Late Afternoon in Point Reyes

No better way to spend an afternoon than meandering through Point Reyes National Seashore. I felt a sense of urgency on this day as the light was already golden when I left the house. This Red-shouldered Hawk still managed to stop me in my tracks well before I'd even arrived at Point Reyes.

A female American Kestrel hover hunting the hillside looking for small rodents and insects.

Got one! She caught at least 5 insects in the 5 minutes I spent watching her.

I walked into this barn to photograph the view of the ocean framed in the window and two Northern Flickers flitted around in the rafters, eventually heading out through these very windows.

I found one of them waiting in the sunlight on the ridge of the roof.

In the distance, a Red-tailed Hawk hunts above the rolling hills. The raking light making any movement below highly visible. Even small gophers cast long shadows in conditions like this.

Aspirational grass. It has a great view from its island.

A stooping male Kestrel sent these Starlings skyward before it settled onto that pole on the right. They swirled around him a few times before returning to their comunal roost. A nice way to start the evening.

14 Hours at the Point (Part 4)

While shopping at the Cape May Bird Observatory store a thud at the window got our attention and the stunned bird was none other than a Black-throated Blue Warbler, a dismal way to get a life bird.

This one had a lot of green mixed in. Thankfully, held in hand in the warm sun, it quickly recovered and flew off. Most of the hundreds of birds flitting in the bushes were Yellow-rumped Warblers and I never did take the time to get a good photo of them.

Palm Warbler was also a new bird for me. This one was most cooperative as it bobbed its tail and looked for insects. It moved on when a hawk buzzed us both.

This Flicker was running from, guess what, a Cooper's Hawk. It can be rough neighborhood depending on your position in the food chain.

A surprise bird was a juvenile Red-headed Woodpecker flushed from the dunes near the beach. For your viewing pleasure... a poor quality but definitive documentation shot. I wouldn't have been able to ID it without the photo since it was yet another lifer.

Easier to identify but still hard to photograph, a Merlin above the platform eats a dragonfly on the wing.

The Merlin's big brother, a young Peregrine arrives and everyone takes notice... It had its eye on us too.