Tuesday, February 26, 2013

Snow Bunting/Wild Bird

Snow bunting (Plectrophenax nivalis) in winter colours

I wanted the snow buntings to come closer, but I missed my chance for a  good shot! This photo is severely cropped so you can see what a snow bunting looks like this time of year.

Camouflaged in a field of weeds

Snow buntings breed in the Arctic and these are vacationing here in balmy Ontario for the winter. As you can see, they can hide easily in a field of weeds but when startled they rise together...

 Flock of snow buntings

to quickly fly away. Fortunately for me, this flock flew in front of a barn and my lens captured a few as they passed by.

I am joining Stewart M's Wild Bird Wednesday HERE

49 comments:

Buttons Thoughts said...

Oh you are such a good photographer I have been trying for weeks to capture those quick little birds in our field:) B

Kate said...

Lucky for them that they blend so well with the environment!

Cezar and Léia said...

Gorgeous birds!
Léia

Darla said...

Goodness, the are a little hard to spot even in your photo's. Pretty little things.

Darla

Jill said...

They are beautiful! I've never seen one so thank you for these gorgeous shots!

Giga said...

Piękne ptaki, które się sprytnie chowaja. Pozdrawiam.
Beautiful birds, which are cleverly hiding,. Yours.

Nicki said...

They contrast nicely against the barn. You are on a roll with capturing birds in flight. I'm inspired to go out and see what I can do (auto focus on the lens sometimes makes this a bit frustrating).

Have a good Tuesday!

The Cranky said...

Such pretty wee things; I've not had the pleasure of seeing one in real life but this was definitely the next best thing!

Judy said...

I love watching the flocks of birds, how they move together!!!

Cindy said...

I've never seen one before. Beautiful birds and good camouflage ability.

rainfield61 said...

What a beautiful flock.

MadSnapper said...

i love that flock a flyin... they are so perfectly Camouflaged in that one shot...

Lowell said...

Your first photo must have been very sharp if you cropped it severely and it is still very sharp. Amazing how these wee avians are so well camouflaged on the snowy ground!

Ebie said...

Warmer here so I hardly see them. You got a good eye, capturing them in the midst of the snow and dried twigs!

Cindy said...

Wow, they really blend in well! They are cute little things. Thank you for showing us what they look like- I have never seen one before.

Pamela Gordon said...

I enjoy watching these birds and tried but failed to capture them in January. You got some really great shots of these very 'flighty' birds!

Muffy's Marks said...

What a cute little bird. You captured them quite well.

Sallie (FullTime-Life) said...

Amazing to be able to spot them at all (when they're in the field)..they're so well camoflaged. The flight shot (so many!) is just wonderful.

John @ Beans and I on the Loose said...

Cute little guys they are.

Karen said...

They blend in well! Great group flight shot!

Carletta said...

Pretty little birds in their snowy camoflage!
Nice flight capture!

TexWisGirl said...

so very cool! they're such pretty little birds!

HansHB said...

Nice post for WBW!
Well done!

Stephanie said...

Another bird I have never seen before, nice shots!

LONDONLULU said...

They are beautiful! I don't think I've seen these before either. I love that flock in the last!

RedPat said...

Wow that's quite a large flock!

mick said...

Great photos. Those birds are certainly well hidden in the snow.

DeniseinVA said...

Great pictures! I have never seen one of those before.

Findlay Wilde said...

I have seen a snow flake but not a Snow Bunting. I'd really like to see one though. From Findlay

eileeninmd said...

Great sighting of the Snow Bunting flock! They are beautiful birds!

Esther Joy said...

Wow! You did see a big flock!

Patrice said...

Very cool!

Neil said...

Beautiful Birds they blend in so well.

kayerj said...

pretty little birds!

Michelle said...

Lovely birds and I really like the sparkly snow.

Stewart M said...

I do like the flock shot - even if the other images are a bit tightly cropped they do show the bird well.

Cheers and thanks for linking to WBW.

Stewart M - Melbourne

Jen said...

Wow, they are camouflaged well. You could look at a whole flock and miss them.

Snowcatcher said...

Gosh, yet another beautiful bird species. Perfectly camouflaged for winter!

Randy said...

They blend in nicely.

Anonymous said...

Nicely camouflaged...

George said...

You did a great job seeing and capturing the bunting in the snow. They are well-camouflaged. I really like your photo of the flock of buntings flying in front of the barn.

Anni said...

That flock of snow bunting image is amazing!!!

Kerri Farley said...

Oh what a pretty bird!!

Unknown said...

Nice find!! Boom & Gary of the Vermilon River, Canada.

Suburban Girl said...

What a nice background for those birds to stand out.

Gail Dixon said...

Such pretty and interesting birds. I've never heard of them, probably because our climate is too warm. The markings around the neck remind me of a killdeer. You did great capturing these. :)

Anonymous said...

They really do camouflage well in the field. Fantastic capture of the group in flight!

~Lindy

Müge Tekil said...

They look very pretty on the snow :) I like very much you flying flock photo too. Have a great weekend,

http://dogadansevgiyle2013.blogspot.com

Mary Howell Cromer said...

Oh to see a Snow Bunting...has been on my wish list a very long time. Thank you for the beautiful shares~

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East Gwillimbury is a rural town less than an hour north of Toronto, Canada's largest city. My family calls me CameraGirl because I take my camera with me wherever I go.