01 Varied Thrush / Ixoreus naevius

Today, 8 March 2016, is International Women's Day. We have come a long way, but so much still remains to be done before every woman and girl around the world lives in equality, with all her rights, and no longer living in poverty.

This photo, and half a dozen similar shots, looked reasonable when I quickly checked them in my camera after taking them. However, when I went to edit this one on my computer, I discovered just how bad they came out : ( Even though this gorgeous male Varied Thrush suddenly came out into a more open spot for just a few seconds, I was standing in amongst the trees and the light was not good. My camera was fully zoomed, so the closeness of this sighting took me off guard. Ha, looks best in thumbnail size. Oh, well, at least I was fortunate enough to see this bird - my first time ever seeing one - and to get at least a few photos, even if very poor quality.

This bird spent all its time deep within the conifer trees and a tangle of dark undergrowth. If the bird was on the ground and happened to move into slightly better light for a split second, it was mostly hidden by endless tiny branches. A difficult bird to photograph, not to mention almost impossible to find in the first place.

"The Varied Thrush’s simple, ringing song gives a voice to the quiet forests of the Pacific Northwest, with their towering conifers and wet understories of ferns, shrubs, and mosses. Catch a glimpse of this shy bird and you’ll see a handsome thrush with a slaty gray back and breast band set against burnt-orange breast and belly. Common in the Cascades, Northern Rockies, and Pacific Coast, Varied Thrushes forage for insects in summer and switch to berries and seeds in winter.

Varied Thrushes hop on the ground or low in shrubs and trees. They eat mainly insects and other arthropods in the summer and switch to nuts and fruit in fall and winter. On breeding territories, male Varied Thrushes sit on exposed perches to sing their haunting, trilling songs" From AllAboutBirds.

www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Varied_Thrush/id