Bird a Day: Dickcissel

Dickcissel are birds of grasslands and prairies and are pretty rare in Jefferson County.  There are several singing males at the landfill however and this guy approached close and was belting away his tune.  Dickcissels may not be common in our area but they amass in the thousands on their migration south to northern South America in Venezuela and Columbia.  They gather in such strong numbers in Venezuela that they are considered pests by farmers and unfortunately their roosts are crop dusted with pesticides to kill them in large numbers.  They are still a numerous bird but this is becoming such an increasingly common practice in their wintering grounds that attention is being paid to their population numbers and conservation of the species is underway. 

Male Dickcissels look like little meadowlarks.  They have a yellow breast with a dark black V below the throat.  Males have beautiful chestnut colored shouldered patch and a yellow eye stripe.  Their song is a dry dick, dick, ciss, ciss, ciss, which is where they get their name.  Females resemble female House Sparrows but with yellow on the eyes and breast. 

Posted in: Dickcissel,video

Bird a Day: Red-winged Blackbird

Here is a bird you might be familiar with, the Red-winged Blackbird.  These birds are numerous in wetland habitats and cling to cattails as they sing.  They are highly polygynous, a male can have as many as 15 females nesting in his territory during the breeding season.  Males defend their territories aggressively against rival males and will even attack larger species like Great Blue Herons or hawks. 

Red-winged Blackbirds have jet black plumage with red and yellow epaulets on their shoulders which they flare at rival males when displaying.  The epaulets may not be seen when birds are not being territorial.  Their bill is straight and conical which they use to eat insects and seeds.  The female Red-winged Blackbird looks completely different from the male.  She is a drab brown with much streaking on the breast and back.  Females have a yellow-orange throat and a white stripe above the eye.  See the video below of a male Red-winged Blackbird calling on his territory.

Posted in: Red-winged Blackbird,video

Cedar Grove Industrial Park

Cedar Grove Industrial Park is a interesting place to look for birds and other wildlife.  It is south of Shepherdsville at exit 116 off of I-65.  Part of the site is developed into an industrial park with huge warehouses, but just as much of the site is weedy, shrubby, and wooded.  I usually go out there on the weekends when there is less activity and truck traffic.

The birds were singing up a storm even though I was there around midday.  All the species you would expect in this type of habitat were represented in good numbers, birds like: Common Yellowthroat, Prairie Warbler, Yellow-breasted Chat, and Field Sparrows.  There is a small creek that runs through the site and it was still swollen with water from all the rain we've been having.  The creek attracts other birds like Eastern Phoebe, Indigo Bunting, and Blue Grosbeak.  Below is a common bird and not-so-common bird.  I'm sure everyone knows the American Robin but I bet few of you have seen the Lark Sparrow below. 

Lark Sparrows are more of a western and great plains bird and their range barely extends into Kentucky.  They are sometimes seen in western Kentucky but are pretty rare up here.  I suspect the reason I found them at Cedar Grove is because of the type of habitat that is out there.  It is a real unique kind of field with small pine trees, large bushes, grasses, and exposed shale gravel.  This is perfect habitat for the Lark Sparrow and is not a habitat type that is seen too often around here.

One of my favorite things about Cedar Grove is the shale quarry.  There is a big hole dug out of the side of a hill where they are mining shale for construction.  The little nooks and crannies in the rocks create great nesting spots for Northern Rough-winged Swallows.  They can be seen flying all over, zooming past within feet of your head, and just as quickly be out of sight, nestled deep in the rock face.  They were flying so fast I failed to get a picture of them, but do yourself a favor and check out quarry and swallows. 

Look close in the picture below, there is a Rough-winged Swallow sitting on the rocks.  That was about the only time I could catch one sitting still.

Below is a video I made of some of the things I saw at Cedar Grove today.  Hope you enjoy.  :)

Posted in: American Robin,Cedar Grove Industrial Park,Lark Sparrow,Northern Rough-winged Swallow,video

Immature Red-headed Woodpecker

I got up close and personal with an immature Red-headed Woodpecker yesterday.  He was fine with me photographing and videoing him from about 10 feet away.  I think he was so engrossed in what he was doing that he didn't even notice me there.

I know this guy is an immature because I've been seeing him for some time and he has gone from having a completely brown head to a mostly red head now.  Most birds go through two molts a year, usually before and after breeding.  The spring molt is called the "alternate" molt because only certain feathers are replaced, namely the colorful feathers used to attract mates.  After a long summer of breeding, a majority of birds molt into their "basic" plumage, which is less colorful but helps camouflage the bird since nice bright feathers are no longer needed to attract mates.  Molting is important because it replaces old worn feathers that would not be suitable for traversing the hundreds of miles most birds fly in the spring and fall.

Here is what he looked like at the beginning of the month.  This photo was taken on April 8th...

