Dickcissel's are a rare bird in my area (northwestern Ontario, Canada) - we are well north of the regular range and haven't had a recorded sighting in the district for several years. I was tipped off to the location of this bird by a member of the local bird-watching group. I originally stopped at the location early in the morning but returned just before sunset after assessing the scene for lighting.
I don't have much experience with the species, but I have to say this was a very aggressive little bird! I sat and watched him guard his length of fenceline chasing off every Sparrow, Bobolink and Kingbird that dared occupy a place on "his" fence. After trying to chase him as he continuously moved along the fence, I parked and placed a tethered speaker in the grass on the fenceline and ran the cable back to my car (parked on the shoulder of the road ~ 12 feet from the fence). After maybe 10 seconds of a recorded call, the bird zipped along the fence, parked himself right in front of me and sat there calling away. I couldn't have asked for a more cooperative subject...
Canon 1DIV -- Canon 400mm f/5.6L -- 1/1000s @ f/9 -- ISO400 -- Av Mode @ 0 EV -- Handheld
08-09-2011, 08:09 PM
Randy Stout
Jeff:
Excellent calling pose wide open with interior of mouth showing, wide spread perch,sharp well exposed.
Not crazy about the perch, but it certainly is part of their habitat/range. Wish the vertical leg wasn't there however.
Neat to see such an unusual bird in your area.
Cheers
Randy
08-09-2011, 09:38 PM
Ofer Levy
Beautiful image! I don't mind the perch as it has a lot of character. Excellent work!
08-09-2011, 10:42 PM
Marina Scarr
What a great calling pose on this little devil, and the light is killer. I like the perch for this image and the hint of spider web on it.
08-09-2011, 11:28 PM
Luis Villablanca
I loved this image when you posted it on Flickr a while ago.
The colors are so nice, the light is really good, and the singing pose is excellent. Well done!
08-10-2011, 10:13 AM
jack williamson
Lucky you Jeff. The exposure looks very good, the Bg is great, pose is wonderful. I don't mind the perch at all. It is nice to have birds show up in your area that are usually not seen there. Glad you got him.