Thursday, June 23, 2011

A Red-winged Blackbird singing in the High Meadow at VOA Park...

Tuesday morning I headed over to Voice of America Park to scout out the Bobolinks, Meadowlarks, and Savannah Sparrows. I was lucky on all accounts, but the first bird I photographed was a Red-winged Blackbird. He was singing and scolding from a tree he was vigorously defending...

A Red-winged Blackbird sings from a tree in the High Meadow at VOA Park in West Chester, Ohio. He sang and scolded nonstop...or at least until I walked past his territory.






Red-winged Blackbird singing in the High Meadow at VOA Park from Kelly Riccetti on Vimeo.

21 comments:

  1. Love 'em - what great expressions - you can almost hear the "harumph" in that second pic!

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  2. These are just really gorgeous shots of a very pretty bird. I love their song.

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  3. Those are some of the prettiest pictures I have seen of a Red Winged Blackbird. I saw some last year and tried to get some pictures, but they looked so rough and their red feathers didn't show up hardly at all. Maybe they needed a bath!

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  4. Birds just love to pose for you :) Outstanding, Kelly!

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  5. Kelly you are awesome at capturing clear details, these are gorgeous portraits!

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  6. Heh, heh! I walked through the Duck Ponds park on the way home from work today (pictures coming soon) and was being chk-chked and whistled at by a bunch of Red-wings who objected to my presence near their nests.

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  7. AMAZING shots!!! I finally had one show up at my birdfeeder. I'm hoping he is a "brave one" and won't let the bluejays and grackles scare him off. Have a lovely weekend. Thanks for sharing your talents with us. Mickie :)

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  8. gorgeous, just gorgeous. after my visits here i look at my pictures and aspire to do soooo much better!

    these guys visit my backyard feeders and are lovely to watch!!!

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  9. I was dive-bombed twice last week by Red-Winged Blackbirds when I walked past "their" tree. Must be that time of year :)

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  10. Hi Kelly...Love your photo ...he is a beauty!!
    Some people don't like them, but when they are out here in the field and flying toward me with he red part flared ..wow!!!

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  11. Note the black claw in #1 and #4. The definition is excellent in your shots--AND the, shall we say, character study of the bird. Like others, I like 'em, but they've also yelled at me and swooped at me.

    Long lens? Tripod? Cropping? Really nice.

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  12. Good thing you kept on walking! You were certainly invading his territory.

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  13. I love the blaze of red on these birds Kelly. Good to see him in the video too.

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  14. Beautiful shots, Kelly. love the detail in the plumage, the eye... Great video too It really captures the bird's action. They can be very agressive around their nests. I recently observed a sandhill crane ducking to ward off an attack!

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  15. Kelly, I have several red winged that eat at my bird feeder. They have such a distinctive song. Your images are beautiful. Have a wonderful holiday. The weather just might cooperate with us. Carol

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  16. ...heheee....thanks everyone! I think it's settled. These fellows are very good at protecting their nests. I just love them for all their action and noise!

    ...I used a new camera, the Nikon D7000. I always use my old D700, but caved and gave this new one a try. The video capability is awesome! (My usual setup otherwise: Nikon AF-S VR-Nikkor 70-200mm 2.8G lens with a Nikon 2x teleconverter...all images are from hand-holding)

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  17. Ah, yes, the VOA High Meadow, where Butler County MetroParks grows all their Bradford Pears and Dogwoods! I visited there briefly last month and the state of the meadow left me feeling like I'd been punched in the stomach. Such is life, I guess.

    Take care,
    ---Mike

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  18. ...I know...the Bradford Pears are taking over...it's so sad. I just posted on that with my Savannah Sparrow post. Who knows how long they will be around. Rick thinks I need to go activist on them to see if we can generate support to care for the meadow.

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