Spread your wings and sing

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Spread your wings and sing

February 20, 2016 by Mike Powell

How do you generate volume when you sing? I remember being told to breathe from the diaphragm, but this male Red-winged Blackbird (Agelaius phoeniceus) seemed to think that spreading his wings helped him to be heard yesterday morning at Huntley Meadows Park.

Posted in Birds, Nature, Photography, wildlife | Tagged Agelaius phoeniceus, Alexandria VA, Canon 50D, Huntley Meadows Park, male Red-winged Blackbird, red-winged blackbird, Tamron 150-600mm telephoto | 14 Comments

14 Responses

on February 20, 2016 at 8:32 am | Reply Laura (PA Pict)

That bird knows how to show off his red epaulettes. Great shot of this bird behavior.
- on February 20, 2016 at 9:19 am | Reply Mike Powell
  
  Thanks, Laura. I was really thrilled to be able to shoot from the position I was at–it helped to highlight those beautiful red shoulders and to catch the open mouth when singing.
on February 20, 2016 at 9:05 am | Reply shoreacres

If he’s trying to impress the girls, he succeeded — with this one, anyway. It’s a lovely capture of an iconic pose.
- on February 20, 2016 at 9:17 am | Reply Mike Powell
  
  Thanks. I didn’t see any females around, so he might have been showing off for the guys too. 🙂
on February 20, 2016 at 10:35 am | Reply New Hampshire Garden Solutions

Beautiful. I can’t wait until they come here to herald the beginning of spring.
- on February 21, 2016 at 5:02 am | Reply Mike Powell
  
  It was in the mid-60s yesterday here and it sure felt like spring, though I suspect we will have a bit more winter weather before spring actually arrives.
on February 20, 2016 at 11:03 am | Reply Sally Morris

Not only does it help it’s singing, it magnifies his colors to attract a mate.

At 5:00 this morning, the cardinal was singing his heart out. or trying to get me up to fill the bird feeder.
- on February 21, 2016 at 5:01 am | Reply Mike Powell
  
  That’s a great point, Sally. Attracting a mate is a key goal of most male birds.
on February 20, 2016 at 5:14 pm | Reply svtakeiteasy

Brilliant colour!
- on February 21, 2016 at 5:00 am | Reply Mike Powell
  
  Thanks, Chris
on February 22, 2016 at 1:58 pm | Reply Lyle Krahn

I think I’d try that too if I was a bird. Great shot.
- on February 22, 2016 at 8:14 pm | Reply Mike Powell
  
  Thanks, Lyle. Apparently in the bird world, you really have to make a spectacle of yourself to attract potential mates. I’m too self-conscious to put myself on display like that.
on February 22, 2016 at 5:20 pm | Reply Birder's Journey

I love watching the male RWBB’s do this – they look and sound so elegant and proud.
- on February 22, 2016 at 8:11 pm | Reply Mike Powell
  
  They really do look elegant with the black feathers highlighted with the red and yellow accents..