Great Blue Heron. Victoria, British Columbia. Happy #Bluesky Friday! #birds #birding #wildlife #nature #photography #birdphotography #Nikon

Diuca Finch. Lake Batuco, Chile. Diuca Finch (a tanager) is the only known bird to nest in glaciers, but rarely. In doing so, it builds its nest inside cracks in glaciers that must be rebuilt as the nest melts out of the ice. #birds #birding #wildlife #nature #photography #birdphotography #Nikon

Whiskered Tern. Sri Lanka. Other waterbirds, such as Hoary-headed Grebes, may nest near Whiskered Tern colonies for protection from predators. #birds #birding #wildlife #nature #photography #birdphotography #Nikon

Black Turnstone. Victoria, British Columbia. Its specialized foraging technique involves using its stout, chisel-like bill to flip rocks and seaweed to find hidden prey, and sometimes even "snowplows" its body into beach wrack to uncover food. #birds #birding #wildlife #nature #photography #Nikon

Turkey Vulture. Victoria, British Columbia. Turkey vultures are gathering in large numbers on southern Vancouver Island, preparing for their epic ocean-crossing of nearly 5 miles! They really hate to flap, so they wait for perfect winds. #birds #birding #wildlife #nature #photography #Nikon

Black-faced Ibis. Valdivia, Chile. Excellent flyers, capable of soaring effortlessly like raptors, they have long, broad, wings for gliding, which is a notable characteristic for a bird that forages in grasslands rather than in shallow water. #birds #birding #wildlife #nature #photography #Nikon

Many-colored Rush-Tyrant. Lake Batuco, Chile. For a member of the flycatcher family, this species wins the prize for most colorful, hence the name. Its red under tail coverts are hidden from view in this image. #birds #birding #wildlife #nature #photography #birdphotography #Nikon

Northern Pintail. Victoria, British Columbia. Northern pintail are just now returning to our area, where they will spend the next 6-8 months wintering, before heading back inland to their breeding grounds. #birds #birding #wildlife #nature #photography #birdphotography #Nikon

Marbled Godwit. Victoria, British Columbia. This ‘rarity’ showed up today at Esquimalt Lagoon, BC. By no means is the species rare…this individual just decided to take a different route on its way to its wintering grounds. #birds #birding #wildlife #nature #photography #birdphotography #Nikon

Black-capped Petrel. Hatteras, North Carolina. There is freedom in the waves, a rhythm in the tides, and peace in the endless blue. Happy Friday! #birds #birding #wildlife #nature #photography #birdphotography

Slender-tailed Nightjar. Oromia, Ethiopia. Their grey-brown, mottled plumage provides excellent camouflage, helping them blend in with their surroundings during the day. #birds #birding #wildlife #nature #photography #birdphotography

Eastern Cattle-Egret. Debarawewa Lake, Sri Lanka. Cattle Egrets quickly adapted to the presence of farm machinery, realizing that tractors and lawnmowers are effective at disturbing insects, and they follow them as well. #birds #birding #wildlife #nature #photography #birdphotography #Nikon

Purple Roller. Oromia, Ethiopia. The purple roller is the biggest bird in the roller family. They have a large range through Sub-Saharan Africa and their preferred habitats are dry areas with thorny bushes and trees. #birds #birding #wildlife #nature #photography #birdphotography

Black Kite. Bourke, Australia. These intelligent birds are one of the most numerous raptors worldwide and are known for their opportunistic scavenging and adaptability, foraging for food in various habitats. #birds #birding #wildlife #nature #photography #birdphotography

Australian Pelican. Goondiwindi, Australia. It is the tallest pelican species in the world, can soar at heights up to 3 kilometers, and has the longest bill of any bird on Earth. That’s quite a bird! #birds #birding #wildlife #nature #photography #birdphotography

Red-vented Bulbul. Weddagla, Sri Lanka. The red-vented bulbul is an adaptable bird native to South and Southeast Asia that has become an invasive species in many parts of the world, including Hawaii and the Pacific islands. #birds #birding #wildlife #nature #photography #birdphotography #Nikon

Black Skimmer. La Serena, Chile. Aside from its unusual bill, did you know it has cat-like eyes with vertical, slit-shaped pupils, which protect their vision from the glare of water and sand? It’s the only bird to have such pupils. #birds #wildlife #nature #photography #birdphotography #Nikon

