Category Archives: Birds

Bible Birds Finally Moved Here

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Snow Bunting (Plectrophenax nivalis) by Ray

Snow Bunting (Plectrophenax nivalis) by Ray

And let the beauty of the LORD our God be upon us: and establish thou the work of our hands upon us; yea, the work of our hands establish thou it. (Psalms 90:17 KJV)

Man goeth forth unto his work and to his labour until the evening. (Psalms 104:23 KJV)

Been working most of the day, moving the Bible Birds pages to here at Lee’s Birdwatching Adventures. It has been a challenge, but with dust still flying, they are now here.

I posted an article on the Birds of the Bible For Kids blog explaining the move of those articles. You might want to read that article because it affects this blog.

Changes On The Way

Wrinkled Hornbill (Aceros corrugatus) Brevard Zoo by Lee

Wrinkled Hornbill (Aceros corrugatus) Brevard Zoo by Lee

You can find the Bible Birds listed in the Kid’s Section. The side menu is now working also for that section. (I think it’s correct). Just hover your mouse over the Kid’s Section and you will see the Bible Birds, along with the Watching Birds, Bird Tales and Scripture Alphabet of Animals sections.

Now that the Bible Bird pages are here, I can start improving them and the regular Birds of the Bible sections.

Thanks you for being patient while things are being moved around and I trust you will see much improvement soon. As mentioned in the Changes on the Way article, “Our purpose is to Glorify Our Lord and show forth His great creation through His Birds and other Critters.”

There is still lots of work ahead, as other sections are moved to this blog. Just wanted to let you know why things are changing and dust is flying still. I have another big challenge coming next, but that will have to hold for now.

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Old Mr. Owl Writes A Book

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Great Horned Owl (Bubo virginianus) by Bob-Nan

Great Horned Owl (Bubo virginianus) by Bob-Nan

OLD MR. OWL WRITES A BOOK

Daddys Bedtime Story Images

Old Mr. Owl Danced with the Rest

“Old Mr. Owl wanted to write a book and he asked the fairies how to set about doing it,” commenced daddy.

“‘Well,’ said the fairy queen, ‘it makes a good deal of difference, old Mr. Owl, what you want to write about.’

“‘What nonsense!’ he said. ‘It’s just that I want to know how to start off with my book. Just think what a marvelous book it will be—as for as long as folks can remember I’ve been called the Wise Bird—the bird who’s awake at night and whose eyes are so very bright!’

“‘Before I started saying what a fine book it would be, if I were you, I’d write it and give other people the chance to say so,’ said the fairy queen.

“Mr. Owl began to write with his pen, made out of one of Mr. Turkey Gobbler’s best feathers, on a large, flat stone, which he put in the hollow of his tree. Very late in the night, he awakened the fairies who had been sleeping, and told them to listen to his book. Then he called all the owls from the neighborhood with a loud hoot-hoot. But before he began to read, he said:

“‘I’ve not enough light. I will hurt my eyes—my beautiful, wise, big eyes.’

“You see he had made a special arrangement to have his own lights, and when he said that he hadn’t enough, from all over came countless little fireflies. They sparkled and gave the most beautiful light all over the woods, and Mr. Owl put his spectacles on his nose, and said:

“‘Now I see to perfection—which means quite all right.’ And Mr. Owl commenced reading his book.

“It told about the parties, balls, and picnics in fairyland, and of the wild adventures and happenings in the woods. The fairies were absolutely delighted that a book had been written with so much about them in it.

“And the fairy queen was more than happy, for the last chapter was all about her.

“‘Well,’ said Mr. Owl, ‘you made me ashamed of myself for boasting about my book before I had written it, and so the only thing I could do was to write a wise chapter all about you.’

“And the fairy queen smiled with pleasure and also with amusement—for Mr. Owl had certainly thought he could write a wise book—though the next time, perhaps, he wouldn’t say so before he had written it.

“The fireflies had been sparkling and flashing lights all this time, and finally they whispered:

“‘Have a dance, all of you; we’ll give you the light and dance too. It is not well to read books all the time—you must dance.’

“So they all ended off with a fine dance, and old Mr. Owl, with his book under his wing, danced with the rest of the owls and fairies. But before the evening was over he presented to the fairy queen a copy of his book, which said on the cover, ‘A BOOK, by Wise Mr. Owl.'”

