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ISv

"The equipment that matters, is you"
CR Pro
Apr 30, 2017
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I'm not very good at recognising small waders. There were some Dunlins ans Knots (Red Knots as they are called in the USA). They are rather similar in their winter plumage. The Knot is larger, about the size of a European Blackbird or American Robin, and the Dunlin about the size of a Eurasian Starling. They were far away from me on the mudflats off the coast Snettisham and I needed the 2xTC on the RF 100-500. I got some seperateley and then a Dunlin and Knot together, who seemed to stick to each other. It's difficult to judge the size at distance and the pair together really helped. They are quite well camouflaged. Top to bottom: Dunlin; Knot and a pair.

View attachment 200797View attachment 200798View attachment 200799
Very nice photos Alan! Even if the birds are separated you can distinguish the Dunlin by that slightly decurved bill and the plumage
 
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ISv

"The equipment that matters, is you"
CR Pro
Apr 30, 2017
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Plovers. The first 2 might be American Golden Plovers and the third could be a Western Snowy Plover? Hopefully, the recent Southern California oil spill did not affect these guys. View attachment 200806View attachment 200807View attachment 200808
Nice collection and photos!!! For the first one I would suggest Gray ("Black bellied" if you prefer) Plover, the second one is the American Golden Plover (Both non breading) and for the last one - Snowy ("Kentish" if you prefer - Charadrius alexandrinus: just to make sure we are on the same page) non breading.
 
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JPAZ

If only I knew what I was doing.....
CR Pro
Sep 8, 2012
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Southwest USA
Nice collection and photos!!! For the first one I would suggest Gray ("Black bellied" if you prefer) Plover, the second one is the American Golden Plover (Both non breading) and for the last one - Snowy ("Kentish" if you prefer - Charadrius alexandrinus: just to make sure we are on the same page) non breading.
Very kind of you, @ISv. I, initially, thought Black Bellied for first and Kentish for 3rd but was less secure on second. Then, I found that the Kentish is not typically seen in Southern California (photos all from beach there). So that led me to look at other references which only confused me more. I really appreciate everyone’s input. Thanks for your help and all your images. I’ve not done any travel other than places I can reach by automobile since Feb ‘20 and the photos of all allow me to still see other parts of our planet.
 
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usern4cr

R5
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Sep 2, 2018
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Kentucky, USA
This year is very bad for +/- rare migrants here - very few interesting species reported and even for them I had no time to look for... My very humble contribution is this Saffron Finch - no comparison with Cog's kayak level shots! View attachment 200840View attachment 200841
Your 1st bird pose was really endearing, ISv!
 
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josephandrews222

Square Sensors + AI = Better Images
Jul 12, 2013
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Midwest United States
I've posted two pix (both 5DMk3 + 100-400 II @ 400).

I'm posting this for the benefit of the very few who post here who might know less than me.

Here's what happened.

There was an interesting set of bird songs emanating from the tree in our front yard...I went back to our family room to collect my iPhone--brightness was behind the tree and my eyes couldn't see much.

I dialed up Merlin...which has a component within it that allows bird identification by sound (this might be news to some...it was news to me a couple of months ago).

I clicked 'record' or something or other...and...

...the app suggested 'Carolina Wren'.

We've had a few Carolina Wrens over the years so the Merlin-assisted ID was helpful--I knew what to look for...and went back to collect my camera.

Two images that resulted are shown.

The first is OOC jpeg...with 2/3 stop brightness added on the camera.

5D3_8620 pciasa crop - Copy.jpg

The second is the same photo...fixed up with Photoshop and then Picasa (I know I know...)

5D3_8620 ps3 fix picasa fix - Copy.jpg

...an additional observation: what I heard (before I grabbed my camera) was, in fact, the Carolina Wren 'duet'...where both male and female are heard...talking to each other?!

A neat experience for me...kind of multimedia in a way!
 
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ISv

"The equipment that matters, is you"
CR Pro
Apr 30, 2017
2,569
7,453
I've posted two pix (both 5DMk3 + 100-400 II @ 400).

I'm posting this for the benefit of the very few who post here who might know less than me.

Here's what happened.

There was an interesting set of bird songs emanating from the tree in our front yard...I went back to our family room to collect my iPhone--brightness was behind the tree and my eyes couldn't see much.

I dialed up Merlin...which has a component within it that allows bird identification by sound (this might be news to some...it was news to me a couple of months ago).

I clicked 'record' or something or other...and...

...the app suggested 'Carolina Wren'.

We've had a few Carolina Wrens over the years so the Merlin-assisted ID was helpful--I knew what to look for...and went back to collect my camera.

Two images that resulted are shown.

The first is OOC jpeg...with 2/3 stop brightness added on the camera.

View attachment 200872

The second is the same photo...fixed up with Photoshop and then Picasa (I know I know...)

View attachment 200873

...an additional observation: what I heard (before I grabbed my camera) was, in fact, the Carolina Wren 'duet'...where both male and female are heard...talking to each other?!

A neat experience for me...kind of multimedia in a way!
OK, now it is really interesting: I have pretty good visual memory but can't distinguish well the songs/calls of the birds. This could be helpful! Thanks!
 
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JPAZ

If only I knew what I was doing.....
CR Pro
Sep 8, 2012
1,164
641
Southwest USA
..........I dialed up Merlin...which has a component within it that allows bird identification by sound (this might be news to some...it was news to me a couple of months ago).

I clicked 'record' or something or other...and...

...the app suggested ..........
Great tip. Thanks, @josephandrews
 
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One of my local favorites is back, a Loggerhead Shrike. I can usually walk up to it and one evening this last week, it was looking around before diving down into the bush it was on and tearing off a bit cached lizard. It brought out the back end as if to show it off before eating that as well.
SDR14728A-4K.jpg

R5 600 II w/1.4X 1/1000 : f/9 : ISO 800

SDR14729-4K.jpg

R5 600 II w/1.4X 1/800 : f/10 : ISO 800
 
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AlanF

Desperately seeking birds
CR Pro
Aug 16, 2012
12,355
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One of my local favorites is back, a Loggerhead Shrike. I can usually walk up to it and one evening this last week, it was looking around before diving down into the bush it was on and tearing off a bit cached lizard. It brought out the back end as if to show it off before eating that as well.
SDR14728A-4K.jpg

R5 600 II w/1.4X 1/1000 : f/9 : ISO 800

SDR14729-4K.jpg

R5 600 II w/1.4X 1/800 : f/10 : ISO 800
Fantastic shots!
 
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