Great Blue Heron ponders how to eat a catfish whole

Okay, you're a Great Blue Heron and you have caught a big catfish for your meal.  How do you eat it? 

Well, you play with it and poke it with your beak for about 20 minutes. (repeat poking and playing as necessary). Then you are ready for the "big swallow" (see bottom photo). 

This was taken at Cattail Marsh Scenic Wetlands and Boardwalk in Tyrrell Park in Beaumont, TX -- a popular birding spot.

Excuse the fuzziness -- but this heron was a long way away and wasn't going to tolerate me getting any closer (fearing I would steal his meal).

Blackbird well skilled at diversionary tactics

This agitated Red-Winged Blackbird was doing everything he could to catch my attention and draw it away from his nest in Mishawaka's (Indiana) Central Park on the St. Joseph River.  When I turned around, he would fly in front of me to keep me looking at him

I didn't see the nest, but I got a good idea where it was when I walked over to a tree near the overlook by the dam.  He made a couple of close swooshes past me to make sure I was focusing on him.

He was a darned good watchman.

Blue Heron stands sentry at fishing grounds

Despite the fact that this Great Blue Heron seems to favor this Mishawaka, IN, park as a favorite fishing hole, he didn't seem to be having much luck the day we spent some time together.  The spot is in Central Park at a small dam.  You can see the splash from the dam in the background.

Blue Heron stands watch at Mishawaka Dam in South Bend, IN

This blue heron was standing watch below the Mishawaka Dam at Central Park in South Bend, Indiana where we were visiting my daughter's family last week.
It didn't look like he was having much luck finding lunch. Maybe he was just trying to keep cool in the 90-degree heat.

Great Egret does a high five

How about a high five?

You always see egrets standing on their legs and rarely see them using them for anything else.  In this case, the Great Egret is getting ready to do some scratching.  It does, however, look like he's doing a high five.

The shot is from a small bayou at the edge of the Atchafalaya Basin in Louisiana.

Ducklings get lessons on grooming

"Okay kids, you had your dinner and your play time,  now it is time to clean up."  A mother duck, sheppards  her ducklings, teaching them good hygiene habits.  The scene is from Lake Washington.

Eagle brags about his Salmon catch

After an hour of watching this Alaskan  eagle from afar, as we were walking back to the bus, he zoomed to a tree by the road which we were walking past.   I was so excited to shoot the shot, that I did not notice the salmon hanging down.   You can barely see it, but he has already eaten the head off of his catch.  This shot was from our recent Alaskan cruise on the Norwegian Jewel.

Eastern Blue Bird

Eastern Bluebirds aren't a common site, chez moi, so I was glad to see this visitor.

Red-Headed Woodpecker

This Red-Headed Woodpecker was flying around City Park in Baton Rouge, unbeknownst to the kids having fun with more terrestrial pursuits. AllAboutBirds.com notes "These birds don’t act quite like most other woodpeckers: they’re adept at catching insects in the air, and they eat lots of acorns and beech nuts, often hiding away extra food in tree crevices for later."

Roadrunner

This Roadrunner I met in Austin this weekend didn't feel comfortable enough to let me get close.  He did however let me get close enough for a zoomed in shot.

Egret unruffled by my camera

You know that this egret had to feel pretty safe with me shooting pictures of him, if he took the time to scratch.  There was a good bit of swamp between the two of us.  Still, he was playing it pretty cool.

Greetings from the big-billed bunch

This was the committee that flew in to greet us at the Bolivar-Galveston ferry a couple weeks ago. This flock of ferry followers were waiting for us to get off so the boat so it could resume churning the waters for their favorite foods.

Tree top egrets post watch

In Lacassine, LA, these two were posting watch at the top of the tree as their feathery fellows came circling in.  On the left is a Ibis, and on the right, a Cattle Egret.

Hitchhiking hummingbird

On our recent Caribean cruise, this cute fellow was a hitchhiker that joined us just offshore.  I think he disembarked in Jamaica.

Heron "hand" stand

I don't know what the one-legged stand is all about. Perhaps this tri-colored heron is just practicing gymnastics with a goal of a run at the Featherlympics?

Tongue is bird's best tool

A sparrow performs magic with his tongue. After cracking a seed with his beak he uses his tongue to flit out the shell an preserve the tasty germ of the seed.

Food fights at the bird feeder are serious

I told you, stay away from my side of the bird feeder, you thief.  The attacking sparrow, lets the snacker know he is serious by putting his claws on him.

Hummingbird -- That's a lot of nectar, by golly.

This is something new for the Hummingbirds that have been hanging around our backyard.  This guy stands on top of the plastic petals and stares at the nectar reservoir.  It's like he's planning how long it will take him to drink it all.

The rest of them will take their drink and then fly away or fly up to the top to play King on the Hummingbird Feeder -- chasing after any rival that comes near it -- including, one time, giving me a ear-popping buzzing as I was walking past.

Black-Crowned Night Heron

I go all over the place trying to find these birds, then I walk out my door a few months back to find one is there in the ditch.   This is a Black-Crowned Night Heron.
--steve buser

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Skipping Sanderling

A Sanderling (Calidris alba) skips rapidly across the sandy beach at Perdido Key, Florida, finding a lot of good things to eat on the shore because of the high wave action in the Gulf of Mexico.
--steve buser

Sanderling, Florida, Perdido Key

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