Wildlife, landscape and weather photography
This red-winged blackbird seemed a bit less than thrilled with our late season snowstorm this past weekend. These guys are quite common here the warmer months, hanging out along shorelines and making their distinctive calls. It is kind of tough to get a good pic of them if only because of their dark plumage but overcast skies helped out on this chilly morning.
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These aren’t the greatest of pics but the story and action are kind of neat so I figured I would share them.
Wrapping up my photo drive the other day, I spot this hawk sitting on a light pole. Normally I probably wouldn’t even stop except I noticed it had something in its talons – a bullsnake.
Unfortunately for the hawk, the neighboring red-winged blackbirds also noticed it was there and they were less than thrilled about having a raptor in their neighborhood. They soon began pestering it, prompting the hawk to leave. The blackbirds pursued, actually striking the hawk in mid-air multiple times.
The best action took place a long ways away but it is still fun to see.
Taken late one evening during our recent visit to Ridgway State Park. We were watching some deer in the field below our campsite when suddenly there was a bit of action.
Apparently some nesting red-winged blackbirds did not take kindly to the deer grazing near their home. The male blackbird was quite aggressive defending its territory, constantly dive-bombing the deer.
Here, one young deer walks through, focused on the female blackbird. Little did it know that the male was approaching from behind. A quick hit on the rump from the bird sent the deer running.
Not the best pictures given it was after sunset and minimal light but a fun bit of action to see.
Maybe the eagle wasn’t social distancing properly or perhaps they just didn’t want any neighbors, but a bunch of red-winged blackbirds let this eagle know its presence wasn’t welcome.
I visited a lake in northern Colorado where one of my favorite pairs of bald eagles hangs out. As the sun rose, the male was hanging out in one of their favorite trees. I snapped some pics of him but then the neighboring red-winged blackbirds started dive-bombing him.
He waived the white flag and flew off, doing a quick tour of the lake, and then relocating to a tree a ways away from the first. This was fine by me as the new perch gave me a nice, clear view.
Well, unfortunately for the eagle, it wasn’t long until the blackbirds showed up again and began hassling him. He demonstrated a lot of patience, dealing with their incessant cackling at him. When that didn’t work, the blackbirds became more aggressive, taking turns dive-bombing at him and at times actually pecking him.
That was enough for the eagle and he headed off to the other side of the lake for quieter environs with, hopefully, friendlier neighbors.
A fun little bit of action here. The Blackbirds had staked out a marshy area as their own and when the hawk decided to patrol overhead, the littler birds were not shy about chasing off the raptor. It was cool to watch as the Blackbirds chased and dived at the hawk.
I’ve seen small birds be aggressive in defending their homes against raptors, Kingbirds and Crows are infamous for this, but this was the first time I have seen Red-winged Blackbirds do it.
Red-winged Blackbird sounds the changing of the seasons. You know spring is coming when you begin to hear these noisy fellows. Soon after sunrise the other day this one was making sure every lady in the area knew he was awake and around. 😉
Cresting a small hill the other day I see a large dark mass across the road. It took me a few seconds to realize exactly what it was – a congregation of Red-winged Blackbirds. There were hundreds, probably thousands, of them there. This image only represents about a third of what was on the road and on each side of it. It was pretty nuts. During the winter these birds will gather like this in these massive flocks, oftentimes segregated by sex. In this case, the majority of these were females (brown colored).
The seasons are changing and one sure sign is the singing of these common birds. These birds can be found across much of North America. Here in Colorado they are very common on the plains, usually found near spots with water. Their very distinctive call almost guarantees you will hear them before you see them.
The males, like this one here, are black and have the gorgeous red / orange / yellow accents. Females are brown and quite plain looking. This guy was hanging out near a pond in Thornton, Colorado a couple of days ago making a lot of noise.
If Alfred Hitchcock’s movie ‘The Birds’ gives you nightmares, then these images might not be to your liking. 😉 Taken yesterday in rural Adams County, Colorado, I happened across an incredible number of Red Winged Blackbirds along a dirt road. They perched on a barbed wire fence for a bit and then took flight on one huge flock – literally blocking the view of the mountains.
During the winter, Blackbirds will gather in these huge congregations, often segregated by sex, and sometimes numbering in the millions.
Feel free to count them if you would like – haha. In the case of these images, the flock was composed mostly of females (the brown colored ones), although there were a few males as well (black).
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