Tanagers, Cardinal & Allies | on the wing photography

Bananaquit in the Bahamas

By Mia McPherson, on February 14th, 2012%

I’ve been fortunate to travel to many beautiful locations in my life and I have been tickled to photograph birds on some of those places. I photographed this Bananaquit while on the island of Half Moon Cay in the Bahamas.

Bananaquit (Corereba flaveola)
Nikon D200, handheld, f8, 1/500, ISO 250, Nikkor 80-400mm VR at 400mm

I saw literally hundreds of Bananaquits on the island but it was difficult to find them out in the open and to isolate just one bird. I was walking on a sandy path when I spotted this bird but it was behind a shrub. I really wanted a photo of it so very slowly I pushed my lens through the shrub in front of me. Luckily the Bananaquit was busy looking at something else and not at me so I was able to get just this one image before it flew away.

Bananaquits have been recorded as rare visitors to Florida, one was recorded at Fort De Soto County Park. Bananaquits use their curved bill to take nectar from flowers and they use it to pierce fruits to feed on the juices. They are also called the “Sugar Bird” because they will readily come to feed at a simple bowl of granulated sugar.

Mia

More Bananaquit images

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Black-headed Grosbeaks

By Mia McPherson, on December 20th, 2010%

Male Black-headed Grosbeak perched on an old wooden building

Male Black-headed Grosbeak perched on an old wooden building
Red Rock Lakes National Wildlife Refuge, Montana
D200, f7.1, 1/500, ISO 250, 200-400mm VR with 1.4x TC at 400mm, natural light, near a feeder

Near the headquarters of Red Rock Lakes National Wildlife Refuge there are several old wooden buildings, one of buildings had a bird feeder hanging in front and there were several different species of birds that were present. This male Black-headed Grosbeak (Pheucticus melanocephalus) sure caught my eye with its beautiful orange, black and white plumage. This is a well known and widespread bird of western North America that breeds in dense deciduous forests, along waterways, old fields and thickets.

Male Black-headed Grosbeak perched on an old rusty wagon wheel

Male Black-headed Grosbeak perched on an old rusty wagon wheel
Red Rock Lakes National Wildlife Refuge, Montana
D200, f7.1, 1/640, ISO 250, 200-400mm VR with 1.4x TC at 400mm, natural light, near a feeder

This was my first opportunity to photograph this species and I found the rustic wooden building and the rusty wagon wheel to be appealing perches though I would have preferred a more natural setting. I did not have very much time to take pictures of this bird, there was a pickup coming down the road that caused the bird to fly away but I know that when I get back to Red Rock Lakes NWR in the summertime I will be keeping my eyes open to look for the Black-headed Grosbeaks again.

Mia

Lazuli Bunting males

By Mia McPherson, on December 15th, 2010%

Lazuli Bunting male perched on greasewood

Lazuli Bunting male perched on Greasewood
San Rafael Swell, Utah
D200, f7.1, 1/500, ISO 400, +0.3 EV, 200-400mm VR with 1.4x TC at 400mm, natural light

In June of 2010 my friend Ron and I went camping in the San Rafael Swell area of Utah, we were fortunate to find quite a few Lazuli Buntings (Passerina amoena) in the areas near the campgrounds. The females did not seem to be present but their more subtle coloring does camouflage them well and we may have missed spotting them. The males; however, were present and singing atop shrubs and bushes.

The male Lazuli Bunting above was perched on a Greasewood (Sacrobatus vermiculatus) shrub near the campgrounds by the river. The name of this species comes from Lapis Lazuli, a blue semiprecious blue gemstone. Lapis Lazuli is one of my favorite gemstones to work with when fashioning jewelry and it goes great with blue jeans.

Lazuli Bunting with sky in the background

Lazuli Bunting with sky in the background
San Rafael Swell, Utah
D200, f8, 1/1000, ISO 250, 200-400mm VR with 1.4x TC at 400mm, natural light

Male Lazuli Buntings resemble bluebirds but they are smaller and the blues are a different hue than the Mountain, Eastern and Western Bluebirds. Lazuli Buntings occur in open, disturbed habitats, thickets and along waterways. They winter from southern Arizona down to southwestern Mexico.

Lazuli Bunting male with Navajo and Entrada sandstone in the background

Lazuli Bunting male with Navajo and Entrada sandstone in the background
San Rafael Swell, Utah
D200, f8, 1/1000, ISO 250, 200-400mm VR with 1.4x TC at 400mm, natural light

The San Rafael Swell area has abundant formations of Navajo and Entrada sandstone which provides beautiful backgrounds that compliment the Lazuli Buntings coloration. They also have a habit of perching high on top of bushes which helps to give clear views of this species when photographing.

Male Lazuli Bunting singing with canyon walls in the background

Male Lazuli Bunting singing with canyon walls in the background
San Rafael Swell, Utah
D200, f8, 1/1000, ISO 250, 200-400mm VR with 1.4x TC at 400mm, -0.3 EV, natural light

It seemed that the buntings were the most active early in the morning and late afternoon, this image was taken in late afternoon light while the male Lazuli Bunting was singing, the sweet calls bouncing off of the canyon walls. I hope that next year I’ll have many more opportunities with this colorful species.

Mia