Tibetan Sand-Plover. Bundala NP, Sri Lanka. The Tibetan sand-plover breeds at elevations above 4,000 meters (13,000 feet) on the Tibetan Plateau and winters as far south as Sri Lanka. #birds #birding #wildlife #nature #photography #birdphotography #Nikon

Chilean Mockingbird. Santiago, Chile. Not unlike its cousins, the Chilean Mockingbird is known for its vocal repertoire, making it an excellent mimic of other bird species. They also tend to occur in small groups. #birds #birding #wildlife #nature #photography #birdphotography #Nikon

African Gray Hornbill. Tsavo West National Park, Kenya. To protect its young from predators the female seals herself inside the nest using mud, droppings, fruit pulp, and her own feathers. Only a narrow slit remains open for the male to pass food through. #birds #wildlife #nature #photography

Orange-breasted Green-Pigeon. Monaragala, Sri Lanka. Its green plumage helps it camouflage in leafy trees, making it difficult for predators to spot. They have specialized feet for hanging upside-down to feed on fruits. #birds #birding #wildlife #nature #photography #birdphotography #Nikon

Great Gray Owl. Osoyoos, British Columbia. Gray ghost, phantom of the North, ghost of the forest, great gray ghost, Lapland owl, spruce owl, and spectral owl. Just a few of the alternate names for this remarkable bird. #birds #birding #wildlife #nature #photography #birdphotography #Nikon

Lesser Yellownape. Surrey Estate Bird Sanctuary, Sri Lanka. Unlike other louder woodpecker species, the Lesser Yellownape is relatively quiet, preferring to "tap" on tree trunks and branches rather than produce loud drumming sounds. #birds #birding #wildlife #nature #birdphotography #Nikon

Black-capped Petrel. Hatteras, North Carolina. Black-capped Petrels spend most of their lives far out at sea, traveling vast distances across the western Atlantic and Gulf of Mexico before returning to land only to breed. #birds #birding #wildlife #nature #photography #birdphotography #Nikon

Song Sparrow. Victoria, British Columbia Here’s something to sing about. It’s Friday!!! #birds #birding #wildlife #nature #photography #birdphotography #Nikon

Regent Bowerbird. Lamington NP, Australia. Males use their saliva, mixed with dirt, to create a muddy, grayish-blue or pea-green "saliva paint" that they use to decorate their stick bowers, sometimes using wad-like leaves to apply the "paint". #birds #birding #wildlife #nature #photography

Variable Hawk. Jujuy, Argentina. At least 27 distinct adult color patterns have been identified, making it possibly the most varied of any hawk species. This wide variety caused much debate about whether it should be classified as one species or several. #birds #birding #wildlife #nature #Nikon

Slaty-legged Crake. Kaeng Krachan NP, Thailand. A secretive, forest-dwelling crake that is rarely seen flying. It prefers to skulk through dense undergrowth to avoid predators and forage for insects and berries. #birds #birding #wildlife #nature #photography #birdphotography

Buff-tailed Coronet. Pichincha, Ecuadora. It is a territorial and defensive hummingbird that will aggressively fight other hummingbirds for possession of flowers, even though it sometimes shares feeding at a tree with other species. #birds #birding #wildlife #nature #birdphotography #Nikon

Dusky Woodswallow. Stirling Range, Australia. A social, gregarious bird that uses communal effort to raise their young. They have a unique feather type called powder-down, which breaks down into a powder used to help with grooming. #birds #birding #wildlife #nature #photography #birdphotography

Blue-necked Tanager. Pichincha, Ecuador. Notable for their ability to thrive in human-altered environments like parks and gardens, act as vital seed dispersers, and somewhat social, helping other pairs raise their young. #birds #birding #wildlife #nature #photography #birdphotography #Nikon

Bay-headed Tanager. Pichincha, Ecuador. The Bay-headed Tanager is highly variable geographically, with no fewer than nine recognized subspecies, making it one of the most phenotypically diverse of all Tangara tanagers. #birds #birding #wildlife #nature #photography #birdphotography #Nikon

Downy Woodpecker. Victoria, British Columbia. Another shot of this smart little bird on the backyard photo setup. #birds #birding #wildlife #nature #photography #birdphotography #Nikon

