Black-billed Magpie

I am linking up with Wild Bird Wednesday and Nature Notes

For this week's wild bird I am sharing the Black-billed Magpie from our visit to Rocky Mtn Nat'l Park.
The Black-billed Magpies were a common bird seen during our Colorado vacation.. Many would be hanging around the parking lots and picnic grounds..

The Black-billed Magpie is in the Crow family. They are found in the western half of the USA, from Alaska to New Mexico. In the photo above you can see their tail makes up for half of their length.

The Magpie is black with white shoulders and white belly. They have dark blue-green wings and tail.  I think they are handsome birds and look beautiful in flight.

I hope you enjoyed seeing the Magpie, they are cool looking birds..
Thanks for stopping by my post and for all the nice comments.

Join in and post your birdies and to see more beautiful and wonderful bird photos please visit:
 Stewart's Wild Bird Wednesday and Michelle's  Nature Notes.  Thanks to both of our hosts... Michelle for Nature Notes and our host Stewart of Wild Bird Wednesday.  Happy Birding and have a wonderful week!

Vermilion Flycatcher

I am linking up with Wild Bird Wednesday and Nature Notes


For this week's wild bird I am sharing the Vermilion Flycatcher. One of my favorite sightings in Belize..  This was not my first sighting of this bird, they are my first photos of the pretty Vermilion Flycatcher. I actually saw it during our one day visit to Belize while we were on a April 2006 Western Caribbean cruise and a cave-tubing excursion.
This bird was seen during my birding tour near the Sittee River in Hopkins Belize.  Part of our tour included some birding along the road on the way to the river.. Whenever we spotted a bird we would stop to view the bird up close and take photo if we wanted.

The Vermilion Flycatcher is a stunning color unlike other drab flycatchers..The males are bright red and have dark brown plumage. They prefer open areas but usually near water. They eat insects such as flies, grasshoppers and beetles.

 

A different angle of the Vermilion Flycatcher showing dark brown plumage on it's back and wings. It Is a gorgeous bird and one of my many favorites.

 Thanks for stopping by my post and for all the nice comments.

Join in and post your birdies and to see more beautiful and wonderful bird photos please visit:
 Stewart's Wild Bird Wednesday and Michelle's  Nature Notes.  Thanks to our host Michelle our host Stewart.  Happy Birding and have a wonderful week!

Bare-throated Tiger Heron

I am linking up with Wild Bird Wednesday and Nature Notes

I am sharing another Belize bird..the Bare-throated Tiger Heron.. It was not a lifer, I saw this bird for the first time in Costa Rica. This bird during a birding trip on the Sittee River near Hopkins, Belize..It was a little difficult taking bird photos from a moving boat..even though once in awhile we stopped..

The Bare-throated Tiger Heron has a naked yellow throat, the adult has a black crown, dark greyish-olive legs and a grey face.

 Their underparts are a dull cinnamon brown.  A large species, they are 31 inches in length and weighs 42 oz..

The Bare-throated Tiger Heron can be found from Mexico to Northwestern Colombia.

 They can be found around fresh water and mangrove habitats..on river and lake banks.

As we watched for birds along the river we spotted a few of the Bare-throated Tiger Herons in various spots along the river..I hope you enjoyed seeing the Bare-throated Tiger Heron..

 Thanks for stopping by my post and for all the nice comments.

Join in and post your birdies and to see more beautiful and wonderful bird photos please visit:
 Stewart's Wild Bird Wednesday and Michelle's  Nature Notes.  Thanks to our host Michelle our host Stewart.  Happy Birding and have a wonderful week!

Masked Tityra

I am linking up with Wild Bird Wednesday and Nature Notes


For this week's wild bird I am sharing another lifer from Belize the Masked Tityra. We saw this bird from the open air dinning room of the Sleeping Giant Rainforest Lodge. I saw many  of my Belize lifers just from the lodge's dinning room..

 Sorry for the quality of these shots, it was a gray day and I had to zoom in quite a distance to the tree.. But, you can definitely make out the id of this Masked Tityra. A medium sized passerine bird, placed in the Cotinga family and found on the forest-edge and woodlands of Mexico and Central America.

The Masked Tityra has black and white plumage, black face and a red eye ring. It also has a pinkish-red bill.

I hope you enjoyed my Belize lifer.. the Masked Tityra.

 Thanks for stopping by my post and for all the nice comments.

Join in and post your birdies and to see more beautiful and wonderful bird photos please visit:
 Stewart's Wild Bird Wednesday and Michelle's  Nature Notes.  Thanks to our host Michelle our host Stewart.  Happy Birding and have a wonderful week!

