One of the most often seen birds on the beach in Cancun, Mexico is the Laughing Gull. Here is one of my favorite photographs:

The most interesting thing about these gulls is that during the summer, their head is completely black. But since we were there in December, the best I can do is offer this link to show you what I’m talking about:

Laughing Gull Information and Photo

I think they are beautiful, albeit monochromatic, birds no matter what season it is. They were mild-mannered for the most part, and didn’t seem to mind us being so close, which led to some nice opportunities for closeup photos:

Aside from eating, they were mostly occupied with socializing and grooming themselves…

…and since they stood looking out at the ocean while they were doing it, the majority of my pictures are of their backsides! :)

When we went to Cancun, Mexico in December 2008, I hadn’t yet developed a serious interest in birdwatching. But I couldn’t help but be fascinated by these black birds that seemed to be everywhere in the resort. In the right light, their color seemed to change from black to a purplish green. And their eyes are bright yellow!

As I later found out, these are Great-Tailed Grackles. Sometimes they gathered in groups…

…and sometimes they went for a swim…

We had a great time watching their antics (and also watching as they cleaned up after any guests who left their food unattended for more than a minute!)

In December 2008 we went on vacation to Cancun, Mexico. We stayed at the Moon Palace Resort, which is where we ran into this little guy foraging for a snack…

He had a really comical walk…

Sometimes he would hang out with his gang, chasing waves and picking up chicks (literally!)

We really had a good time watching their shenanigans :)

Finally! One of the Blue Jays that visits our yard (I’ve seen three together) actually stayed still long enough for me to get a few pictures.

Ususally, he’ll yell as he’s getting ready to eat (presumably to clear the other birds away from the feeder), then swoop down to grab a seed or nut, then take off again with his bounty.

Sometimes, he’ll even take the seed and bang it on a tree branch or on one of our patio chairs to break it open.

I guess I was lucky that he took his time choosing his snack treat :) Hopefully, I’ll have the camera ready the next time the whole family comes for a meal.

On Saturday, Adriane and I went on a birdwalk at Longwood Gardens in Kennett Square, PA. We saw a bunch of different birds that we hadn’t seen in our yard, including this little fella:

As far as I can tell, this is a Song Sparrow. Supposedly, the Song Sparrow is the most common bird in North America. I guess I’ll have to be more observant in the future. Most of the little brown-streaked birds look alike to me :)