~Birding in Texas, Scissor-tailed Flycatcher

~Scissor-tailed Flycatcher

I would see this lone Scissor-tailed sitting on a wire fence along the main entry road into South Llano River State Park. It had claimed this section of fence line and was hunting bugs.

I decided the best way for me to capture a few photos of this gorgeous flycatcher was to try and take the shots from my car.

When taking photos from the car, I roll the window about 2/3 down and place a swimmer’s noodle, that I have cut to size, over the glass. It stays in the car for just this purpose. The lens fits nicely on top of the noodle.

I tried to take a few photos outside the car, but he/she would just fly down the fence line out of camera range. {sigh}

The photo below shows the long tail and pink patch on the shoulder.

_MG_9817 — ~Beautiful long scissor-tail~

After a few days I noticed one other Scissor-tail hunting in the area; hopefully it was the mate.

_MG_9826 — ~They like to sit with their tails cocked to the side~

I can’t even guess how many Scissor-tailed Flycatchers we saw during the few weeks we were traveling in Texas. It was nice to see so many!

My challenge and goal is to capture a good photo of one in flight.

Happy Birding!

10 thoughts on “~Birding in Texas, Scissor-tailed Flycatcher”

Great shots, especially love the one from the back where the tail is longest, very dramatic.

Sheila says:

July 17, 2017 at 12:08 pm

Hi! Haven’t conversed with you lately. Hope you are doing well! Thanks so much.

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1. janellmithani says:
  
  July 17, 2017 at 4:47 pm
  
  Hi Sheila, yes, I’ve been busy with caring for my parents and getting their house in OR ready to sell, so been away for WP. Hoping to have more time to catch up on everyone’s posts this month. Hope all is well with you.
  
  Reply

Enjoyed the photos. I love the idea of using a swimmer’s noodle (we call them fun noodles here) to rest the camera on.

Sheila says:

July 17, 2017 at 12:09 pm

Hi Beth. I forgot to mention that you need a slit in the “fun” noodle to slide over the window. Hope you are enjoying your summer!

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1. Wandering Dawgs says:
  
  July 17, 2017 at 12:50 pm
  
  Thanks!
  
  Reply

Thanks for sharing. I’ve never seen one and will have to make an effort to do so. Your photos are amazing.

Sheila says:

July 17, 2017 at 12:10 pm

Hi Mary Lou! So nice to hear from you and thank you so much. I am glad you enjoy seeing bird photos. I hope you get to visit a place where you can see these Flycatchers. Playing lots of PB!!!

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