Olive-throated Parakeet

I am linking up with Wild Bird Wednesday and Nature Notes

For this week I am sharing my Olive-throated Parakeet seen near the Sittee River in Hopkins, Belize.

The Olive-throated Parakeet a lifer for me, is also known as a Conure or Parrot. They have a pale bill and a green head, back and tail. They have a olive throat and a bold white eyering..

They can be found in Mexico, Caribbean and in Central America. I found this bird during a birding trip from our Almond Beach Resort in Hopkins.. I hope you enjoyed my post and the Olive-throated Parakeet. Thanks for stopping by my post and for all the nice comments.

Join in and post your birdies and to see more beautiful and wonderful bird photos please visit:
 Stewart's Wild Bird Wednesday and Michelle's  Nature Notes.  Thanks to our host Michelle our host Stewart.  Happy Birding and have a wonderful week!

White-collared Seedeater

I am linking up with Wild Bird Wednesday and Nature Notes


This week I am sharing one of my Belize lifers the White-collared Seedeater. A Passerine in the typical seedeater genus.. It seemed to be a common bird seen around our Sleeping Giant Rainforest Lodge and all around Belize..

The White-collared Seedeater has a broad white collar, white rump and a black hood. It is native to Mexico and Central America.

 Another male White-collared Seedeater, this one looks like it was a little wet from the rain.

 They are found in savannahs, grasslands, shrub lands and vegetation along rivers.

 The female White-collared Seedeater. Their diet consists of seeds and insects.

  Another shot of the cute female White-collared Seedeater. The females wings and tail are brown, whitish wingbars. I saw these birds often around the grounds, mostly in the grass and sometimes perched in a small bush.. I hope you enjoyed my new wild bird.  


Thanks for stopping by my post and for all the nice comments.

Join in and post your birdies and to see more beautiful and wonderful bird photos please visit:
 Stewart's Wild Bird Wednesday and Michelle's  Nature Notes.  Thanks to our host Michelle our host Stewart.  Happy Birding and have a wonderful week!

Belize Mayan Ruins

  I am linking up with Mosaic Monday and Our World Tuesday 

More on our Belize vacation

Thanks to Bryan at our  Sleeping Giant Belize on our second day in Belize hubby and I took a tour to the Mayan Ruins.. The tour was with  Caves Branch  to the Mayan Ruins called Xunantunich and Cahal Pech. 

Above are some shots of the Xunantunich Mayan Ruins. At 130 feet high these ruins are the second tallest in Belize and located above the Mopan River . The name Xunantunich means stone woman. This site served as a civic ceremonial center. At the time 200,000 people lived in Belize.

Another view of the Xunantunich Mayan Ruins

A closeup of  the top of  the Xunantunich Mayan Ruins.

A Spider Monkey was seen hanging in one of the trees at the ruins.

The Cahal Pech Mayan Ruins sits above the banks of the Macal River and is located near the town of San Ignacio.  The meaning of the name  Cahal Pech is the Place of the Ticks. It was a hilltop home of an elite Mayan family.  Also included with the ruins photos are the Iguana,  Sulphur-bellied Flycatcher lifer and a Golden-fronted Woodpecker lifer.

To reach the Mayan ruins our tour took us on this ferry ride across the river.

The ferry ride gave me ample time to snap off a few pic's of this Green Kingfisher..

Some critters from around the ruins..the Spider Monkey, a Brown Jay lifer, Green Kingfisher, Swallows, ferry ride. Our tour guide also made a stop at a local restaurant in town for lunch..I had a yummy burrito.

In the far left are some local crafts tents set up for shopping located near the ferry to cross the river. It was a nice tour and we had a great guide and driver.. I would highly recommend Caves Branch Adventure Co for a tour in Belize. 


Thanks for stopping by and for the comments.

Join in on the fun and for more wonderful photos please visit  Mosaic Monday and more
 from  Our World Tuesday

 Thanks to our host: Mary our host of Mosaic Monday and to the hosting group of Our World Tuesday: Arija, Gattina, Lady Fi, Sylvia, Sandy and Jennifer.  I wish everyone a happy week ahead!

Saturday's Critters #26

Saturday's Critters #26

Hello and happy weekend!  OK, it's time to share your critters. I hope to see you join in on the Critter party.


I am sharing a few of the birds and a lizard seen at the Sleeping Giant Rainforest Lodge in Belize. I saw many new birds just walking around the grounds of our lodge.

