Tag Archives: female

•

Acorn Woodpeckers are striking birds, with their colorful faces. Ron Bolander recently photographed a female.

The female has black feathers between the white and red feathers on her head. The male doesn't have the black band of feathers on his head. They have a unique call which you can hear at this link to the Cornell Lab of Ornithology: https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Acorn_Woodpecker/sounds

Thanks to Ron for allowing me to share his photo with you here.

oh my, it's WINDY today! There have been power outages because of the wind. And there isn't a cloud to be seen as I type this...just a cold wind!

•

Karen Wilkinson noticed this Bobcat hiding in the grasses near a trail at The Sea Ranch. She called Mike Petrich to come and take a look.

Mike photographed what I believe is a female Bobcat. Females are quite a bit smaller than males.

Thanks to Mike for allowing me to share his photo with you here.

Our string of dry weather continues, much to our delight and much to our dismay. No rain yet in the month of February. No mushrooms to speak of with the dry conditions. I did see my first Western Trillums in bloom this morning!

•

Some of the "boys" were in an amorous mood but the lone female Gray Whale wasn't interested. To get away from the males, she did a maneuver that looks like she's standing on her head. Barry Weiss and Craig Tooley each got photos of this. The first photo is Barry's.

Female Gray Whale head down by Barry Weiss Female Gray Whale trying to avoid amorous males by Craig Tooley

This isn't the right time of year for females to be impregnated. But tell that to the fellas.

Thanks to Barry and Craig for allowing me to share their photos with you here. To see much more of Craig's nature photography, here is his website: www.ruffimage.com

•

Cece Case was in her office at her home in Gualala  when she looked up and got the surprise of her life. An adult female Mountain Lion was looking through the window.

Mountain Lion outside my window by Cece Case

Cece does have cats and perhaps this big cat was looking for a tasty treat. Cece got another photo of the Cougar -  a look at her full body and tail. You can see it at the Independent Coast Observer's website at: www.mendonoma.com Click on Mendonoma Sightings photos to see it.

Thanks to Cece for allowing me to share her photo with you here.

•

Pileated Woodpeckers are big, as big as a crow. They can be 16.5 inches long with a wingspan of 29 inches. I more often hear these prehistoric-looking birds than see them. One was recently feeding on the ground and Craig Tooley got this photo.

Their favorite food is carpenter ants. But termites are swarming and I'm wondering if that might be what this big bird had found in the ground.

Here is a photo of a female that Craig got another time. Note the lack of red by her beak.

I always feel fortunate when I see a Pileated. Along with hearing their calls, I hear them drumming on snags. They are also unique in that they create rectangular holes while searching for ants.

To hear the calls of a Pileated Woodpecker, here is the link to the Cornell Lab of Ornithology: http://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/pileated_woodpecker/sounds.

To see much more of Craig's nature photography, here is the link to his website: ruffimage.com.
And thanks to Craig for allowing me to share his beautiful photos with you here.