Thursday, February 20, 2014

Brown Creeper

Lee Slatum and my wife Jeanette have talked me into posting this photo.  I’m not especially proud of it, but then there is the fact that Brown Creepers are just plain hard to photograph. They are busy, busy, birds, up and down and around a tree, never still, constantly looking for bugs.  And their coloring camouflages them so well against the bark it makes them very hard to see let alone focus a camera.  This one shows up a little better because of the green moss. He is at a rather odd angle, but notice his stiff tail feathers that he uses to support his body as well as his legs. I had gone early yesterday to the Salem Audubon Nature Reserve in West Salem where I volunteer, to be able to spend some time looking for birds before starting to work. The sighting of this Brown Creeper was what I term the “gift of the day”.  

4 comments:

  1. what a delight for you to see a Creeper there.

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  2. I've wondered what these zippy little guys were. Thanks for answering another question. Beautiful shot, love the contrast with the bright green moss!

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  3. Brown creepers are little stinkers when it comes to photographing them. I'd be happy to get this shot -- great look at those stiff tail feathers. I never realized just how stiff they are. I expect it on various woodpeckers, but didn't realize creepers do it too.

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  4. The Brown Creeper is almost faster than the human eye; now you see him, now you don't, as he corkscrews up the tree trunk. I always feel an emotional charge when I catch a glimpse of this hard-to-spot bird. Jim, your narrative, as always, was filled with interesting facts. Lee

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