My first Baskettail sp.

Dragonflies are flying again.  The species number is not high, but I have seen a few.  Of these, Green Darners (so far only males) and Black Saddlebags seem to be most common.  I also saw a male Twelve-spotted Skimmer on Saturday along with a few Dot-tailed Whiteface - both first of the year for me.

On Saturday, I also netted my first ever baskettail at Crosswinds Marsh.  In fact, not only is this my first baskettail sp. ever seen, this is the very first dragonfly I have ever netted.  Imagine my surprise when this happened.  Despite holding it in my fingers, an email exchange with Darrin O'Brien suggests that my dragonfly will remain identified only to Epitheca sp.

Epitheca sp.

This, to me, is likely to be a Common Baskettail, but as Darrin points out to me from an Urban Odes blog entry, Identifying Odonata from Photographs, dating back to July 2010, I'll probably never know. Further, he writes,  "ID is very difficult in this region to differentiate the species.  Common (E. cynosura) is most common here, but others are possible.  Some baskettails cannot even be identified under the microscope."  Click on the blog entry link and scroll down a bit to hybrids and uncertain taxonomy to read more about the difficulty of identifying Epitheca to species in this region.

For another Urban Odes article for more specifics see New County Record:  Stripe-winged Baskettail from August 2006.

As Google Feeds Cats, Owl Lovers Cry Foul

We have such an uphill battle ...

From the New York Times today:  As Google Feeds Cats, Owl Lovers Cry Foul

Backyard

Photos taken Sunday evening while sitting on my back porch with camera.  Even captured a new yard bird for my list. 

Bathing robins are irresistible to me.

A surprise Tennessee Warbler appeared at the top of my pondless waterfall and checked out the flowing water.

Getting closer to the water

Taking the plunge

Bathing.  You can just barely see the bird behind the overhanging stick.

If my backyard is anything to go by, house sparrows are also enthusiastic bathers.

House sparrow and robin together.

New yard bird - female Indigo Bunting

Above and below, took many photos of the female Indigo checking out the moving water.

In the end, the Indigo Bunting decided against a splash.

Swainson's Thrush has been singing from mine and my neighbor's yards for the past couple of days.  Visited my pond frequently, but I never saw it get in.  In the right setting, I find swainson's thrushes to be very cooperative for photographs.  A true beauty.

This blog entry is also titled Fun with Birds, not to be confused with Fun with Flags.

A couple of flycatchers and woodcreepers

Above and below:  Slaty-capped Flycatcher (Leptopogon superciliaris)

12/01/18 addendum:  As below with Strong-billed Woodcreeper, please see explanation for misidentification.  Above and three below is Golden-crowned Flycatcher (Myiodynastes chrysocephalus).  I must add I think.  Matt has identified as Golden-bellied Flycatcher (Myiodynastes hemichrysus) which, by appearance, makes more sense, but I can't find a golden-bellied fly in any of my Ecuador resources, although we have seen golden-bellied in Panama and Costa Rica.  Whatever it is, slaty-capped fly is definitely the wrong identification.  

Above and below:  different Slaty-capped Flycatcher

Streak-headed Woodcreeper (Lepidicolaptes souleyetii) - I think.

12/01/18 addendum:  As Matt fills in his blog with photos from our 2018 trip, he recently posted photos of Strong-billed Woodcreeper (Xiphocolaptes promeropirhynchus) that I recognized from my own photos.  I confirmed the ID with Matt.  Above, I originally misidentified the bird in my photo.  Note that the addition of I think made clear that I was not too sure of my ID at the time of my original blog post.

Above and two below: Spotted Woodcreeper (Xiphorhynchus erythropygius) 

Above and below:  Ornate Flycatcher (Myiotriccus ornatus)

Wedge-billed Woodcreeper (Glyphorynchus spirurus)