Our 15 Favorite Bird Photos From 2018

We don’t fancy ourselves bird photographers, but merely birders who like to take some photos. We originally decided to get a camera as a way to ID and study birds we were unsure of in the field. These bird photographs also have a way of transporting us back in time, reminding us of that specific bird we spent time with on that specific day.
 
Here are 15 photographs we selected from 2018, presented in chronological order. All photos were taken using a Canon EOS Rebel T2i with a 55-250mm lens.
 
1. Boat-billed Heron, Cahuita, Costa Rica. In February 2018, we visited Costa Rica and spent a lot of time on the Caribbean side. We fell head over heels in love with this unique bird.

2. Tree Swallow, Santa Rosa, California. In spring and summer, several varieties of swallows can be seen zipping above Delta Pond. We were taken with this striking Tree Swallow resting on barbed wire.

3. Pine Siskins, Bodega, California. This was a particularly memorable birding experience. We conservatively estimated there were 650+ Pine Siskins along Salmon Creek Road. The noise they created was incredible – like hundreds of rain sticks upended continuously. A Red-tailed Hawk flew in and flushed all the birds at once, and we captured this photo. We love how you can see the different shapes they make and the illuminated yellow patches in their wings. Some of the birds with tucked-in wings look like fish flying through the sky.

4. Townsend’s Warbler, Bodega Bay, California. It’s not often we get to see this bird at eye-level. The parking lot of Diekmann’s Bay Store looks down onto a songbird haven, and gave us a nice vantage point.

5. Pacific Wren fledgling, Guerneville, California. This little cutie was born just down the street from our house. We had the pleasure of seeing this fledgling and the rest of its family several times this summer as we walked around the neighborhood.

6. Violet-green Swallow, Guerneville, California. We love this photo so much we made it our logo! We were elated when this adorable male and its mate landed on our deck one afternoon, apparently checking out our dryer vent hole as a potential nest. Ultimately, ownership of the vent went to a nesting pair of Northern Rough-winged Swallows, but we loved getting to see the Violet-greens up close for a few days.

7. American Robin fledgling, Guerneville, California. We watched this youngster grow up right in front of our house. When we took this photo, it was straining to reach a cherry and nearly fell off the branch.

8. Brown Creeper, Forestville, California. Smoke from the Mendocino Complex Fire was thick this day in August as we birded the West County Trail. We like the surreal orange glow cast on this Brown Creeper (which is one of Teresa’s favorite birds).

9. Blue-gray Gnatcatcher, Sebastopol, California. We were surprised to see eight Blue-gray Gnatcatchers this day in August at Laguna de Santa Rosa (one of our favorite birding spots in the county). This one posed perfectly for its picture.

10. Tropical Kingbird, Bodega Bay, California. This vagrant bird spent some time at Campbell Cove this fall. It was very adept at flycatching, and we enjoyed watching this master at its craft.

11. Common Yellowthroat, Bodega Bay, California. The male Common Yellowthroat is so striking with its black face mask that it often overshadows the subtle beauty of its female counterpart. Her soft color palette is so soothing.

12. Common Poorwill, Occidental, California. What more can we say? Nightjars are awesome, and we can’t believe we saw one in our county! We were owling one evening on Coleman Valley Road when a couple Common Poorwills stole the show.

13. Great Blue Heron, Bodega Bay, California. NATURE IS METAL!!!

14. Black-crowned Night Heron, Fallon, Nevada. We love how the eye of this juvenile bird is its most colorful feature. This was just one of many wonderful birds we encountered at Stillwater National Wildlife Refuge – check out our trip report here.

15. Purple Finch, Pleasanton, California. The peppercorn colors complement this male finch perfectly, but what we love most about this photo is it reminds us of the wonderful day spent birding with some of our best buddies.

You can also check out Our 15 Favorite Bird Audio Recordings From 2018!
 
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