Barred Owl by Ray

Barred Owl by Ray

Lee’s Addition:

But I say to every one of you, through the grace given to me, not to have an over-high opinion of himself, but to have wise thoughts, as God has given to every one a measure of faith. (Romans 12:3 BBE)

But he giveth more grace. Wherefore he saith, God resisteth the proud, but giveth grace unto the humble. (James 4:6 KJV)

Figured it was about time the first chapter was added to the Daddy’s Bedtime Bird Stories. We do need to be careful not to think too highly of ourselves. Let other complement what you do.

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Another Bird Tale From

Daddy’s Bedtime Bird Stories – Gutenberg ebooks

By

Mary Graham Bonner

With four illustrations in color by
Florence Choate and Elizabeth Curtis

Daddys Bedtime Story Images

These stories first appeared in the American Press Association Service and the Western Newspaper Union.

Many of the sketches in this volume are the work of Rebecca McCann, creator of the “Cheerful Cherub,” etc.

Daddys Bedtime Story Images
Daddy’s Bedtime Bird Stories by Mary Graham Bonner – 1917

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Links:

Painted Bunting (Passerina ciris) ©©Flickr

Bird Tales

 

 

Daddys Bedtime Story Images

 

 Daddy’s Bedtime Bird Stories

 

 

Spanish Sparrow (Passer hispaniolensis) by Nikhil Devasar

  

 Wordless Birds

 

 

Eastern Screech Owl (Megascops asio) baby Reinier Munguia

  Owls

 

 

 

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Bible Birds – Cuckoo Introduction

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Guira Cuckoo (Guira guira) at NA by Dan at National Aviary

Guira Cuckoo (Guira guira) at NA by Dan at National Aviary

Bible Birds – Cuckoo’s Introduction

The “Cuckoo” or old English”Cuckow” is found in these verses:

and the owl, and the night-hawk, and the cuckoo, and the hawk after its kind, (Leviticus 11:16 YLT)

And the owl, and the night hawk, and the cuckow, and the hawk after his kind, (Deuteronomy 14:15 KJV)

The Old Testament was written in Hebrew and the word used has several meanings and so some Bibles call the bird a Cuckoo or Cuckow, some a Gull. For now, we are introducing you to Cuckoos.

1) a ceremonially unclean bird

  • 1a) cuckow, gull, seagull, sea-mew
  • 1b) maybe an extinct bird, exact meaning unknown

Did you think Cuckoos only live in Clocks?

No, there actually is a bird called a Cuckoo. It belongs to a family Cuculidae – Cuckoos. There are 149 species in the family. Not only Cuckoos, but Coucals, Anis, Couas, and Malkohas are family members.

Here are some descriptions of North American Cuckoos: (from Color Key to NA Birds)

Mangrove Cuckoo

Mangrove Cuckoo

Mangrove Cuckoo (Coccyzus minor). Underparts uniformly rich buff; above grayish brown, crown grayer; ear-coverts black; tail black, outer feathers broadly tipped with white.

Range.—Northern South America, north through Central America, Mexico and Greater Antilles (except Porto Rico?) to Florida and Louisiana, migrating south in fall.

Maynard Cuckoo (C. m. maynardi). Similar to Mangrove Cuckoo, but underparts paler, the throat and forebreast more or less ashy white.

Range.—Bahamas and (eastern?) Florida Keys. (2012 Now Mangrove Cuckoo)

Yellow-billed Cuckoo (Coccyzus americanus) Neal Addy Gallery

Yellow-billed Cuckoo (Coccyzus americanus) Neal Addy Gallery

Yellow-billed Cuckoo (Coccyzus americanus). Length 12.2 in. Ads. Below white; lower mandible largely yellow, tail black, outer feathers widely tipped with white. Notes.Tut-tut, tut-tut, tut-tut, tut-tut, cl-uck, cl-uck, cl-uck, cl-uck, cl-uck, cl-uck, cow, cow, cow, cow, cow, cow, usually given in part.

Range.—Eastern North America; breeds from Florida to New Brunswick and Minnesota; winters in Central and South America.

California Cuckoo (C. a. occidentalis). Similar to Yellow-billed Cuckoo but somewhat grayer and larger; the bill slightly longer, 1.05 in.

Range.—Western North America; north to southern British Columbia; east to Western Texas; winters south into Mexico.

