Ryan Bebej

Thanks!

Dark-eyed junco foraging for seeds in the snow

Dark-eyed junco (Junco hyemalis) – I love when these little snowbirds come back to west Michigan each year, though I can't say I always look forward to the cold, gray months that their return signifies.

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🪶 #birds #birding #birdoftheday #wildlifephotography

New Zealand pigeon perched in a tree

Kererū / New Zealand pigeon (Hemiphaga novaeseelandiae)– From the Instagram archive… I look forward to seeing these native wood pigeons again when I bring some students back to Aotearoa in January.

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🪶 #birds #birding #birdoftheday #wildlifephotography

Thank you!!

Thanks, Joe! If I recall correctly, there was a group of about 15 of them that I encountered on this day, and this was the one decent shot I got!

Thanks, Rob!

Sleek cedar waxwing sitting on a branch

Cedar waxwing (Bombycilla cedrorum) – I hope everyone has a wonderful #WaxwingWednesday!

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🪶 #birds #birding #birdoftheday #wildlifephotography

Long-tailed duck (Clangula hyemalis) – From the Instagram archive… These fancy-looking ducks are actually fairly common out on Lake Michigan during the winter months.

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🪶 #birds #birding #birdoftheday #wildlifephotography

Young white-tailed deer buck

White-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus) – It's #MammalMonday! Here's a young buck that I encountered when I was out birding with some of my college students last month.

#wildlife #wildlifephoto #wildlifephotography #wildlifephotographer

Winter wren perched on a branch with its tail sticking straight up

Winter wren (Troglodytes hiemalis) – Happy #WrenWednesday! (Or should I say #wrensday…) I went out looking for this bird on Saturday. Right as I left the parking lot, I heard this guy sweetly singing.

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🪶 #birds #birding #birdoftheday #wildlifephotography

Thanks Rob!

Sora (Porzana carolina) – From the Instagram archive… The first time I heard this little rail and saw it among some cattails, I had absolutely no idea what it was. Now it's a personal favorite of mine!

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🪶 #birds #birding #birdoftheday #wildlifephotography

Merlin perched in a conifer with its wings spread

Merlin calling while perched in a conifer

Merlin (Falco columbarius) – We've been fortunate to have some of these small falcons nesting on our campus a few times in the past several years. Hoping they return in the spring! #MerlinMonday

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🪶 #birds #birding #birdoftheday #wildlifephotography

Indeed it is!

I see them often when hiking nearby, but we rarely have them visit our feeders.

Male rose-breasted grosbeak perched in a hawthorn tree

Rose-breasted grosbeak (Pheucticus ludovicianus) – One of my favorite MI summertime birds, often brought to my attention when I hear a call note that sounds like a shoe squeaking on a basketball court.

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🪶 #birds #birding #birdoftheday #wildlifephotography

Eastern bluebird perched on a branch

Eastern bluebird (Sialia sialis) – From the Instagram archive… In this photo, I like how all the bird's colors are also shown in the environment surrounding it—the blue sky, red buds, and white bark.

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🪶 #birds #birding #birdoftheday #wildlifephotography

Thank you very much!

Nashville warbler perched on a twig

Nashville warbler perched on a twig while sweetly singing

Nashville warbler (Leiothlypis ruficapilla, 7 May 2025) – For #WarblerWednesday, here are a couple shots of a bird that I captured while it was softly singing this past spring.

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🪶 #birds #birding #birdoftheday #wildlifephotography

Lesser yellowlegs wading in search of some food

Two lesser yellowlegs wading in the water

Lesser yellowlegs (Tringa flavipes) – From the Instagram archive… I think I've finally made it to the stage in my birding where I can pretty easily differentiate lesser and greater yellowlegs. #birdnerd

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🪶 #birds #birding #birdoftheday #wildlifephotography

Two male blue-winged teals dabbling in a shallow pond

Blue-winged teal (Spatula discors) – These birds represent the second smallest species of duck in North America (only their green-winged cousins are smaller).

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🪶 #birds #birding #birdoftheday #wildlifephotography

Thanks Rob!

Eastern phoebe (Sayornis phoebe) – Happy #FlycatcherFriday! This photo gives me the distinct impression that this bird is proudly posing after scaling to the summit of a massive mountain.

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🪶 #birds #birding #birdoftheday #wildlifephotography

Northern yellow warbler perched on a branch

Northern yellow warbler perched on a branch with a small pink worm in its beak

Northern yellow warbler (Setophaga aestiva) – From the Instagram archive… This is the 1st time I've posted a photo of this species since the mangrove yellow warbler was made into a separate species!

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🪶 #birds #birding #birdoftheday #wildlifephotography

Thank you!

Thank you very much!!

Ovenbird perched on a branch with a bright green backdrop

Ovenbird singing loud and proud while perched on a branch with a bright green backdrop

Ovenbird (Seiurus aurocapilla) – Here's a bold and braggadocious ovenbird for #WarblerWednesday.

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🪶 #birds #birding #birdoftheday #wildlifephotography

Such gorgeous birds, and a really lovely thing to remember from that first Mother’s Day without your mom.

Vesper sparrow perched on a post

Vesper sparrow (Pooecetes gramineus) – From the Instagram archive… Not a common sparrow to see around west Michigan, but there are a few fairly reliable places to see/hear them each summer.

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🪶 #birds #birding #birdoftheday #wildlifephotography

I’ve still never seen a western tanager! Maybe we can make a trade.