NATURE CLICKS #592 - AMERICAN TREE SPARROW

American Tree Sparrow, Little Maquoketa Valley, Iowa

I’m glad that I was able to make a number of pictures of the American Tree Sparrow last weekend right here at the house before all the snow melted away. I said it many times before that I love how the light bouncing from the snow on the ground wraps around the critters.

American Tree Sparrows have their breeding range from Alaska all across northern Canada and so we have them in Iowa only during winter. They prefer deciduous woodlands along streams and it is not very often that we see them up on the bluffs here. Although they are called tree sparrows, they actually built their nests on or near the ground.

I know winter is not over yet, but with the snow all gone for now we have to revert to other means of lighting again for our bird photography. Each of the four seasons have their highlights and challenges. During times with snow cover finding enough light is the easiest part…😉

Nikon Z6II, Nikon NIKKOR Z 600 f/6.3 VR S, Nikon Z TC-1.4x,    @ 840mm, 1/3200s, f/9, ISO 2000, image slightly cropped

WINTER SPARROW VARIETY (4 CHOICES)

I have been an advocate for paying attention to the more common species of birds since wildlife photography became part of my life. It means, the ones we may see almost every day or the kind of bird that doesn’t draw the attention as much as a more exotic looking species. Sparrows are mostly overlooked. They are small and because many of them are not so rare makes us thinking, a sparrow is just another sparrow. You know what I mean. Last weekend the appearance of a couple species, that are here only seasonal, made me focus with the camera on this agile ground feeders. You can decide which one you like the best. I just love all of them!

American Tree Sparrow

American Tree Sparrow

They have their breeding grounds high up in northern Canada and Alaska but during winter time the American Tree Sparrow spends its time here, in particular in trees and shrubs along streams. Most of the time I see them along the Mississippi River but this photo was made just on our snow covered balcony.

White-throated Sparrow

Another sparrow that breeds up in Canada, northern Minnesota, Wisconsin, and Michigan. It seems there is always one that hangs out with the local bunch of house Sparrows during the cold months of the year.

Dark -eyed-Junco

Although it doesn’t have the word ‘sparrow’ in its name, they belong to this family. I recently reported about this species here in the blog. The Dark-eyed Junco is our best “winter indicator”. If they show up, you can be sure temperatures below freezing are not far away. In late winter, when the Dark-eyed Juncos suddenly disappear, we just know, the snow shovel can be put away for the season (exceptions are possible! 😉)

House Sparrow

We have a little flock here every winter. They like the cover beneath the mountain pines we planted next to the house years ago. This one is obviously a young male sparrow. However, he doesn’t look right! It’s obvious that his tail feathers are missing. We only can guess if our local Sharp-shinned Hawk got a hold of him, but the most common of all sparrows escaped…

NATURE CLICKS #480 - AMERICAN TREE SPARROW

This photo is already two weeks old but it could have been made today because the landscape had a fresh layer of snow on top of the old one this morning. The American Tree Sparrow breeds in far northern North America but during the winter they migrate south and we may have a chance to watch them. They feed usually in small flocks, mostly on seeds, but here in our woods we only see one or two occasionally.

During these gray days, with little or no sun peaking out from behind the clouds, I still like to include a little bit from the “cold part” of winter in my visual storytelling. Blue is the color of cold and I try to keep the white balance around 5500 Kelvin. Gray clouds render gray snow and the idea is just to counter that by controlling the white balance in camera. A hint of flash helps again with the colors of the sparrow.

COLD BUT KILLER LIGHT

American Tree Sparrow, Mississippi River, Hawkeye Marina, Mud Lake, Iowa ---------

I know, I know, I had a photo of an American Tree Sparrow in my blog less than two weeks ago! But how could I resist? It was very windy and cold today, the air was “crisp” and clear and as a result we had great light, at least in my books. Down at the Mississippi River I counted 8 different species of ducks, Hooded and Common Mergansers, lots of American Coots, and a number of Pied-billed Grebes. But it was just before the sun disappeared behind the rocky bluffs that border the river valley, when the great light turned into “killer light”. At that time I focussed on a grove of American Tree Sparrows who searched for food between the driftwood and seemed to enjoy the last rays of sun for the day.

Nikon D750, Sigma 150-600mm / f5-6.3 DG OS HSM S, @ 600 mm (DX mode), 1/800 s, f/6.3, ISO200

NATURE CLICKS #394 - AMERICAN TREE SPARROW

The photo is already two days old. Life stood in the way for posting here in the blog. That is not a big deal because it was three years ago when I had the last time an American Tree Sparrow in front of the lens. Wednesday night along the waters of the Deere Marsh at the Mississippi River I found a “grove” of them. When I walk on top of the dyke towards the river with our little dog Cooper I usually take the camera with me. This location is always good for some discoveries.

The American Tree Sparrow is here only during the winter time. Their breeding range is in northern Canada and Alaska. Speaking of winter, we have some snow in the forecast for tomorrow. When the ground is covered with snow, the tree sparrows will beat tall weeds with their wings and feed on the seeds that may have fallen down. I thought this is an interesting fact, I just learned from my favorite bird identification app on the phone, iBird PRO. Enjoy your weekend!

Nikon D750, Sigma 150-600mm / f5-6.3 DG OS HSM Sports Lens, @ 600 mm, 1/400 s, f/6.3, ISO 400