March 5, 2021
| Painted Bunting by Andrew Mills|
Our eighth and closing BirdSpotter class of the 2020-2021 season completed up yesterday on March 4. The theme for Class 8 was Rainbow Birds, and our gallery didn’t disappoint! People submitted colourful birds from throughout the spectrum. Our Judges’ Selection winner for Class 8 is Andrew Mills, for this brilliant and cheery Painted Bunting that he was fortunate sufficient to search out in Washington, DC this previous January. Andrew says:
This Painted Bunting strayed from his typical winter grounds and located his means as much as Washington D.C., changing into an area superstar and drawing fowl watchers from across the area. He was fairly reliably seen foraging on sure areas of the tow path and close by trails. This picture was taken in a light-weight snow on the Chesapeake and Ohio Canal, Nice Falls Nationwide Park in Maryland…It took about 4 hours for him to get snug, and [for me to get] shut sufficient to get this picture, however I’m glad I stayed for this once-in-a-lifetime sighting!
Painted Buntings usually spend their time within the southern US throughout breeding season and in Mexico, the Caribbean Islands, and Central America for the winter, so a sighting in Washington, DC is definitely unusual! These brightly coloured birds eat each seeds and bugs. They’re probably to go to feeders in a yards with low, dense vegetation, however you can even discover them in additional pure areas hiding in weedy fields or shrubby, dense edge habitat. Your search might be properly well worth the effort!
Submissions at the moment are closed for BirdSpotter. Thanks to all who participated this season by coming into a photograph, or by voting! All 16 biweekly Individuals’s Selection and Judges’ Selection winners will now vie for the highest spots within the Grand Prize Contest beginning subsequent Monday, March 8. Winners obtain prizes from the Cornell Lab and our sponsor, Wild Birds Limitless. Anybody can take part by voting for his or her favorites and serving to us crown the highest three! Discover out extra concerning the BirdSpotter contest.
