Birds of the Cuyamaca Mountains

After a little bit of an absence, it's a good time to shed some light on the mountain birds hereabouts. The avian fauna shifts with the seasons, but many of the species are year-round residents. In the past year-and-a-half or so I've been experimenting with photographing birds and mammals from a blind set up on my property. Slowly the results are improving. I am using a Canon Rebel T1i (an old camera at this point) and a Canon 400 mm fixed focal length telephoto lens to get close to them.

Here are some of the first images taken from the blind set up on a none-too-level spot near a convenient rock (a little peanut butter on the rock was employed too!). All of the images have a rusty background due to the old Eriogonum fasciculatum bushes that are in the background.

California Thrasher. Usually a shy species, but an occasional visitor to "The Rock". A year-round resident.

Acorn Woodpecker. There is a colony close by so these are regulars. This is a pink-eyed individual - a more rare eye color variant. A year-round species.

A first-year White-crowned Sparrow. This is a migratory species, most abundant here in the cooler months.

Spotted Towhee, another year-round resident. This is a male, with blacker plumage and brighter orange sides.

Oak Titmouse (formerly the Plain Titmouse). Another resident throughout the year.