Richly illustrated with paintings, photographs, and sound recordings of featured birds, these video podcasts are an entertaining and educational supplement to the Peterson Field Guide to Birds of North America.
These guys are super territorial! They make me laugh when I see them chasing big birds or swooping down has we walk our dog. Better watch out or they'll peck your head or back!
Me and my kids favorite road time killer is pointing out raptors and scavengers here in the hill country. We saw a beautiful caracara eating a dead raccoon on the road and the beak was so unique
My son and I heard a faint chirping. So he ran it through Merlin which recommended Bay-breasted Warbler. Finally we spotted it. It was indeed a Bay-breasted Warbler.
I've been listening to and recording mockingbirds for years. I personally do not believe they are only hearing other birds and mimicking. I believe they are also improvising.
It is nice to see all of these nice posts about Northern Mockingbirds but my story is different. I was doing yardwork and the Northern Mockingbird who is nested in my tree is harassing me to the point that when I was washing my car it literally flew down and bit me on the keister. They are fearless and very territorial. It did not draw blood but for a minute I thought I was in a Hitchcock movie without the the benefit of seeing the beautiful Tippi Hedren.
I grew up in Southeast Alaska where a variety of thrushes lived, including the North American Robin and the Swainson's Thrush. My most favorite songbird was the Swainson's. I would sit captivated for hours, especially in the evening hours as the sun set. The swainson's would start its song with a single note, followed by the ascending warble. I remember times as a young boy mesmerized by the song of the Swainson's Thrush. There were times when I was surrounded by anywhere from 3 to as many as 10 thrushes, all singing their best love song call as the sun went down and the day ended. Those were some of my most memorable times of my youth. Sadly, most songbird voices are absent to me now. My hearing is damaged and is greatly diminished, replaced with an acute loss of high pitch sounds and acute tinnitus (ringing in the ears...). I am often envious and frustrated when my wife excitedly exclaims happily about being surrounded by the birds singing in the trees around our house. I was able to hear most of the bird songs in this video because I was wearing a good pair of on-ear headphones and the volume on my computer cranked high. The recording of the Swainson's Thrush in this video, is one of the best recordings of this beloved bird I have ever heard. Hearing that lovely and melodic voice brought emotions to the surface and tears to my eyes as I heard that lovely little voice that has been absent from my life for over 40 years. Thank you for this beautiful and well made, informative video.
I sit at work looking out the window, and I've noticed this semi white tailed bird. I've been in awe of it and have been trying to figure out a way to find out what kind of bird it is. I took a video and then used google Lens, and now I know what it is. It is a pretty bird
Well you came close to what I saw today but no cigar! Driving along a bumpy gravel country road a larger bird than a raven flew up out of a watery ditch as I approached. It looked almost solid black/brown with a shorter fanned tail more copper than reddish under the tail. It was massive. It turned its head ever so slightly to peer back at me. I’ve seen everything from smaller raptors (hawks) to Eagles. This bird entirely caught me off guard. I’m going to keep searching. I thought I saw them all!! Nope. I’ll never forget it.
I had a hawk soaring over my backyard with black and white banding on the tail and one of the bands was a orangish-yellow. And now it's driving me crazy trying to figure out what raptor I saw. It had multiple black/brown and white bands on the tail, but one band was colored yellow.
I could hear a Bicknell's Thrush while hiking up Bridal Veil Falls. I lived right down the street from the trail head. Bicknell's is uncommon and sometimes can be heard on Cannon Mountains shoulder.
These guys have accents/ dialects. I know this because I've lived in AZ, OK, MS and TN... They have completely different songs...though the TN and MS mocking birds had similar songs.
Here in Louisiana these were common years ago haven't seen or heard one in several years I blame that on loss of habitat what once we're open fields are now patches of woods that went into tree farms years ago along with some old pasture areas