Black-billed Cuckoo (Coccyzus erythropthalmus) by Jim Fenton

Black-billed Cuckoo (Coccyzus erythropthalmus) by Jim Fenton

Black-billed Cuckoo (Coccyzus erythrophthalmus). Length 11.8. Ads. White below; bill black; tail, seen from below, grayish narrowly tipped with white; above, especially on crown, browner than Yellow-billed Cuckoo. Notes. Similar to those of Yellow-billed Cuckoo, but softer, the cow notes connected.

Range.—Eastern North America; west to Rocky Mountains; breeds north to Labrador and Manitoba; winters south of United States to Brazil.

Cuckoo Sound with Pictures (From Poland)

Sort of sounds like the clock doesn’t it?

We will tell you more about the Cuckoo in the next Bible Birds – Cuckoo article.

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Kookaburra Encounter

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Laughing Kookabura by Dan

Laughing Kookabura by Dan

On our vacation several weeks ago we stopped back by the Brevard Zoo in Melbourne, Florida.  I had a neat Kookaburra Encounter.

Lee with Laughing Kookabura at Brevard Zoo by Dan

Lee with Laughing Kookabura at Brevard Zoo by Dan

The Laughing Kookaburra is in the aviary where the Lorikeets, Galahs and other birds are kept. When I came through a door, right there on the rail sat a young Laughing Kookaburra. I have seen them before, but never as close as this one. I got within inches of him/or her. I could have touched it, but was afraid of that beak.

So God created great sea creatures and every living thing that moves, with which the waters abounded, according to their kind, and every winged bird according to its kind. And God saw that it was good. (Genesis 1:21 NKJV)

Here are some of the pictures we took.

Lee very close to Kookabura by Dan

Lee very close to Kookabura by Dan

I have to admit, I was thrilled. Just looking at one of the Lord’s creations so close. Wow! That one photo Dan took of me and the Kookaburra, my hand was within 5-6 inches from it. May I never lose my AWE at seeing and encountering the Lord’s critters.

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Other Kookaburra encounters:
Birdwatching at the Cincinnati Zoo I
Birds Of The Bible – Joy And Laughter
Birdwatching Adventure to Brevard Zoo in Viera, FL
Birdwatching at the National Aviary – Introduction
Alcedinidae – Kingfishers – Family

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Flying Dust

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Clipart-Construction-Worker-Smiley-Tipping-His-Hard-Hat-Royalty-Free-Vector-Illustration

(Update 10/3) Closed the Blog. All articles relocated to Lee’s Birdwatching Adventures Plus

Update (9/3)  Just realized that when I added pre-dated articles, it is sending you notices of its posting. I thought that pre-dating would keep you from being notified. Since you will get notices (followers), I might as well post them as current dates. So expect more than one post a day for awhile!! The post are being copied from the Birds of the Bible For Kids website to the Kids Section here. Besides, you might enjoy them even though they are for the younger readers. The dust is still flying.

Update (9/1) Opened up a new section of the blog called Kids Section. This is the Introduction for their Bible Birds section, which has links to easier reading articles or ones written for the younger folks.

Some of these articles were here already and others were written just for the Birds of the Bible For Kids blog.  We are placing a copy of all articles on this blog. This will save much duplications. Also, the younger readers will also have the benefit of the wealth of information here also.

Expect to see more articles for both our regular readers and our younger readers. You might be surprised how interesting they can be.

Trust all of this is honoring to the Lord. He is the Creator of all these neat birds and I hope you will be able to easily navigate to the various sections. I really like the new menu on the left side.

Update: (8/29) 10:00pm – Vodpods fixed, now I am trying to adjust the new Sunspot Theme. The dust is really getting thick! Hope you like it, it will get better, I HOPE!

Update: (8/29) All the videos with Vodpod are broken and Peterson’s Bird Series – The dust is getting thick!

I am in the process of preparing this site for a theme change. There are some preparations that are being done behind the scenes. There are over 2,000 post and pages that are being checked.

Missing photos and videos have already been discovered and some broken links are crying for help. So ignore the dust again.

If you want to check out what the new theme will look like, check out the Birds of the Bible for Kids. It will be similar. Click a blog and you will see how the columns change. If you would like to leave a comment or like to let me know if you like it or not, it would be appreciated.