Beside the lodge was a farm with free roaming chickens, duck and Guineafowl. I believe are these Guineafowl. During our walks these birds would come close to hubby and I.  It was like they were greeting us..

The Green Kingfisher is the smallest kingfisher and were a common sight to see down at the river.. Sometimes we would see two flying or hanging out together.. I believe my photo is of the female or maybe a juvenile, the male would have a rusty colored band around the chest..The female has two green bands around the chest.  I think there was a nest on the opposite side of the river.

This close up shows that there is a start of the second green belly band of the female..so most likely we saw the juvenile Green Kingfishers.

The Brown Basilisk also known as the Jesus lizard..only because they can be seen running across the top of the water. They were a common sight walking around the grounds of the lodge.

There were many different species of  hummingbirds  around the lodge.. above is the Violet Sabrewing.  It is one of the largest hummingbirds I have ever seen, a beautiful color too. This bird was a lifer for me..

The Blue-grey Tanager could be seen on the tree outside the dining room window..

While eating breakfast I watched a couple of the Blue-grey Tanagers were catching bugs in this tree.  My eyes were following the birds moving around more than on my food. I hope you enjoyed my critter post. Now, I want to see your critters..   I wish everyone a happy weekend.

An InLinkz Link-up

Thank you for linking up to the critter party. I appreciate the visits, comments and the support of my blogging friends..


To see more beautiful birds and cute critters, check out these two memes below.

Please visit:  I'd-Rather-B-Birdin. Thanks to the gracious host: Anni of I'd Rather-B-birdin. Also, sharing with Camera Critters. Thanks to Misty for hosting.

New Mexico lifers

  I am linking up with Mosaic Monday and Our World Tuesday 

November 24, 2013

First, just in case I do not "see" you before Thursday.... Happy Thanksgiving everyone. 

Today my post for November is up at BIRDING IS FUN   I would love if you could visit me there. Just click on the link above. I have posted a New Mexico trip report.

Today was the first time I did two posts in one day. The 24th of each month is my scheduled post for Birding is fun and it just worked out on a day I also do my Mosaic Monday post. So I tried to associate my Mosaic Monday and Our World Tuesday post with my Birding is Fun entry. So here I am just sharing my New Mexico lifers. I was able to see 14 new birds during my vacation to New Mexico and they are included in the mosaics below. These two posts will be my final posts on my New Mexico vacation. I hope I did not make everyone tired of seeing my vacation photos.

The Sage Thrasher, Pyrrhuloxia, Lark Bunting, Greater Roadrunner, Canyon Towhee and the pretty Gambel's Quail. I know I have shown some of these birds on previous post but there are a couple of new birds. The top middle shot was another bird I was looking forward to seeing on my trip the Pyrrhuloxia, I believe it is the female, well known for its crest and yellow beak. This bird is similar to our Cardinals.

Above are the Lesser Goldfinch, Western Grebe, Cave Swallows, Say's Phoebe, Ladder-backed Woodpecker and Least Sandpiper. The middle right photo is the Ladder-backed Woodpecker with its Zebra like stripes across the back and it is similar to the Downy Woodpecker.

I realized I left out my lifer the Red-Naped Sapsucker....So I am sharing a separate photo. It is a cutie and deserves the special attention.  Sorry for so many repeats, I promise this is the end.


On my Birding is fun post, I listed my lifers along with a lot of my other bird sightings and the places they were seen. I did a lot of research on the internet and on EBIRD as to where I could find new birds and places that are known to be birding hotspots.


My New Mexico Lifers:
Black Phoebe
Canyon Towhee
Cave Swallow
Gambel's Quail
Greater Roadrunner
Ladder-Backed Woodpecker
Lark Bunting
Least Sandpiper
Lesser Goldfinch
Pyrrhuloxia
Red-Naped Sapsucker
Sage Thrasher
Say's Phoebe
Western Grebe

Now that this trip has ended, I am now researching where our next vacation spot may be and what birds I can see on my next vacation. 
As always, I hope you enjoy my post and thanks for visiting my blog. I always appreciate your comments.

Join in on the fun and for more wonderful photos please visit  Mosaic Monday and more
 from  Our World Tuesday

 Thanks to our host: Mary our host of Mosaic Monday and to the hosting group of Our World Tuesday: Arija, Gattina, Lady Fi, Sylvia, Sandy and Jennifer.  I wish everyone a happy week!

