Spring -- Northern Ohio

Thread Starter

jpanhalt

Joined Jan 18, 2008
11,087
It's here! Came in like a lamb on Saturday. Stayed above freezing for the past two days. Rivers are rising and fog. Not sure I can get to the store tomorrow. Driveway is clear of significant ice.

Current conditions:
T = 43°F
Humidity = 95%
Dew point = 42°F
Observation: Fog, dense in places
Location report: I love it

Yesterday, I saw a cardinal. She (?) was not brightly colored and looked expecting, but what do I know about avian obstetrics. If that is your thing, pay $15 and read this: http://www.exoticpetmedicine.com/article/S1055-937X(96)80026-0/abstract

Anyway, my latest DigiKey order is due tomorrow. I don't know whether I should put it on the shelf until next December or tease the IRS and play with it awhile. Please help.

John
 

Brownout

Joined Jan 10, 2012
2,390
Long awaited Spring arrived in Alabama on Saturday. Temps are in the 60's and remnants of the list ice storm are melting away. We have a solid week of rain in the forcast, then good weather to the horizon. Winter blew it's last blow.
 

Thread Starter

jpanhalt

Joined Jan 18, 2008
11,087
Female cardinals are brown. The male is brightly colored.
Yes, sexual dimorphism can be quite striking in bird species. Female cardinals can have considerable red on them, but are as you say not as red as the male. If it was a cardinal, I suspect it was probably a male. Here's a redder female cardinal:
upload_2015-3-11_5-49-56.png

It also might have been a Summer Tanager:

upload_2015-3-11_5-45-58.png

I did not see it in flight. I do love watching the birds, but have very limited experience, basically the past two years, in trying to identify them. One of the things I have been looking for are binoculars with a built-in camera. Several brands of binocular have have cameras, but it seems at least some of those are just a camera attached to the top of the binoculars. What I am looking for would be something like an SLR camera that captures its image from one of the light paths and has a conveniently located release, so I could view and click the release at the same time.

John
 
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