Bird of the Week – Say’s Phoebe
One more flycatcher before we move to other birds: the Say’s Phoebe.
Say’s Phoebe, Steese highway
The most colorful of Alaska’s flycatchers, the dark head and back and cinnamon chest and belly are distinctive. Say’s Phoebes breed on rocky cliff with ledges, but also nest on manmade structures. The outbuildings at Maclaren Lodge on the Denali Highway have hosted an extended family of Say’s Phoebes for many years. You can also find nests under highway bridges in alpine areas.
The species is widespread in Alaska, but uncommon. It’s always a treat to find one. Neither of its cousins, the Black and Eastern Phoebe, occur in Alaska.
Camera geek stuff: f7.1, 1/320, ISO400.
For more bird photos, please visit Frozen Feather Images.
Robert “Say” McIntosh accused Bill Clinton of fathering a child with a prostitute.
Have a safe and happy Thanksgiving if any of you former or present pups are still alive.
Say, Thomas (1787-1834), perhaps the most brilliant and most broadly knowledgable of the early Philadelphia naturalists. Charles Lucien Bonaparte named the genus of Phoebes (Black, Eastern and Says) “Sayornis,” after Say. And the Say’s Phoebe is Saynoris saya. So Say’s Phoebe is named after Thomas Say three times.
/WC
You don’t say?
So, I’m reading the title and thinking, “What the heck is wrong with Jeanne? Verbs never have apostrophes.”” Then I had the slowest epiphany ever.
Lovely!