Any birders out there?

I wouldn’t call myself a birder although I do like ‘em. Right now a hoot owl is really doing his thing. It’s funny how I can go for weeks without hearing him, then he puts on a real symphony for a prolonged time. I don’t know if I’m just sleeping through his other sessions, or if the night calls are just occasional... 🦉
 

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Anting

Photographer Tony Austin said he had no idea what he was observing until he enlarged the image on a computer screen and saw the crow covered in ants. (Tony Austin Photography)

Photographer Tony Austin recently captured a peculiar image of a crow with its wings covered in dozens of tiny black ants and in the throes of what appeared to be a behaviour he described as a "very odd and violent dirt bath."

The image also captured the imagination of hundreds of devotees to a Facebook group called Picture perfect Vancouver Island after the Metchosin, B.C., photographer posted it on Monday.

 …….."But a couple of more informed birders were telling us it was anting," said Austin.

To experts, anting is something of a mysterious behavior where birds rub insects, usually ants, on their feathers and skin.

Some birds will sit still on an anthill and patiently allow the creatures to crawl freely through their feathers. At other times they have been seen to pick the ants up with their beaks and rub themselves with the tiny insects.

Sensing a threat, the ants shoot a spray of formic acid from their abdomens or anal glands which gets absorbed into the bird's body and acts as a natural insecticide..................

https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/brit...ooks-like-violent-dirt-bath-1.6053823?cmp=rss
 

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Puffins on the Treshnish Isles which have one of the most varied seabird colonies off western Scotland. Photograph: Murdo MacLeod/The Guardian

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Gaelic-speaking Mull Islander Colin Morrison skippers converted fishing boat Island Lass for the family business Turus Mara tours, taking regular parties of visitors to visit Lunga. Photograph: Murdo MacLeod/The Guardian
 
Hubby & I enjoy watching the birds.
Have two seed feeders that I try to keep filled in the Summer.
And two hummingbird feeders presently out.

We did have a large flock of wild turkey come in before their mating season.
Was interesting to watch them strut around .

Just noticed a wild turkey down by the wood line.
She may have babies hid in the brush.
 
2 years ago, we had an injured Buzzard come and stay with us. He couldn't fly, so he set up housekeeping in the shed. We were able to hand feed him/her? Later, when he healed, he took flight, but, still hangs around and follows the wife and her dogs on their daily walk. Easy to spot as one wing is still missing a lot of his feathers and has a weird notch in it.

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“Burrowing Owlet Duo” by smkeena. Location: Near Calipatria, California.

“Two young burrowing owlets (Athene cunicularia) exploring just outside of their burrow at sunrise, taking in the big world that awaits them,” describes smkeena. “As they became more comfortable with my presence, they hopped and frolicked around their burrow watching me watching them.”

Although this bird can fly and does migrate in certain areas, the Burrowing Owl is often considered a less-efficient flyer than other owls due to the fact that they spend most of their time on the ground.
 
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Credit: Jonas Classon, Sweden
"Poised for attack and staring intently, this great grey owl has fixed its penetrating gaze on a vole in a Swedish forest. "On the night of a full moon, I photographed the owl as it raised its deadly taloned foot, with my car headlights adding a little more illumination to the scene," says Classon.
 

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