Sunday Inspiration – Passerines

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Lazuli Bunting (Passerina amoena) by Michael Woodruff

Lazuli Bunting (Passerina amoena) by Michael Woodruff

By them the birds of the heavens have their home; They sing among the branches. He waters the hills from His upper chambers; The earth is satisfied with the fruit of Your works. He causes the grass to grow for the cattle, And vegetation for the service of man, That he may bring forth food from the earth, (Psalms 104:12-14 NKJV)

A passerine is any bird of the order Passeriformes, which includes more than half of all bird species. A notable feature of passerines is the arrangement of their toes (three pointing forward and one back) which facilitates perching. Sometimes known as perching birds or, less accurately, as songbirds, the passerines form one of the most diverse terrestrial vertebrate orders, with over 5,000 identified species. It has roughly twice as many species as the largest of the mammal orders, the Rodentia. It contains more than 110 families, the second-most of any order of tetrapods (after Squamata, the scaled reptiles).

The names “passerines” and “Passeriformes” are derived from Passer domesticus, the scientific name of the eponymous species (the house sparrow) and ultimately from the Latin term passer for Passer sparrows and similar small birds.

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“Sweet Hour of Prayer” by Sean Fielder (Faith Baptist)

Enjoy God’s creation as you watch and listen to Sean play. May we all pray and thank the Lord for all He has given from His Hand.

The LORD will command His lovingkindness in the daytime, And in the night His song shall be with me— A prayer to the God of my life. (Psalms 42:8 NKJV)

Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; (Philippians 4:6 NKJV)

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Sunday Inspiration

PASSERIFORMES – Passerines

Sharing The Gospel

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Peterson’s Field Guide Videos Updated

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Peregrine Falcon (Falco peregrinus) by Ray

Peregrine Falcon (Falco peregrinus) by Ray

Give instruction to a wise man, and he will be yet wiser: teach a just man, and he will increase in learning. (Proverbs 9:9 KJV)

Peterson Field Guide-Videos

Finished updating the missing videos for the Peterson Field Guide videos. The Vodpod company stopped supporting its videos, which was unknown to me. All of these videos were on YouTube and are now working properly again.

They are very interesting and if you haven’t seen them or at least for a while, they are worth checking out. Here are some of the titles:

How-to Videos:

Give instruction to a wise man, and he will be yet wiser: teach a just man, and he will increase in learning. (Proverbs 9:9 KJV)

How to Identify Birds
Topography (Parts of the Bird)
Bird Songs and Sounds
Range Maps

Bird Families:

Common Loon
Atlantic Puffin
Ducks, Geese, Swans
Wood Duck
Shorebirds Overview
Shorebirds ID
Gulls and Terns
Heron, Egrets, Bitterns – Updated
Wild Turkey
Raptors Overview
Raptors ID
Bald Eagle
Peregrine Falcon
Owls
Greater Roadrunner
Hummingbirds
Woodpeckers
Red-Headed Woodpecker
Flycatchers
Northern Mockingbird
Thrushes
American Robin
Warblers
Meadowlarks
Finches
Northern Cardinal
Sparrows

Enjoy! Dust is still flying as I’m still searching for other broken Vodpod videos.

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Interesting Things – A Noisy, Bird Brained Harem

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Comb-crested Jacana (Irediparra gallinacea) ©WikiC

Comb-crested Jacana (Irediparra gallinacea) ©WikiC

A NOISY, BIRD BRAINED HAREM

“Whence then cometh wisdom? and where is the place of understanding? Seeing it is hid from the eyes of all living, and kept close from the fowls of the air.” (Job 28:20-21)

SmileyCentral.comScripture frequently makes reference to the fact that birds are not very smart compared to human beings. The tropical wetland bird called the jacana shows that you don’t have to be very smart to be deceptive. The jacana is noteworthy for several reasons. It is one of only 20 species of birds in the world where the female Comb-crested jacana, sometimes referred to as Jesus birdsleaves the care of the young to the males. One flock in southern India was made up of about 50 birds. The males staked out their territory on floating vegetation, often getting into violent fights with other males. Then the females, which are about 60 percent larger than the males, fought with each other for exclusive rights to up to four male territories. Once territories were established, the females would visit each of the males in her territory, mating with each.

