Caspian Tern Bird – Aerialists – 7/31/2012 to 5/21/2015

The Caspian Tern was photographed at Grant Park Beach in South Milwaukee, Wisconsin.

Select this link to see photos or a slideshow of the Caspian Tern

The Caspian Tern is whitish-gray with a black cap and a large reddish bill with a touch of black tip, black legs, and blacker under the primaries. It is one of the larger terns as compared with the Common Tern. Size is compared to a Herring Gull. They have a range around the world, and breed and winter around the coastlines, and inland along lakes, rivers, and marshes. They have a habitat of large lakes, coastal waters, beaches, and bays. They feed on small fish, marine life, and large insects. It rarely swims and plunges from high to catch fish under the water surface. They usually nest in large densely packed colonies, but are not sociable. They are highly vocal.

 

 

Townsend’s Solitaire Bird – Passerines – 11/29/2012

The Townsend’s Solitaire was photographed at Wil-o-Way in Grant Park located in South MIlwaukee, Wisconsin on Lake Michigan

Select this link to see photos or a slideshow of the Townsend’s Solitaire

The Townsend’s Solitaire is a slim gray bird with a white eye-ring, white sides on the tail, and buffy wing patches. They are in the Thrush family, and have a long tail. As the name applies it is usually seen alone. It has a range of Alaska, northwestern Canada, and the western United States. In the winter it ventures eastward to the Great Lakes and New England. It has a habitat of conifer forests in mountains, rocky cliffs; in winter, junipers, open woods, brush, and wooded streams. It eats mostly berries and insects, and may hover momentarily while plucking berries and insects among the foliage. The tree on which this Townsend’s is feeding is known as a Amur Cork tree and is native to the Amure River area of Manchuria.

 

Bohemian Waxwing Bird -Passerines – 11/18/2012

The Bohemian Waxwing was photographed near Grant Park golf course in South Milwaukee, Wisconsin in a flock of Cedar Waxwings

Select this link to see photos or a slideshow of the Bohemian Waxwing

The Bohemian Waxwing is similar to the more familiar Cedar Waxwing except it is grayer, has no yellow on the belly, has wings with stronger red, white, and yellow markings, rusty coloring around the head, and deep rusty undertail coverts (cedar is white). It is slightly larger than the Cedar Waxwing, being 20 cm where the Cedar is 18 cm. Its range is northwest North America, but winters southwest to northeast in a band to Canada and Maine in the United States. It has a habitat of boreal forests consisting of pines, spruces, and larches that are found in Canada and Alaska. In winter it can be found is search of berries. Its diet is mostly insects and berries. There were found two to three Bohemian Waxwings with a flock of Cedar Waxwings. They had to be photographed quickly while feeding on berries, as they quickly departed to set within branches and leafs of taller trees.

To compare the Bohemian Waxwing with the Cedar Waxwing select the select the link below.

Select this link to compare with the photos of the Cedar Waxwing, next select slide show