CALIFORNIA CONDOR

birdfotos.com

I have really had a difficult time figuring out just to show this page to you.

In my several trips down and back on this road I always saw at least 100 Horned Larks.

As I drove along they would fly up and across the road a head of me or fly behind me, but would always lite along the edge of the road where there are many rocks of all sizes and much weed/grass seeds to eat.

While stopped at one point and just looking out of the drivers side window at the dried grasses along side the road I notice a movement. Sure enough, some the Larks did not fly away with the others. So, I shut off the car engine, got out my 500 mm lens, rested it on the door where the window rolled down and started my wait.

I was so intent on getting a good photo of the Larks I did not look up or out into the field, just kept my eyes on the rocks along side the road. I caught a movement and looked up and to my surprise there was a European Starling on the fence post straight out from my car window. But every time I started to raise my camera up to photograph the Starling on the fence post a Lark would pop its head up over the top of a stone. Now if you have ever looked a Horned Lark straight in the face it looks as though it is smiling. It's really quite a funny sight. Well, let's take a look at that Starling.

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Most of the time it would just sit on this post and I guess watch what I was doing.

When it wasn't doing that it would flit over and perch on the fence just to the right of the post and look back and forth first to the left and then to the right.

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This went on for at least an hour.

It looks much better if I show it this way.

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Getting back to the Larks.

I could see those Larks moving around in the grass but just couldn't get a clear photo, and then one hopped up on a rather large rock. I guess it was the look out bird because of the way it was acting. I took many photos of it so I could show what it was doing. Animations by my son Stanley Robinson.

It would repeat this act about every 5 to 10 minutes.

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Now here's the really funny one. Remember I said I thought I saw a Lark pop up every now and then but when I went to look for it, it was no where to found. Well, keeping my eyes glued to the spot where I was quite sure I saw it, and also keeping the camera trained on that spot, I was going to get a photo no matter what.

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Below is what I photographed. I am quite sure you too will smile when you see it.

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Now tell me, can you look at that face and keep a straight face your self?

Well that's about it. I came, I saw, I photographed every thing I could and have put it here for all of you to view.

Hope you have enjoyed this trip as much as I did.

Back to the beginning. To the bird links page.

If you haven't ever seen a California Condor click HERE