Once the eggs are laid in each male’s nest, the female shows no more interest in her offspring. The male will care for the eggs and youngsters once they hatch, until the time they are ready to leave home. But the smaller males have their own strategy for dealing with their situation. They yell. Researchers say a yelling male is really blackmailing the larger female into giving him some attention. A yelling male attracts the attention of other nearby females who might want to take him into her own harem, so his mate comes running to pay attention to him. Sometimes males will even fake an emergency which brings his mate in a hurry. God is the source of all wisdom, and He gave each of His creatures enough wisdom to conduct their lives.

Prayer:
Father, I thank You for Your wisdom in Holy Scripture. Grant me understanding as I read Your Word. Amen.

Notes:
S. Milius, Science News, March 6, 1999, v. 155, p. 149. Photo: Comb-crested jacana, sometimes referred to as Jesus birds. Courtesy of John Hill. Licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Unported license.

Used with permission: ©Creation Moments 2014

Comb-crested Jacana (Irediparra gallinacea) by Ian

Comb-crested Jacana (Irediparra gallinacea) by Ian

Lee’s Addition:

Now in the fourth watch of the night Jesus went to them, walking on the sea. And when the disciples saw Him walking on the sea, they were troubled, saying, “It is a ghost!” And they cried out for fear. But immediately Jesus spoke to them, saying, “Be of good cheer! It is I; do not be afraid.” (Matthew 14:25-27 NKJV)

What an interesting behavior from these Jacanas. Never cease to be amazed at how the Lord created His critters and their way of doing things. Did you notice how their feet were designed to support their weight? That habit of “walking on water” is why some call them the “Jesus” Bird.

The Comb-crested Jacanas are members of the Jacanidae – Jacanas Family.

Comb-crested Jacana (Irediparra gallinacea) by Ian's Birdway

Comb-crested Jacana (Irediparra gallinacea) by Ian’s Birdway

More Interesting Things

Creation Moments

Jacanidae – Jacanas Family

Ian’s Bird of the Week – Comb-crested Jacana

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Ian’s Bird of the Week – Pale-headed Rosella

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Pale-headed Rosella (Platycercus adscitus) by Ian

Pale-headed Rosella (Platycercus adscitus) by Ian

Ian’s Bird of the Week – Pale-headed Rosella ~ by Ian Montgomery

Newsletter – 8/24/14

The bird of the week is the Pale-headed Rosella, which I’ll get to in a second, but this is a Special Edition as Where to Find Birds in Northern Queensland is at last being published. That is to say, it has been published on Google Play but not yet on the Apple iBook store. That will take a little longer as there are bureaucratic obstacles to be over come. These involve registering Birdway Pty Ltd with the US Inland Revenue and then Apple confirming the registration with the IRS. The first part was easy but the second seems harder as it takes a while for the registration to soak through and finally emerge in the IRS online databases. Anyway, I’ll let you know, loudly, when that happens. In the meantime, you can find it on Google at https://play.google.com/store/books/details?id=CblRBAAAQBAJ.

Where To Find Birds in Northern Queensland by Ian

Where To Find Birds in Northern Queensland

End of commercial!

The Pale-headed Rosella, is the widespread and familiar Rosella of Queensland, though it range does extend as far as northern New South Wales. There, and in southeastern Queensland, its range overlaps with the closely related Eastern Rosella and they sometimes interbreed.

The ones in the first two photos were taken outside my house. The first bird is feeding on the seeds of weeds, plenty of those here, and the second is feeding on the fruit of wild passionfruit, another weed, also called stinking passionfruit (Passiflora foetida) as the foliage emits a strong odour when crushed. They’re lovely birds, rather unobtrusive though their soft twittering calls reveal their presence, and I’ll always get pleasure from seeing them. They’re usually in pairs of family parties. The plumage is variable: the bird in the first photo has a much intense blue breast than the second one, but the field guides are tight-lipped about whether the plumage of the sexes differs.

Pale-headed Rosella (Platycercus adscitus) by Ian

Pale-headed Rosella (Platycercus adscitus) by Ian

They’re more forthcoming about the plumage of juveniles, as these often show traces of red or darker feathers on the head, like the one coming down for a drink in the third photo.

