A newly emerged male Monarch warms his wings before take-off.
Wing warming
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Tag Archives: Male
Rose-breasted Grosbeak in the Hood!
A very curious bird looking back at me! He emerged through the dense shrubby understory with breakfast in mouth. With a proportionately oversized beak, strong-white eye-stripe, and feathers that looked like half-female, half male Rose-breasted Grosbeak, I wasn’t sure what interesting creature was in our neighborhood this morning. Then he flashed his red under wings in take-off and I knew it was a Rose-breasted Grosbeak in some stage of development. This little guy is a male hatch year stopping over during his long migration south. Perhaps he will spend the winter in Cuba, or Panama, or even further south to Ecuador.
From Cornell – “Most Rose-breasted Grosbeaks fly across the Gulf of Mexico in a single night, although some migrate over land around the Gulf. Grosbeaks that winter in Panama and northern South America tend to be from eastern parts of the breeding range, while those wintering in Mexico and Central America tend to be from western parts.”
The second video is of a male Rose-breasted Grosbeak that stopped over at Niles Pond for a few days last spring.
Wiggly Worms for Breakfast and Other Wonderments
So many wonderful wildlife happenings at this time of year! Caterpillars hatching and growing, songbird and shorebird fledglings learning to forage and to fly, young herons studying the ways of fish and frogs, early migrants beginning their southward journey – I have a huge backlog of wildlife stories/photos/footage to share from pond and sea and will start with this one –
I believe this may be our ‘Rainbow’ House Finch from last autumn. Notice he sports not only red feathers, but also yellow and orange. Read more here about the reasons for the yellow and orange pigments here: https://kimsmithdesigns.com/2023/11/20/yellow-orange-rainbow-house-finch/
How to tell the Difference Between a Male and Female Hummingbird
This past week we have had a mini entourage of three male Ruby-throated Hummingbirds vying for the affections of one female. We think the boys have moved on but she has stayed. This is not unusual behavior. If she mated with one, which I think I saw but it was so fast I am not really certain, she will then build a nest and raise the youngsters all on her own.
In one clip, the hummingbird is cleaning it’s bill, in another, the female is going pooh. As you may or may not know, the male Ruby-throated Hummingbirds are easy to spot as they have the red gorget (pronounced GOR-jit) throat feathers. When light hits the iridescent feathers, the gorget lights up a brilliant red, otherwise, the gorget looks like a deep brown throat patch. The female’s throat is the same color as her breast feathers. You can see the female at 1:05. All the other clips are of the boys.
Rose-breasted Grosbeak Fly-by!
When you hear Baltimore Orioles, but a Rose-breasted Grosbeak flies by instead- what fabulous underwing color!!.
American Wigeon Joins the Scene!
A small duck with a big personality, the little male American Wigeon flew on the scene, disgruntling all the Mallards. He darted in and out of their feeding territory, foraging along the shoreline, while the Mallards let him know with no uncertainty, by nipping and chasing, that they did not want him there. American Wigeon was not deterred and just kept right on feeding.
Smaller than a Mallard but larger than a Bufflehead, the pretty male flashes a brilliant green swath across the eye and has a beautiful baby blue bill. They are also colloquially called “Baldplate” because the white patch atop his head resembles a bald man’s head.
Male American Wigeon and Male Mallard
According to naturalist and avian illustrator Barry van Dusen in “Bird Observer, “In Massachusetts, they are considered rare and local breeders, uncommon spring migrants, and locally common migrants in fall. They are also fairly common winter residents in a few localities. Spring migration occurs in April and fall migrants arrive in September with many remaining until their preferred ponds freeze over.”
After looking at the range map below, I wonder if our little American Wigeon has been here all winter or if he is a spring migrant. If you have seen an American Wigeon, please write and let us know. Thank you!
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Female American Wigeon (above) image courtesy Google image search