Throughout this summer there has been a lone Cattle Egret at Lindo Lake, in Lakeside, California. In my years birding at Lindo Lake, this is the first time I have seen a Cattle Egret. This egret has grown accustomed to the presence of people, and I have spent ample time over a number of visits photographing the bird at close range as it looks for food, usually in the lawns of the park.
Here it is in breeding plumage (without a mate to impress), capturing a frog. (tap or click to enlarge)
A Brewer's Sparrow, photographed at Mono Lake in June of this year.
A Say's Phoebe, photographed at Mono Lake in June of this year.
A Violet-green Swallow, photographed at Mono Lake in June of this year.
A Ruddy Duck, silhouetted against the reflection of the setting sun in the Salton Sea.
Photographed in February of this year.
Photos from an afternoon at the Salton Sea in February of this year.
A Greater Yellowlegs investigates an irrigation ditch for a possible meal:
A Killdeer looks for food in a pond next to the Salton Sea:
A Say's Phoebe, perched on a bicycle rack at Harry Griffen Park in La Mesa, California. Photographed a few minutes after the pictures in yesterday's post.
The Scaly-breasted Munia (a.k.a. Nutmeg Mannikin) is native to Asia. It has been introduced during the last fifty years to many other parts of the world, including many islands in the Caribbean and more recently to California, Texas, and other southern states east to Florida.
Here are pictures taken in Harry Griffen Park in La Mesa, California, in August of this year.
A Black Phoebe, perched at the Bird and Butterfly Garden, in the Tijuana River Valley south of Imperial Beach, California.
A Black-crowned Night-Heron, backlit in the afternoon light. Photographed in July of this year at Famosa Slough, in San Diego.
