On Watch by sunnygreenwood

On Watch

Although Red-winged Blackbirds are abundant in marshy areas around here, I had never tried to get a pic of one until today. I would have liked to get a bit of his face but he wasn't anxious to hang out with our little group --- we had a 4 year old and a one year old in tow. At least we didn't get attacked.
The Cornell Lab of Ornithology says that "Male Red-winged Blackbirds fiercely defend their territories during the breeding season, spending more than a quarter of daylight hours in territory defense. He chases other males out of the territory and attacks nest predators, sometimes going after much larger animals, including horses and people."

Many thanks for dropping by.
Excellent capture. Great focus.
April 27th, 2012  
Fabulous capture. I can never get them this close. Wonderful detail and lighting!!
April 27th, 2012  
turned him back on you. great shot
April 27th, 2012  
Great feather detail Anne.
April 27th, 2012  
This is such a gorgeous composition
April 27th, 2012  
great catch..................Anne!!!!
April 27th, 2012  
lovely photo... glad he didn't attack you!
April 27th, 2012  
Great job capturing this little fella in such nice detail. Especially with your little "helpers" :)
April 27th, 2012  
Great capture! Beautiful composition:)
April 27th, 2012  
wow! this is nice. are you getting the hang of that new camera or what! such clarity on the bird's feathers. great shot, anne.
April 27th, 2012  
Lyn
Ah, Anne - but with his face, we might have missed the red tipped wings!
April 27th, 2012  
What a great capture, Anne! Lovely from the back ... he's gorgeous.. love the clarity and the deep rich colors. Fabulous lighting.
April 27th, 2012  
great shot ~ you were wise to stay out of his way, it sounds! =O
April 27th, 2012  
Gosh what an amazing little bird to even attack horses and people - just shows how protective they are. Brilliant capture Anne!
April 27th, 2012  
Gorgeous bird, have never seen or heard of this one! Love the vibrant red.
April 27th, 2012  
Great shot - fantastic how they hang on the reeds.
April 27th, 2012  
Interesting information, Anne. Love the angle of this shot.
April 27th, 2012  
Great shot!!
April 27th, 2012  
I like your back view- very proud.
April 27th, 2012  
Great shot, a different perspective is good sometimes.
April 27th, 2012  
Gorgeous! I like the detail and composition! Fantastic Portrait!
April 27th, 2012  
very lovely... the composition of this shot is wonderful... I love the light reflecting off his black back...
April 27th, 2012  
lyn
wow lovely
April 27th, 2012  
Great shot. Like the detail. There is a fishing theory that there is a fish in the water if you cast in the direction of a red winged black bird.
April 27th, 2012  
@mwarren365 very cool theory, mike! i'll remember that!
April 27th, 2012  
Marvelous shot! The composition is Beautiful!
April 27th, 2012  
wonderful shot!
April 27th, 2012  
nice capture.....love the red patches on his wings. Once several years ago I was out walking & unknowingly stopped near a red-wing's nest. The male kept squawking at me until I finally figured out what he was upset about and moved on......and I was still several feet from the nest. He didn't 'attack' but was very persistent with his message to me!
April 27th, 2012  
Beautiful! I love these guys - their call says "spring" to me.
April 27th, 2012  
Lovely detail of the black feathers, quite often hard to see black details. The red wings are beautiful against the black. Its amazing how they balance on seemingly very slender bits of wood or whatever.
April 27th, 2012  
Wonderful capture,great detail!!
April 27th, 2012  
He is beautiful and I think a bit stuck up. He's ignoring you.
April 27th, 2012  
He does look like a sentinel. Nice shot. I like the composition and you've managed great detail in the blacks too.
April 27th, 2012  
It amazes me that such a large bird can sit on such a tiny limb and not break it. Nice photo!
April 27th, 2012  
fav! love the composition of this!
April 28th, 2012  
This is a wonderful pic, Anne!!! I love your composition! Thank you for the info. I didn't know that about them and we have lots of them here. Fav!
April 28th, 2012  
Beautiful capture, i am following you
April 28th, 2012  
Love the colour contrasts and the composition here.
April 28th, 2012  
great shot; these little buggers are tough to catch!
April 28th, 2012  
great POV and detail Anne!
April 28th, 2012  
What a great catch, Anne. I used to follow one that came to a tree in our yard several years ago. He came the same time every day for years and sang his heart out, then all the sudden he was gone and I haven't seen one in our yard since. His family used to come to the feeders, too. I love the way he is posed. Fav!
April 28th, 2012  
Gorgeous - instant fav. I only see them on the side of the roads on the way to the cottage. When I'm actually at the cottage - none to be seen. So I will enjoy your photo. :)
April 28th, 2012  
Super capture! I have only ever seen a few...such a dominant red of their wings...beautiful!
April 28th, 2012  
FAV! Anne, I love the detail on this. We have them in our area, too, but I have not been able to "shoot" one - they move too fast and I'm too impatient to sit and wait!
April 28th, 2012  
Brilliant photo. Gerry.
April 28th, 2012  
Anne, Beautiful capture of the red wing black bird. I'm still trying. If you don't mind I'll borrow your wording on comments and responses. Well worded. Thanks.
April 28th, 2012  
Great capture! They are hard to capture. Nice.
April 28th, 2012  
what a beautiful splash of red on his glossy black plumage
April 29th, 2012  
This is stunning, Anne! I love your composition and your focus is spot on (with grandkids in tow, no less!). I haven't seen one of these birds in years.
April 30th, 2012  
Gorgeous shot, love the colours & I like the back view :)
April 30th, 2012  
I missed this shot as I was traveling to Greece this day.
Superb shot, instant fav!
May 2nd, 2012  
I love the lines of the bird and the plants. Fav.
May 4th, 2012  
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