White-eyed Vireo

 

Back in the spring I was out birding when a local birding guide legend mentioned that he had found a White-eyed Vireo close by. We were unable to relocate the bird however after a couple of hours I was able to relocate the bird in the exact original location.

The White-eyed Vireo forages in the understory often out of sight, but sings nearly all day to let you know it's there. It spends the winter along the coast in the United States and farther south in Mexico, the Caribbean, and northern Central America. Cornell All About Birds

Golden-winged Warbler

 

Back in the spring I had the chance to observe and photograph a Golden-winged Warbler that was in the area. I had previously observed these allusive birds but failed in attempts at obtaining a decent image.

Golden-winged Warblers forage among the leaves and branch tips of their low, shrubby habitat. Males sing their loud, buzzy song over and over again from the tops of shrubs during early summer. Which is exactly the habitat this warbler was observed.

Golden-winged Warblers breed in tangled, shrubby habitats such as regenerating clearcuts, wet thickets, and tamarack bogs. They often move into nearby woodland when the young have fledged. They spend winters in open woodlands and shade-coffee plantations of Central and South America. Cornell All About Birds

Richardson's Owl

On a recent visit to my mother’s new retirement village, I was perusing the very well stocked library when I came across a Roger Tory Peterson A  Field Guide to The Birds first published in 1934. This copy was the fourth edition and published in 1947. It looks like it was a gift to a non birder and is in extremely good condition.

The area covered by the book is the eastern United States.

The retirement home librarian was overwhelmed that I was interested in the book and was more than happy to let me take it home. Apparently, books go missing all the time. Go figure.

I was interested to see a Richardson’s Owl listed and started looking into the name.

The boreal owl (Aegolius funereus) or Tengmalm's owl is a small owl in the "true owl" family Strigidae. It is known as the Boreal Owl in North America and as Tengmalm’s Owl in Europe after Swedish naturalist Peter Gustaf Tengmalm and more rarely as Richardson’s Owl after Sir John Richardson. 

Sir John Richardson was a Scottish naval surgeon, naturalist and Arctic explorer who lived 1787-1865.

Kind of interesting seeing a lot of older names for common birds now. Most of the drawings are in black and white but a few have colour.

I also found out there is a woman’s national football team in Finland called The Boreal Owls.