And this is what he looks like now.  Almost all his head feathers are replaced, just the patch on his cheek and a few strays before his head will be completely red.

He was hammering away at the tree, throwing sawdust to the side and scarfing any bugs or seeds he could find.

I thought this shot was comical.  He was scooting up the tree and using his rectrices (tail feathers) to prop himself up.  All woodpeckers have stiff tail feathers that are used for propping themselves up while they climb trees.  Most birds replace their tail feathers starting with the innermost feathers and work their way out toward the outer tail feathers.  Interestingly, woodpeckers have evolved to do just the opposite.  They molt their outer tail feathers first and replace their central tail feathers last.  The reason for this is because their inner tail feathers are the strongest and are the main way woodpeckers move around on trees.  By molting them last they retain this ability until all the outer feathers are replaced and can compensate for their central tail feathers in keeping them propped up against tree trunks.

I was able to take a couple videos of him while he worked on the tree snag.  The footage is a bit shaky because I was hand holding the camera so I apologize if you get dizzy watching.  Extra points if you can name me some of the birds heard in the background.  I tell you what, be the first to name a bird you hear in the background and I will send you a free 4x6 print.  Leave a comment by clicking the "comments" button underneath the title of the post or by clicking here.

Posted in: Red-headed Woodpecker,video

Garvin Brown: Sunset and a Loon

After the "storm" yesterday, my wife and I made a trip to Garvin Brown in the evening.  There were a lot of birds and critters about, making it an exciting evening.  We will start with our cold-blooded friends first.

I found this Black Racer relaxing all tangled up in a tree.  These guys get pretty big, up to six feet long.  I've seen more of these guys in the last few days than I have ever before.  They love to bask on roads and sunny paths, which is where I've seen most of them lately.  This guy caught my eye as we were walking by and seemed fine with our presence.  Only when I got too close for a head shot did he slither away.

The trees are in full bloom, and Garvin Brown is full of what I'm calling naturalized Bradford Pears.  They appeared to be the only tree in bloom but the sight of several of them lined up along both sides of the path was beautiful.  Spring Azures, a species of small bluish-gray butterfly, were flitting back and forth between the violas and the Bradford Pear flowers.  They would only stay for a second before erratically taking off and flying high in circles, only to land on the flower directly adjacent to the one they were just on.

The very tops of the Bradford Pears made a great spot to advertise your fitness and ability to breed...if you are a Red-winged Blackbird.  Their lovely songs providing a background chorus to the evening.

Red-winged Blackbird

Initially I wanted to go to Garvin Brown because I was hoping to see some Tree Swallows back at the nest boxes, bickering back and forth and fighting over real estate.  I observed at several boxes but was not lucky enough to find any Tree Swallows.  Looks like I will have to come back again soon.

I did manage to find and photograph several other birds however.  The most numerous being Brown Thrashers, most numerous except the grackles and starlings.  Brown Thrashers are in the same family as mockingbirds (Mimidae) and have a similar song.  They both mimic other birds, but Brown Thrashers repeat their song in sets of two phrases, while Northern Mockingbirds repeat the same phrase three times or more.  Check out the other birds I found below.

Brown Thrasher

Northern Cardinal

White-throated Sparrow

This Northern Mockingbird wasn't as vocal as the thrashers, but he did let me get a lot closer for some pictures.

Perhaps the most exciting thing to happen last night was the eerie sound coming from the river.  I've been wanting to hear this haunting call for some time and was in the right place at the right time last night.  The call was that of the Common Loon.  They are fairly common on the Ohio River but this was the first time I had ever heard one.  Watch the video below, the call is at the very end. 

Posted in: Black Racer,Bradford Pear,Brown Thrasher,Common Loon,Garvin Brown,Northern Cardinal,Northern Mockingbird,Red-winged Blackbird,video,White-throated Sparrow

Sunflower Sunset

This is my first attempt at time lapse video.  I would say it is decent for a first try.


This is actually the second video I made, but the first one did not show enough motion so I deleted it.  I had the amazing experience of sitting in the truck, watching the camera click away on the tripod, when all of a sudden a Sharp-shinned Hawk landed directly on top of my camera.  He must have been intrigued by the sound of the shutter repeatedly going off.  I opened the door to the truck and he flew off.  I was hoping this would all be captured in the video, but much to my chagrin, it was not.

Posted in: time lapse,video

Video Testing

I was testing out the video function on my new camera on Sunday. I'm still learning and the weather wasn't cooperating but I think I got a couple decent videos. Check em out.


Song Sparrow from Ryan Ankeny on Vimeo.


Northern Cardinal from Ryan Ankeny on Vimeo.

Also, don't forget that the Great Backyard Bird Count is coming up.  It takes place between Feb. 18-21 and anyone can participate.  Check out the website for more info.

Posted in: Northern Cardinal,Song Sparrow,video