What an amazing looking little bird to spend some time watching. He hopped around from branch to branch and getting a photo or two seemed in the end pure luck.
All about birds had this to say “A tiny, long-tailed bird of broadleaf forests and scrublands, the Blue-gray Gnatcatcher makes itself known by its soft but insistent calls and its constant motion” and it sure fit this guys behavior to a tee.
To read ore about this bird visit https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Blue-gray_Gnatcatcher/lifehistory
It’s always just luck with me 🙂
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Yet luck always seems to smell of hard work for some reason.
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Stern little fella 😑
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He does have quite the determined gaze.
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Nice capture
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HI and thanks.
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Where I live in No. Calif. the blue-gray gnatcatcher spends the summer, and I always stop when I hear that scratchy high-pitched call, and look around. I’m glad for the insistent sound, because they are often difficult to spot, farther away than they sound, and almost impossible to photograph for all their twitchy ways. These photos, Mike, are the best I have ever seen them. wow. Thank you.
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Hi Jet and luckily the foliage in the trees and yet to leaf out. Once it does these guys are probably invisible except to the ear as you have experienced.
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Your images are stunning. What a treat that must have been to see such a pretty little bird.
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Hi Laura and thanks. It is always fun to get a glimpse of these little guys. Hope you have a wonderful weekend.
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He’s a cutie! Wish I had a pair living in my forest.
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Hi and we wish they were in our forest as well and didn’t just migrate through.
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What a sweet little bird – I love the eye!
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Sweet and stern and that little eye does speak volumes to their personality.
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What an absolute beauty – new to me, and I’d love to see one. Thanks, Mike!
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HI Adam, we have only observed this bird a few times as they just migrate through our area but each time we do it’s fun. Hope you spot one sometime.
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Great catch! They really are on the move. The one we saw this weekend was calling and wouldn’t sit still. Getting a photo of one takes patience and lots of tries.
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HI Kit, they do seem to alway be on the move and we did more deleters than keepers that day but you only need a few. It’s fun trying as well.
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Very sweet character. Reminds me of the Cape White Eye in my Garden. A little green bird which I was taking pics of just yesterday.
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HI Caroline, they are indeed similar with those white eye rings. I would like to see the cape white eye some day.
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I don’t know whether it is pure luck that the background colours work so beautifully with it too, especially in the last picture.
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HI and the background colors were a nice match but that was just pure luck.
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Very nice capture with a great background. Have never seen one of these little birds. Thanks for sharing.
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Hi Jan and thanks. They are very fun albeit twitchy little birds and getting a chance to see them is always fun. Hope your day is going well and wishing you a fine weekend.
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what sharp eyes! lovely capture
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HI and thanks for the feedback as we really appreciate it. This guys does have quite the intense look doesn’t he. They are fun little birds to observe always moving about trying to get a meal. Hope your day is going well and wishing a fine rest of your week.
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