Gambel's Quail lifer

I am linking up with Wild Bird Wednesday and Nature Notes

November 19, 2013

I am sharing another lifer from my  New Mexico trip..it is the Gambel's Quail..We saw this bird at the Bosque Del Apache wildlife refuge.  Hubby and I were taking a break near the visitor's center when these birds popped up out of the brush.  The Gambel's Quail is easily recognized by their top knots and the scaly plumage on their undersides. The males have copper feathers on the top of their heads, black faces with white stripes above their eyes. I think they are very pretty and unusual birds, I was happy to add them to my life list.

We saw the Gambel's Quail near a cute gazebo with a bench, were hubby and I were sitting.  I could hear them first before seeing them and then all of sudden a group of the Quail appeared.

Once in awhile, one of the Gambel's Quail would hop onto this log which was a little more in the open for photos.  It habitat is the desert regions like where we were visiting in New Mexico. The Gambel's Quail is named after William Gambel a 19th century naturalist and explorer of the Southwestern United States.

I hope you enjoyed my pretty Gambel's Quail, it was another one of my favorite sightings in New Mexico. Thanks for visiting and for the nice comments.

Join in and post your birdies and to see more beautiful and wonderful bird photos please visit:
 Stewart's Wild Bird Wednesday and Michelle's  Nature Notes.  Thanks to our host Michelle our host Stewart.  Happy Birding and have a wonderful week!

More Bosque Del Apache NWR

November 16, 2013

Linking up Camera Critters and I'd-Rather-b-birdin  
I hope you are joining in and posting your birds and critters.

Can you believe half of November is over already? Gee, the days are just flying by. Pretty soon it will be Thanksgiving, time to prefer for the big family Thanksgiving day dinner.

 Above are some of the birds we saw while visiting the Bosque Del Apache wildlife refuge: the large photo is the Sandhill Cranes, top right is the Roadrunner, Gambel's Quail, White-Crowned Sparrow, Bottom left is a Marsh Wren, Snow Geese, female Northern Harrier and a couple of Killdeer.

 Neat reflection of the Killdeer.

 A Sora not far from the boardwalk trail. The Sora is a small waterbird, breeds in marshy areas.

Pepe le Pew thankfully running away from us, as we headed back to our car.

 Cute bunny also seen near the boardwalk trail.

Female Northern Harrier showing off its owlish looking face. The male Harrier is grey and is called the Grey Ghost. I hope you enjoy my birds and critters from the Bosque del Apache wildlife refuge.

Thanks for stopping by and  I wish everyone a happy weekend.

 To see more beautiful photos and cute critters

please visit:  Camera Critters and I'd-Rather-B-Birdin. Thanks to the gracious hosts Misty Dawn of Camera Critters and to Anni of I'd Rather-B-birdin.

Birding the Bosque Del Apache NWR

I am linking up with NF Winged   and  Skywatch Friday 

It is that time for Skywatch Friday, I hope to see everyone sharing their beautiful skies and for sharing some winged creatures for NF Winged.

 Since being home from our vacation, my working, turning back the clocks, captures of  the sky and birds has been just about non existent. So,  I am still sharing vacation photos.  On this day we were visiting the Bosque Del Apache National Wildlife refuge. We spent two nights in a town near by the refuge called Socorro.  Staying close to the refuge allowed us time to be at the refuge during the sunset/sunrises.  The first evening we watched the Snow Geese lift off from the field and land on the marsh and then the Sandhill Cranes would start their show. It was just fun being there watching the flocks of geese, cranes, blackbirds and all the ducks.

The sun setting on a field of Red-Wing Blackbird and Sandhill Cranes.

Then the Snow Geese arrived letting everyone know they were on their way, the Sandhill Cranes on the ground would try blending in with their sounds. It was quite the show.

This is a shot of the sky behind us as we watched the show at the marsh.  On the bottom left you can see some of the train cars that derailed just  a short distanced from the wildlife refuge. I am so glad there was not a chemical spill from the derailment. We were happy that the entrance to the refuge was before this accident and the dreadful road closed sign.

A few Sandhill Cranes and some Northern Pintails in the background.

We watched the sky layered with clouds turn colors.

We listened as the geese flew by honking. The sky looked pretty with a layer of blue above the colorful trees a hint of pretty pink sky.

 Thanks for visiting my post and  blog and I always appreciate your comments.

  Happy Skywatching everyone!

To see more pretty skies from around the world please visit  Skywatch Friday
and to see more of the winged critters check out NF Winged

Thanks to Sylvia, Yogi  and Sandy for hosting Skywatch Friday! Thanks to Monica the host of NF Winged.   I wish everyone a safe and happy weekend.