Osprey landing at nest

Osprey

Osprey with fish

Young Ospreys at the Newport Back Bay Science center nesting platform.  Platform is mounted on a telephone pole at about 25 ft tall and the Ospreys have nested there for the past 5 years. They add their own large sticks and palm fronds to complete the large 6 ft wide platform. About 8 weeks after hatching they can fly in and out of the nest and are still being fed fish by the parents.

osprey landing

Hermit Warbler

Hermit Warbler hovering

Townsend's Warbler

Townsend's Warbler feeding on Red Gum Eucalyptus

Today at Fort Rosecrans National Cemetery in San Diego (Pt Loma) the Warbler parade continues with Orange Crowned, Townsend’s,  and Hermit seen personally. The warblers stop on their way north at Pt Loma on the coast at flowering Red Gum Eucalytus.  I did not see the Prothonotary Warbler seen a few days ago here. I managed to get the hovering feeding behavior on the Red Gum Euc SE of the main entrance.

Lesser Nighthawk

Photographed a Lesser Nighthawk ? for the first time at San Jacinto Wildlife Area.

Yellow-headed Blackbird

Also at San Jacinto Wildlife today in second pond on the right as you enter the preserve.  These are far less common than the Red-winged Blackbird.

Blue Grosbeak

Blue Grosbeak at Mission Trails north of the Dam.

White-tailed Kite nest building

White-tailed Kite at Lake Hodges.

Bullock's Oriole

Bullock's Oriole

Bullock's Oriole

Today at Mission Trails (San Diego)  near the Dam I managed to photograph this  brightly colored male Bullock’s Oriole.  Also saw several different Warblers including Yellow, Orange-Crowned, and Common Yellowthroat.

Cedar Waxwing

Cedar Waxwing

Shooting from a blind in my backyard I got these images of Cedar Waxwings and a Hooded Oriole.  The Waxwings land in our Mulberry tree in April when the berries are produced- a great opportunity to photograph them up close with a dramatic setting. The Oriole stops in the tree on the way to the hummingbird feeder with sugar water but doesn’t stay long- only a few seconds.

Hooded Oriole

Long-eared owl

Long-eared owl

Long-eared owl

This has to be one of the most difficult owls to photograph as it tends to hide in dense foliage and flushes when you get closer. It took me 4 visits to the area, extreme patience, and very slow movements to get a clean shot without branches in the way. At San Jacinto Wildlife Area.

Dark Morph Ferruginous Hawk

I believe this is the Dark Morph Ferruginous Hawk reported by Chet and others around Ramona Expressway and Davis. This one was at San Jacinto Wildlife Area at the north end near the Blue porta potty on Jan 24.

Reddish Egret

I finally managed to get close enough to a Reddish Egret at Bolsa Chica  at Huntington Beach, CA. This one was flying right passed me at the Bridge area after searching for a couple of hours with no luck.

Reddish Egret

Reddish Egret

Bald Eagle

I managed to photograph both Bald Eagles and Golden Eagles this week.  The Bald Eagle at Lake Elsinore and the Golden Eagle at San Jacinto Wildlife Area. Generally it is very hard to get close enough for decent photos. They always seem to fly away in the opposite direction.

Bald Eagle

Bald Eagle

Golden Eagle San Jacinto Wildlife Area

Golden Eagle San Jacinto Wildlife Area

Golden Eagle San Jacinto Wildlife Area

Golden Eagle San Jacinto Wildlife Area