Daily Archives: May 19, 2023
The Biggest Week in American Birding! Blackburnian Warbler
Blackburnian Warbler: Magee Marsh Wildlife Area, Oak Harbor, Ohio, USA, May 2023 — The Blackburnian Warbler is almost certainly my favorite Warbler, especially when it is in fresh spring plumage as it is when it reaches Magee Marsh on the Erie Shore. It burns like an ember in the trees. They tend to arrive late in Ohio, so I was surprised to find this one my first day at Magee. Turns out the migration is all jumbled up this year, again, so maybe we are looking at a developing new normal. This bird was high in the foliage, above the deck where the observation tower used to stand. These shots, taken with the OM Systems OM-1 and the 100-400mm zoom at 800mm equivalent, were further copped and enlarged using the super-resolution tool in Pixomator Pro. As above in Program with my evolving bird modifications. ISO 200 @ f7.1 @ 1/1000th.
India! Hoopoe
Eurasian Hoopoe: Keoladeo National Park, Bharatpur, Rajasthan, India, March 2023 — Right a the end of the access road, a long walk but easily reachable by rickshaw, there is a little canteen and picnic grounds and an isolated temple. In my two visits there it was always a great place for birds. They seemed to enjoy the lawns and the exposed trees. We saw Hoopoes several different places in Rajasthan, but they were particularly uncooperative as photographic subjects. This is the only one I managed a decent photo of, and only got 2 frames before it flew off. The Hoopoe is an interesting bird, odd looking certainly, but also taxonomically interesting. It currently occupies its own genus, with three species, Eurasian, African, and Madagascar, along with, according to some authorities, the wood hoopoe. The genus is placed in the same clade as the kingfishers, bee-eaters, and rollers. A consensus is developing that it really belongs with the hornbills, and some are resistant to whole three species thing…it might be only one species. Interesting, if you are into that kind of thing. Sony Rx10iv at 600mm equivalent. Program mode with my custom birds and wildlife modifications. Processed in Pixelmator Pro and Apple Photos. ISO 500 @ f4 @ 1/500th. +1EV.