Ryan Bebej

Prothonotary warbler perched on a thin branch

Prothonotary warbler (Protonotaria citrea) – The ever-so-slightly warmer weather over the past few days has me longing for spring. So here's my favorite warbler to commemorate #WarblerWednesday.

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🪶 #birds #birding #birdoftheday #wildlifephotography

Northern saw-whet owl snoozing in a tree

Northern saw-whet owl (Aegolius acadicus) – Here’s a sleepy little saw-whet for #SuperbOwlSunday!

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🪶 #birds #birding #birdoftheday #wildlifephotography

Thank you, Alan!

North Island saddleback perched in a tree

Tīeke / North Island saddleback (Philesturnus rufusater) – The song of this endemic New Zealand bird is reminiscent of a car engine that's having trouble getting started. Seriously.

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🪶 #birds #birding #birdoftheday #wildlifephotography

Male northern cardinal perched on a branch

Northern cardinal (Cardinalis cardinalis) – From the Instagram archive… This species has always been meaningful for me and my family, all the more since my mom passed away shortly after Christmas.

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🪶 #birds #birding #birdoftheday #wildlifephotography

New Zealand scaup sitting on a rock along the shore of Lake Rotorua

Pāpango / New Zealand scaup (Aythya novaeseelandiae) – These diving ducks were plentiful on Lake Rotorua, including several that were quite comfortable hanging out on the rocks close to shore.

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🪶 #birds #birding #birdoftheday #wildlifephotography

The tuatara has many interesting features, including a third eye (called the parietal eye) on the top of its head! I missed out on seeing one of these during my first trip to Aotearoa, so I was absolutely thrilled when we came across this one within an hour of being on Tiritiri Matangi Island.

Close-up of a tuatara climbing up a tree

Tuatara climbing up a tree

Tuatara (Sphenodon punctatus, 9 Jan 2026) – It's #TuataraTuesday! This rare reptile is the only surviving species in an order (Rhynchocephalia) that was quite diverse back during the age of dinosaurs.

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🪶 #birds #birding #birdoftheday #wildlifephotography

Korimako / New Zealand bellbird perched on the ledge of a birdfeeder

Korimako / New Zealand bellbird (Anthornis melanura) – One of the endemic nectar-feeding birds of Aotearoa.

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🪶 #birds #birding #birdoftheday #wildlifephotography

Silvereye perched in a leafy tree

Silvereye (Zosterops lateralis) – A storm swept a flock of these birds to New Zealand in 1856, allowing the species to become established there. Its Māori name (tauhou) literally means "new arrival."

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🪶 #birds #birding #birdoftheday #wildlifephotography

Cedar waxwing perched in a tree in my yard

Cedar waxwing perched in a tree in my yard

Cedar waxwing (Bombycilla cedrorum) – From the Instagram archive… One of my favorite birds. These photos are from the spring of 2022, when I had about 35 waxwings hanging out for a bit in my front yard.

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🪶 #birds #birding #birdoftheday #wildlifephotography

Welcome swallow sitting on the edge of a dock

Welcome swallow (Hirundo neoxena) – Native to Australia, this species was an occasional vagrant in New Zealand up until the late 1950s, when the first breeding pair was documented. It's now common in NZ.

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🪶 #birds #birding #birdoftheday #wildlifephotography

Great egret walking through some tall grass

Great egret (Ardea alba) – From the Instagram archive… I spotted this individual at a local turf farm a few years back.

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🪶 #birds #birding #birdoftheday #wildlifephotography

New Zealand grebe swimming on Lake Rotorua in New Zealand

Weweia / New Zealand grebe (Poliocephalus rufopectus) – These birds are endemic to New Zealand and were one of the lifers I picked up on my recent trip to Aotearoa.

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🪶 #birds #birding #birdoftheday #wildlifephotography

Fiercely territorial birds for sure!

Tūī perched on a branch

Tūī (Prosthemadera novaeseelandiae) – Forgive me for not posting for a while… Personal stuff going on. To mark my return, here's a native New Zealand bird I recently saw on Tiritiri Matangi Island.

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🪶 #birds #birding #birdoftheday #wildlifephotography

Purple sandpiper foraging among the rocks along Lake Michigan

Purple sandpiper (Calidris maritima, 1 Jan 2024) – Pardon my scientific jargon, but I think this bird's chonkiness and general spherocity qualify it for official borb status.

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🪶 #birds #birding #birdoftheday #wildlifephotography

Male red-breasted merganser swimming on open water

Red-breasted merganser (Mergus serrator) – From the Instagram archive… These shaggy little diving ducks are one of three species of merganser that we see in West Michigan.

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🪶 #birds #birding #birdoftheday #wildlifephotography

Thank you very much!

Male downy woodpecker in the golden hour light just after sunrise

Downy woodpecker (Dryobates pubescens) – Here's a golden hour downy from last autumn in honor of #WoodpeckerWednesday.

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🪶 #birds #birding #birdoftheday #wildlifephotography

Cute little killdeer wading through some muck

Killdeer (Charadrius vociferus) – From the Instagram archive... Cute little killdeer wading through some muck.

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🪶 #birds #birding #birdoftheday #wildlifephotography

Nine tundra swans flying through the air with their wings outspread

Tundra swans (Cygnus columbianus, 19 Dec 2024) – It definitely feels like winter here in West Michigan, so here are some majestic tundra swans to warm your cold little hearts. ;-)

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🪶 #birds #birding #birdoftheday #wildlifephotography

Indeed!

American pipit perched on a wire against a blue sky

American pipit (Anthus rubescens) – I spotted this sharp little fellow at one of the local wastewater treatment plants as it was headed south from the arctic tundra.

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🪶 #birds #birding #birdoftheday #wildlifephotography

You’re very welcome!

Common yellowthroat male among some reeds

Common yellowthroat (Geothlypis trichas) – From the Instagram archive… It's always a good day to hear some witchity-witchity-witchity, signaling the presence of these birds in a nearby wetland.

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🪶 #birds #birding #birdoftheday #wildlifephotography

Louisiana waterthrush perched on a branch

Louisiana waterthrush perched on a branch and singing!

Louisiana waterthrush (Parkesia motacilla) – For #WarblerWednesday, here are a couple of shots I captured from a close an encounter with this species last spring.

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🪶 #birds #birding #birdoftheday #wildlifephotography

Great crested flycatcher (Myiarchus crinitus) – From the Instagram archive… This little guy was posing quite nicely a few years back when on a little bird walk organized by my local park district.

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🪶 #birds #birding #birdoftheday #wildlifephotography

Thanks, Brent!

Thank you, Rob!