Don't we all want to be as free as a bird? I know that's for me one of the most important things in life. I remembered this song form Leonard Cohen when a couple of swallows landed on the electricity wire in front of our house. I never discussed any swallows, although there are many in Suriname. The reason is that they are either flying or sitting on wires and antennas. Which never gives a really nice picture.
White winged Swallow (Tachycineta albiventer)
This swallow can be found near rivers and canals. It doesn't migrate except for the birds in the more southern countries and can been found in most of South America. The population in the south of its range most like winters here in the Guyanas.
This is most likely a younger bird. The blue / green on its back is not so developed. Neither is the white on its wings. The White-winged swallow eats insects. It catches them flying low over the water.
Gray-breasted Martin (Progne chalybea)
The Grey-breasted Martin can be found everywhere in Suriname. Sometimes they flock together in groups of thousands, together with other birds from the same family. Like all the other swallows they eat insects in flight.
A small group sitting in the rain on a wire.
Green Kingfisher (Chloroceryle americana)
When I first saw this one, I thought I spotted another species. But alas it is the Green Kingfisher that's not so green yet. I think it's a young female. It's very uncommon that it landed so close to our house. Unfortunately on a wire.
Tropical Kingbird (Tyrannus Melancholicus)
This was the first picture I took from the Tropical Kingbird. And it had to be on a wire of course. Luckily since then I took many more pictures like this one that I took last week.
The Tropical Kingbird is a real flycatcher. It often perches on a fence or a wire and it catches the insects in a typical flycatcher way. It flies up in a loop, catches the insect mid air and lands back where it came from. It also likes to eat the berries from the butterfly bush.
Roadside Hawk (Rupornis magnirostris)
Enough with the wires. I spotted one more bird last week. It's the Roadside Hawk and it's number 64 on my list of spotted birds. Apparently it often sits close to a road, high in the trees, on the lookout for small prey like insects and small lizards. It's a common bird in Suriname along the coastal zones and in the northern Savannah.
Glittering-throated emerald (Amazilia fimbriata)
Our baby hummingbird is growing fast. It's 23 days old now and will soon leave the nest. In episode1 of Birding In Suriname you can see it how it was a week ago. Now it's awake more often and it starts to get curious about what's going on in the garden.
This is the mother sitting in the Moringa tree in the evening sun. Last week she's been making a lot of (soft) noises, flying around the nest and perching in different areas of the garden. She constantly calls her young with a very fast tjirp. That's very handy for me because I hear her before I see her and then I know that I can turn on the camera.
I was able to film her a couple of times feeding her young. Here is a little clip:
That's it for this week. I hope you enjoyed the birds and that you'll will join me next week when our baby hummingbird will receive its first flying lessons.
Much Love,
Gardenbsquared
Why not click here to read more inspirational and interesting posts by the other members of the ecoTrain.
Striated Heron (Butorides striata striata)
Great Kiskadee (Pitangus sulphuratus)
Snail kite (Rostrhamus sociabilis)
