Tag: habitat

Posted on

Evening Grosbeaks

An evening grosbeak perches on a branch of a chinese pistache tree, Sunnyvale CA.
An evening grosbeak perches on a branch of a chinese pistache tree, Sunnyvale CA.

I recently finished processing a series of photos I took of a flock of evening grosbeaks that invaded a neighborhood in Sunnyvale, CA, a little south of my home. For several days, the birds were repeating a pattern of flying into the area in the morning, and perching on a row of chinese pistache trees, so I decided to head down and see if I could locate the flock.

I arrived in the neighborhood just after dawn when I figured the birds would be busy eating. I began to walk up and down the streets, occasionally stopping to listen for the distinct crunching sound of the birds eating the fruit off of the trees. All the while I was under the watchful eyes of the residents, who probably don’t often see someone walking past their house with an 800mm lens mounted to a large tripod.

An evening grosbeak perches on a branch of a chinese pistache tree and eats a small seed, Sunnyvale CA.
An evening grosbeak perches on a branch of a chinese pistache tree and eats a small seed, Sunnyvale CA.

Finally, I was on the verge of giving up and decided to make my way back to my car. On my way back, I passed under one of the many chinese pistache trees and heard the soft crunch crunch crunch. Looking up I could just see one or two of the grosbeaks in the upper most branches. Thrilled, I set up my gear on the sunny side of the tree (so that the birds would be front lit), and waited until some of them ventured to lower fruit.

An evening grosbeak reaches for food on the branches on a chinese pistache tree, Sunnyvale, CA.
An evening grosbeak reaches for food on the branches on a Chinese pistache tree, Sunnyvale, CA.

In all I hung out for about 20 minutes before the birds lifted off and flew elsewhere. It is always a treat to get such opportunities to photograph seasonal migrants.

Posted on

Sooty Grouse

Female sooty grouse can be seen in wooded areas, usually on or close to the ground. Males can be heard throughout the Sierra Nevada, but are much harder to spot, as their deep booming vocalizations are difficult to triangulate. Yosemite National Park.
Female sooty grouse can be seen in wooded areas, usually on or close to the ground. Males can be heard throughout the Sierra Nevada, but are much harder to spot, as their deep booming vocalizations are difficult to triangulate. Yosemite National Park.

On a recent backpacking trip to Yosemite I managed to see and photograph a female sooty grouse. I had been hearing the booming calls of the male all day long as I made my way up switchbacks out of the valley, climbing ever higher into the high country. Although very vocal, the males are very hard to spot. They create a deep booming call that resonates at a low frequency. This allows the call to travel a great distance, but it is difficult to discern directionality of the sound. In addition, males will fly up into tree branches to broadcast, while most of the life of the female is spent foraging on the forest floor.

A female sooty grouse picks through the forest needles looking for food, Yosemite National Park.
A female sooty grouse picks through the forest needles looking for food, Yosemite National Park.

Indeed this is where I found the female – scratching for food in a sparse forest next to a creek. This situation called for me to stretch my stalking skills to the maximum, because my longest lens I had with me on my trip was my 70-200 mm, and this was on a full frame camera. I usually photograph birds with an 800mm on a 1.6X cropped sensor, so I was at a severe disadvantage to my usual setup.

Creeping ever closer, I managed not to disturb her too much. My best shots came when she ducked behind a tree and wandered into a small clearing. I managed to sneak up directly behind the tree, and then peak around the side.

Trying for these shots in a dark forest required I gather as much light to the sensor as possible. This meant shooting wide open (f/4 was the best this lens had to offer), using the lens’ image stabilizer (of course!), and shooting at a high ISO.

Although this is not the most colorful bird I have ever photographed, I was excited none the less. It was a life bird for me, and it was thrilling to have such an opportunity when I was not on a trip specifically geared toward bird photography, and I didn’t have my optimum gear with me.

Posted on

Doves of Hawaii

A zebra dove stands in short grass
Two zebra doves perch side by side on a tree branch
Two zebra doves perch side by side on a tree branch

The Hawaiian dove population is dominated by two species, the zebra dove and spotted dove. Parts of Hawaii also contain the Mourning Dove, but its population is small by comparison. Zebra doves are the smaller species, with a distinct barred pattern around its neck and shoulders.

Unlike other doves who forage in large groups, zebra doves tend to eat alone or in pairs. They can commonly be found eating short grass or grass seed.

A zebra dove stands in short grass
A zebra dove stands in short grass

Spotted doves are larger and feature a spotted pattern around the back of the neck. They can be seen in larger flocks and in populated areas have become accustomed to the presence of humans.

A spotted dove perches on a tree branch
A spotted dove perches on a tree branch

Zebra doves were introduced to Hawaii in the 1920s, and spotted doves were likely introduced around the same time. Both quickly spread to all islands and in some areas are the most populous bird seen.

A spotted dove walks through short grass
A spotted dove walks through short grass

On my recent trip to Kauai, I got plenty of opportunities to photograph both species in different environments. While both seemed to be more skittish than the Nene, I found that if I was still enough and remained low to the ground these birds would eventually approach reasonably close to me.

Posted on

Upcoming Publication – Bay Nature Magazine

This photo of a striped skunk will appear in the upcoming April – June issue of Bay Nature, a quarterly magazine promoting the diversity of the natural world around the San Francisco Bay Area. The image will appear in an article about the art and science of tracking the wild creatures that populate our increasingly urbanized world.

A striped skunk poses for a portrait in pickleweed growing along the San Francisco Bay
A striped skunk poses for a portrait in pickleweed growing along the San Francisco Bay

You can read more about the capture of this image in an earlier post.

Copyright 2017 Hank Christensen