white-throated sparrow, growth on bill

[Steve Foss]

Hey all:

Seems like it's been so long since I shot birds I spent some time in the backyard blind yesterday. Ran across the usual suspects but also a juvie white-throated sparrow with a growth on its bill. Didn't seem to impede feeding or any other sparrow-type activity.

It was a dark and gloomy day . . . thus . . . the flash.

Canon 30D, Canon 100-400L IS at 400mm, iso640, 1/250 at f7.1, tripod, 430EX flash triggered remotely at - 1 2/3 flash exposure compensation

Same settings except for 1/200, full frame

[Scott M]

Real nice pictures. Those are a couple birds that tell you that you are in the north woods when you see or hear them.

I really love the white-throated sparrow call. Won't be long and you won't hear them calling. They will be migrating soon.

[Steve Foss]

Thanks, chise.

The white-throated sparrow song is one of my favorites, too. When you get those sparrows and the hermit and Swainson's thrushes singing around a black spruce bog in the late spring, I could stay there for days on end.

Of course, at this time of year the songs of the w-t sparrows are pretty faint and wavering, like they have dipped their cup into the well few too many times, if you know what I mean.

We had three w-t sparrows at our feeders all last winter, though of course the vast majority migrate south as you mentioned.

[Jim Almquist]

Thats one weird little bird you got there . Very nice shot of the Jay. They seem to be at our feeders a lot now that it has cooled off some(except the past 2 days)