Pale-headed Rosella (Platycercus adscitus) by Ian

Pale-headed Rosella (Platycercus adscitus) by Ian

There are two races of the Pale-headed Rosella, a northern paler one on Cape York and south to about Cairns, and a southern darker one south of Townsville with a 300km/200mile band of intergrading between Cairns and Townsville. Originally these were described as two different species, the northern one being the Blue-cheeked Rosella, Platycercus adscitus, the southern one the Pale-headed Rosella, P. palliceps. When they were lumped together, the earlier name adscitus took priority, so the northern race is the nominate one and the southern darker one is race palliceps – unfortunately, given that it is the more intensely coloured. Adscitus means ‘approved’ or ‘accepted’, though exactly what was approved or accepted, I don’t know.

Pale-headed Rosella (Platycercus adscitus) by Ian

Pale-headed Rosella (Platycercus adscitus) by Ian

The Townsville birds in the first three photos belong to palliceps. The two, photographed together at Lake Eacham southwest of Cairns, are much closer the nominate race. The yellow is much paler overall, particularly on the back and the upper breast is mainly pale yellow, rather than blue, but there is a blue patch on the lower cheek. The bird in the fifth photo has clear traces of red on the forehead and is a juvenile; the one in the fourth photo has pinkish traces and may be a young bird too.

Pale-headed Rosella (Platycercus adscitus) by Ian

Pale-headed Rosella (Platycercus adscitus) by Ian

The taxonomy of Rosellas in general has been controversial and is still unsettled. Some authorities maintain that the Pale-headed, the Eastern Rosella and the Northern Rosella all belong to a single species even though they look quite different. Whatever, they’re lovely birds, and the good news is that the Pale-headed Rosella has benefitted from European settlement and the clearing of dense forests – they prefer more open areas.

Links:
Pale-headed Rosella 
Eastern Rosella 
Northern Rosella 

Greetings
Ian

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Ian Montgomery, Birdway Pty Ltd,
454 Forestry Road, Bluewater, Qld 4818
Tel 0411 602 737 ian@birdway.com.au
Bird Photos http://www.birdway.com.au/
Recorder Society http://www.nqrs.org.au

Lee’s Addition:

Oh that my words were now written! oh that they were printed in a book! (Job 19:23 KJV)

I have fought a good fight, I have finished my course, I have kept the faith: (2 Timothy 4:7 KJV)

Glad they finally have their book published. I know that Ian has been working on this for some time. It is always a great feeling when a project is completed.

Also, the Pale-headed Rosella is a beautiful bird. Another great creation from their Creator. I especially like that first photo.

Rosellas are members of the Psittacidae – Parrots Family. You can see Ian’s photos of this family by clicking here.

See:

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Sunday Inspiration – Batis and Wattle-eye

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Brown-throated Wattle-eye (Platysteira cyanea) ©WikiC

Brown-throated Wattle-eye (Platysteira cyanea) Male ©WikiC

 

Behold, the eye of the LORD is upon them that fear him, upon them that hope in his mercy; (Psalms 33:18 KJV)

Open thou mine eyes, that I may behold wondrous things out of thy law. (Psalms 119:18 KJV)

The eyes of the LORD are in every place, beholding the evil and the good. (Proverbs 15:3 KJV)

Lift up your eyes on high, and behold who hath created these things, that bringeth out their host by number: he calleth them all by names by the greatness of his might, for that he is strong in power; not one faileth. (Isaiah 40:26 KJV)

The Platysteiridae Family has these neat little Wattle-eyes and Batis, plus two Shrike-flycatchers and a Shrike. The family has a total of 33 species. I spotted these while working on the update and decided to share them. Their eyes are what draws your attention to them. They are cute little birds that show again the Creator’s variety.

The Platysteiridae are small to medium sized passerines. They have short legs and an upright stance while perched. The tail length is variable, with the Dyaphorophyia wattle-eyes and batises having short tails and the Platysteria wattle-eyes and shrike-flycatchers possessing longish tails. The bill is flat and hooked at the end, and generally wide with well-developed rictal bristles. With the exception of a few batises the plumage of the family is sexually dimorphic. Overall the family has white undersides and dark, speckled upperparts, with many species sporting a band across the chest. A few wattle-eyes depart from this pattern and possess brightly coloured plumage. The plumage on the back of some genera are erectile, giving the family the alternative name of puffback flycatchers. The iris of the batises and the black-and-white shrike-flycatcher is brightly coloured and used in communication, becoming more brightly coloured when the adults are excited. In the wattle-eyes the supra-orbital wattles above the eyes, which give them their name, are used for communication. In addition the family is highly vocal, giving a range of whistles, harsh calls and duets. (Wikipedia)

