Gray Catbird with a spider for their young – Nikon D810, f7.1, 1/400, ISO 500, Nikkor 500mm VR with 1.4x TC, natural light
Bird activity in the Wasatch Mountains has gotten slow but I was able to find and photograph an adult Gray Catbird with food for its young two days ago. Unfortunately the preferred perch for the catbird was a plant pot that had washed down stream sometime earlier this year.
The pot is trashy and I wish I could walk out and get it without sinking into the mud up to my knees so it wouldn’t be in my photos or polluting the creek. Perhaps the next time I head up there I will take my winter boots with me so I can fetch the pot because at least those boots would be easy to hose off when I got back home.
The catbird didn’t care about the pot and it actually landed on it twice while I observed it looking for food for its young. In this photo the adult catbird has a spider in its bill.
Adult Gray Catbird with a spider and dragonfly nymph – Nikon D810, f7.1, 1/500, ISO 500, Nikkor 500mm VR with 1.4x TC, natural light
After feeding one of its chicks the spider the catbird went foraging again and when it landed on the pot I could see a spider plus a dragonfly nymph in its bill.
I only saw the adult feed one of its chicks once and they were way across the creek and were too small in the frame for high quality images. The other times I knew that the catbird was feeding one of its young they were behind a thick stand of willows. I had hoped that I would see that action closer and out in the open. That didn’t happen.
Adult Gray Catbird calling softly – Nikon D810, f7.1, 1/800, ISO 500, Nikkor 500mm VR with 1.4x TC, natural light
The adult Gray Catbird did take a short break from foraging for food and perched out in the open on a thin branch where it called softly for a few seconds. I enjoyed hearing, observing and photographing this catbird as it went about the business of rearing its young of the season.
Life is good.
Mia
Click here to see more of my Gray Catbird photos plus facts and information about this species.
I know exactly how you feel about the trash… but thinking about removing it in the summer makes me wonder, how do birds react to the sudden disappearance of a landmark or familiar perch?
I am having trouble with my reading list and am likely to be a bit missing for a while.
Thank you for this charmer – and your concern for our environment.