Pale Chanting-Goshawk. Western Cape, South Africa. It follows other predators, like honey badgers and mongoose, to scavenge prey that these animals flush out while foraging. They also hunt and kill venomous snakes like cobras and adders. #birds #birding #wildlife #nature #photography

Ring-necked Duck. Victoria, British Columbia. I took this last December; the ring-necks are currently in non-breeding plumage, looking less regal than usual. #birds #birding #wildlife #nature #photography #birdphotography #Nikon

Spur-winged Plover. Western, Ghana. A spur-winged plover uses a hidden, non-venomous spur on its wings to defend its young and territory, and it may even dive-bomb intruders to scare them away. #birds #birding #wildlife #nature #photography #birdphotography

Canada Goose. Manning Park, British Columbia. Nothing more iconic than a lone Canada Goose on a manicured patch of grass striking an awkward pose. This could be an image on a new currency—the Goosey—a seven dollar bill. #birds #birding #wildlife #nature #photography #birdphotography #Nikon

Brown Falcon. Capertee Valley, Australia. It has been reported that these falcons have been observed picking up burning sticks from wildfires and dropping them to ignite new fires, which flushes out prey for them to catch. #birds #birding #wildlife #nature #photography #birdphotography

Masked Lapwing. Port Stephens, Australia. There are few lapwing species that go as nuts about the presence of people than the Masked Lapwing. They’ll detect you long before you detect them, and they’ll let the world know about it. #birds #birding #wildlife #nature #photography #birdphotography

Guira Cuckoo. Jujuy, Argentina. Guira Cuckoo has a highly competitive, communal nesting behavior where several females lay eggs in a single nest, and then adults may eject or even kill their own offspring to increase the chances of their own offspring surviving #birds #birding #wildlife #nature

Galah. Goondiwindi, Australia. The Australian slang term "galah" describes a fool or simpleton, which contrasts with the namesake parrot that is known for its intelligence, complexity, and capability. #birds #birding #wildlife #nature #photography #birdphotography

Coppersmith Barbet. Uda Walawe National Park, Sri Lanka. This birds relatively heavy bill, for its size, is used to build nests by carving out cavities in trees. The bill is also used to pierce a variety of fruits it consumes. #birds #birding #wildlife #nature #photography #birdphotography #Nikon

Gray-headed Swamphen. Debarawewa Lake, Sri Lanka. They use their large feet and strong bills to manipulate plants, sometimes holding a reed in their feet and tearing it with their bill to get to the soft inner core #birds #birding #wildlife #nature #photography #birdphotography #Nikon

Kelp Gull. La Serena, Chile. A relatively common gull of the South American coastline. Easily recognized by its strong, contrasting plumage, large size, and yellow on the bill tip (Belcher’s Gull has a dark tip). #birds #birding #wildlife #nature #photography #birdphotography #Nikon

Painted Stork. Debarawewa Lake, Sri Lanka. They are non-migratory, colonial nesters in Asia that feed on fish by sweeping their bill in water. They communicate by bill-clattering rather than vocalizing. #birds #birding #wildlife #nature #photography #birdphotography #Nikon

Oriental Darter. Debarawewa Lake, Sri Lanka. These birds hunt by spearing fish with their sharp bills, then tossing the catch in the air to swallow it headfirst. #birds #birding #wildlife #nature #photography #birdphotography #Nikon

Chestnut-backed Chickadee. Victoria, British Columbia. Looking a bit worn after the nesting season, the deeper chestnut hues will return with a fresh molt. #birds #birding #wildlife #nature #photography #birdphotography #Nikon

Turkey Vulture. Victoria, British Columbia. Another beach-bound turkey vulture, this time a juvenile as evidenced by the dark gray head. A tasty salmon spine rotting the sun was irresistible. #birds #birding #wildlife #nature #photography #birdphotography #Nikon

One year ago today, Flaco returned to Central Park after a few weeks exploring the east side. I was so happy to see him in his favorite Oak tree on a blustery, beautiful November morning. 🦉🦉🦉 #Flaco #CentralPark

Small Pratincole. Bundala National Park, Sri Lanka. While classified as a wader (shorebird), it often hunts insects on the wing, much like a swallow. They are also known for their deceptive "broken-wing" display, similar to Killdeer. #birds #birding #wildlife #photography #birdphotography #Nikon