 

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“There Shall Be Showers of Blessing”. Hymn – at Faith Baptist Church

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Platysteiridae – Wattle-eyes, Batises

Sunday Inspiration

Birds of the World – Families

4 Things God Wants You to Know

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Dusky’s and In Love With Words

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Burrowing Owl from Dusky's Wonders

Burrowing Owl from Dusky’s Wonders

And thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind, and with all thy strength: this is the first commandment. And the second is like, namely this, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. There is none other commandment greater than these. (Mark 12:30-31 KJV)

Wanted to share with you two blogs I follow.

Sandra Conner’s, In Love With Words, had a neat post about a truck that  was crying. It is worth reading.

In Love With Words - Crying Truck and Virginia Creeper

In Love With Words – Crying Truck and Virginia Creeper

Virginia Creeper wasn’t beautiful and was generally considered a nuisance wherever she grew. But she had a kind heart, and when she heard sobbing out by the alley, she crawled over to investigate. She found Barney, the discarded garbage truck, soaking the ground with his tears……..

FRIDAY FICTIONEERS – 8/22/14 — ‘LOVE GROWS ON YOU’

I love it! Hope you do also.

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Owl from Dusky's Wonders

Owl from Dusky’s Wonders

Also Dusky’s Wonders released a new set of neat bird photos again today. Check those out.

I am still working on the IOC Version 4.3 Update. All the pages are completed and now I am working on the Indexes. Majority of the work is done. Stay tuned.

Birds of the World

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Working On IOC 4.3 Version – Name Changes

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Golden Grosbeak (Pheucticus chrysogaster) by Ian

Golden Grosbeak (Pheucticus chrysogaster) by Ian

It is a good thing to give thanks unto the LORD, and to sing praises unto thy name, O most High: To shew forth thy lovingkindness in the morning, and thy faithfulness every night,
(Psalms 92:1-2 KJV)

I realized that while we were on our recent trip, that the IOC 4.3 Version was released just before we left. So, I am busy working on updating the Birds of the World pages. Not finished, but here are the – Name Changes.

 

Magdalena Tapaculo (Scytalopus rodriguezi) ©©Bing-Tapac

Magdalena Tapaculo (Scytalopus rodriguezi) ©©Bing-Tapac

Upper Magdalena Tapaculo (Scytalopus rodriguezi) – changed to Magdalena Tapaculo

Magdalena Tapaculo (Scytalopus rodriguezi) IBC

Macgregor’s Bowerbird (Amblyornis macgregoriae) ©Bing SuperStock

Macgregor’s Bowerbird (Amblyornis macgregoriae) ©Bing SuperStock

MacGregor’s Bowerbird (Amblyornis macgregoriae) – changed to Macgregor’s Bowerbird 

Macgregor’s Bowerbird (Amblyornis macgregoriae) IBC

Macgregor’s Honeyeater (Macgregoria pulchra) ©WikiC Drawing

Macgregor’s Honeyeater (Macgregoria pulchra) ©WikiC Drawing

MacGregor’s Honeyeater (Macgregoria pulchra) – changed to Macgregor’s Honeyeater

Macgregor’s Honeyeater (Macgregoria pulchra) IBC

Golden Grosbeak (Pheucticus chrysogaster) by Ian

Golden Grosbeak (Pheucticus chrysogaster) by Ian

Southern Yellow Grosbeak (Pheucticus chrysogaster) – changed to Golden Grosbeak  (previously Golden-bellied Grosbeak)

Golden Grosbeak (Pheucticus chrysogaster) by Ian

Mexican Yellow Grosbeak (Pheucticus chrysopeplus) ©WikiC

Yellow Grosbeak (Pheucticus chrysopeplus) ©WikiC

Mexican Yellow Grosbeak (Pheucticus chrysopeplus)  – changed to Yellow Grosbeak

Yellow Grosbeak (Pheucticus chrysopeplus) ©WikiC

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The new IOC 4.3 Version now has 10,534 extant (living) species and 150 extinct species of birds of the world (Version 4.3), with subspecies (20,999) and annotations. They have added several new families and deleted one. Plus they have rearranged several families. Stay tuned as I work on it behind the scenes.

(WordPress is still not back to where it was, which is making it difficult to work on this update.)

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