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Items tagged with: birdsofmastodon


Why did the Meadowlark cross the road?

This is one of two eastern meadowlarks (Sturnella magna) that I found a couple weeks ago near a road intersection. I posted a photo of one on a road sign then. I'm not sure if this is the same bird. This bird walked across the road. It's sort of like the Beatles Abby Road moment.

"The sweet, lazy whistles of Eastern Meadowlarks waft over summer grasslands and farms in eastern North America. The birds themselves sing from fenceposts and telephone lines or stalk through the grasses, probing the ground for insects with their long, sharp bills. On the ground, their brown-and-black dappled upperparts camouflage the birds among dirt clods and dry grasses. But up on perches, they reveal bright-yellow underparts and a striking black chevron across the chest." - allaboutbirds.org

#photo #photography #photographer #photographylovers #birds #birdsofmastodon #birdwatching #EasternMeadowlark
This meadowlark is seen here running across the road's gravel shoulder.  I initially wanted to use a photo of the bird crossing the yellow lines, but it wasn't quite as sharp as this one.  In the frame the bird is running to the right and its right side faces the camera. It is a slender bird; black and white camouflage mark its head wings back and upper legs.  Its eye is black, and it has its longish narrow gray and black beak open as if singing while running.  Just behind the beak above the eye is a yellow marking.  The throat below the beak is also bright yellow as is the breast. There is a black chevron that separates the yellow throat from the yellow breast.  It has a rather short gray tail. Its lower legs and feet are pinkish; the right foot is forward while the left is thrown to the rear with only the front talons touching the ground.

"Eastern Meadowlarks are chunky, medium-sized songbirds with short tails and long, spear-shaped bills. In flight, their rounded wings, short tails, and long bills help set them apart from other grassland songbirds.  Eastern Meadowlarks are pale brown marked with black, with bright-yellow underparts and a bold black V across the chest. Though most of the tail is brown with blackish barring, the outer feathers are white and conspicuous during flight." - allaboutbrids.org