White Squirrel
One of the most familiar backyard creatures we have in the eastern part of the United States is the Eastern Gray Squirrel (Sciurus carolinensis). They are on our trees, robbing our bird feeders, “begging” for a snack in the park, but they are not always all the same. Some areas have local populations of melanistic, leucistic, or albino squirrels, and in some cases, these black or white appearances seem to possibly even be a color morph. I photographed this squirrel last week, and its dark (not red) eyes suggest it is not an albino even though it looked so very white. Such a...
Read MoreOrange Blaze
Honestly, if the fall foliage could go on nonstop without end, it seems most of us would like it…
Read MoreHairy Woodpecker
Here’s the next of the “John James Audubon” series of Meet Your Neighbours shots by RTPI Affiliate Sean Graesser – the Hairy Woodpecker (Picoides villosus). The less common of our backyard black and white woodpeckers, the Hairy Woodpecker is often more elusive despite it being larger than our Downy Woodpecker. They have a larger bill, sometimes described as thorn-like, and feature all white outer rectrices unlike the black barred of the Downys. Photographed for the Meet Your Neighbours global biodiversity project in Connecticut while on assignment for The Roger Tory...
Read MoreSnow Buntings
Now that the Horned Larks have had to surrender their crown of “Best Camouflage in the Grasslands” Snow Buntings like this one have claimed the throne. When viewing them from the front at their level the cap and collar stand out a bit with brown and orange tones, but the bird is otherwise becoming one more little pile of snow. If you have a deep snow cover keep an eye on fields, especially agricultural, plus the sides of driveways and roads where plows have scraped up some of the earth. This is the best time of the year to find their fluttering flocks descending on any exposed...
Read MoreSnow Bunting
Earlier today I mentioned that the Snow Buntings have taken the current crown for best line of defense with their white feathers blending in to the snow-covered fields and grasslands across much of the continent. This uncommon view of one perched on a tree branch takes away that camouflage but leaves us with a beautiful sight against a perfectly deep, blue sky on a chilly February day. Our birds better hurry up and find a great feeding spot because they are going to need the calories this weekend. Valentine’s Day is going to be utterly frigid as we plunge to below-zero temperatures as...
Read More
