random collection of birds. Feels good to get these out of the photo queue – without a story, these one-offs tend to get lost in the shuffle. As mentioned previously, I will be stepping back from the blog for the next several weeks due to the haunt workload. Brad has been busy filling up his post queue to keep you entertained in the meantime (although he will also have limited availability as he and Jan are getting ready for their next field assignment).

Take care everybody and I’ll see you again in a couple of weeks!

Oh, we did just get our haunted tree (Revenge) all fixed up from last year’s wind catastrophe. It is looking really nice and extremely excited to get it out on the trail this year in its full glory. Be careful, those Roots of All Evil can do some damage.

If you are curious as to how we constructed Revenge, you can get all the details in our tutorial video (link here).

Stay calm, haunt on!