Gray Bird of Loquaciousness

You've heard of the Bluebird of Happiness  (presumably looking sort of like this guy)? Given all the noise they make, this must be the Graybird of Loquaciousness. It's actually a Gray Catbird, 1 of my area's most talkative birds. In the summer you can see these birds everywhere, and hear them more than that.

July 6, 2023 at Scherman Hoffman Wildlife Sanctuary
Photo 301263315, (c) jpviolette, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC)


Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Tussock Moth Herd

Image
Some caterpillars are usually seen in large numbers (like Armyworm Moth caterpillars and Eastern Tent Caterpillars ), while most are more solitary. The Milkweed Tussock Moth caterpillars (more about them are here ) seem to be slightly social. I'll sometimes see them alone, but more often I'll see them in groups of 2-9 members. In the 1st picture below, you can see there is a clear size difference in some of these individuals. I'm almost certain the little one in the middle is in an earlier instar than the others (though they lack the colorful tufts of fuzz in their earliest instars). August 31, 2021 at Washington Valley Park Photo 167477945, (c) jpviolette, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC) In the picture below, it's clear that these caterpillars don't require a lot of personal space. August 31, 2021 at Washington Valley Park Photo 167477979, (c) jpviolette, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC)
Read more

American Bullfrog

Image
Though I got some pictures of Wood Frogs earlier in the season and had been hearing the small/elusive Spring Peepers about that time, it was only about 5 weeks ago that I started seeing one of our most visible frogs, the American Bullfrogs . I've talked before about how to differentiate them from their Green Frog cousins (hint: it's all about the dorsolateral ridges), a fairly similar frog that starts appearing about the same time of year. This wasn't my first bullfrog picture of the season but was one of the most handsome. I think they tend to look a little discolored and emaciated very early in the spring. A few weeks later they seem to regain their plumper and greener appearance. May 13, 2022 at Duke Farms Photo 199462915, (c) jpviolette, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC) By way of comparison, here's one of the 1st pictures I got last year. April 13, 2021 at Delaware Raritan Canal Photo 121031804, (c) jpviolette, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC)
Read more