Wildlife, landscape and weather photography
My photo walk Saturday was focused primarily on big birds, images of which I will share here soon. However, some little ones also garnered some attention. Among them, a spotted towhee, a bird I had never seen in person before and best of all, I managed a capture of it with a meal. Others were a common grackle all fluffed up, a killdeer along the river’s edge and a kingfisher.
A killdeer hangs out in fresh snow after an early spring storm. Taken at Barr Lake State Park, Colorado State Parks two weekends ago.
A pair of these were surprisingly tolerant and allowed me to get some nice captures, this being my favorite of the session. Usually these birds take off screaming and making a racket if you get anywhere near them. I jokingly call them the most annoying bird on the Colorado plains for the noise they make.
The cool looking but very noisy killdeer. Somehow, someone decided that the sound this bird makes sounds like “kill deer.” I dunno. I have tried to hear that but I sure don’t.
What I do know is that to me, these guys are quite noisy and a bit obnoxious. 😉 They are also kind of cool looking so I don’t mind taking pics of them when the opportunity presents itself. You can listen to them here.
Spend any time out here near water and you will hear the Killdeer. They are quite vocal with their high-pitched sound and sometimes I can’t help but find myself wishing they would hush up so I could enjoy some peace and quiet. Haha. Don’t know what they sound like? See here.
Killdeer are a fixture on the Colorado plains this time of year, making lots of noise as their little ones emerge from their nests. They are quite skittish and I have gotten very few pictures of them.
This one however was very willing to let me take its picture, I suspect only because I was close to its nest. It alternated between making its infamous sound and ‘playing lame’ – a tactic the bird uses to lure prey away from its nest. I never did find where the nest was although I suspect I was quite close.
You can hear a sample of the Killdeer’s distinctive call here.
Kill what? A killdeer that is! While walking along the South Platte River earlier this week I came across a few of these. While I never saw any little ones, I suspect I must have come close to them given how agitated the pair seemed to be with my presence.
The killdeer is a common shorebird that lives year round in all but the coldest parts of the contiguous United States. It is very vocal and actually derives its name from the high-pitched sound it makes. It is also known to put on a ‘broken wing act’ to distract predators from its nest and lead them away.
You can read more about the killdeer and hear samples of its distinctive (annoying!) call here: http://bit.ly/Uxm4nw
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