Jay
@allthornnorose.bsky.social
You can usually find me out in the mountains. Obviously I’m more of an outdoorsman than a photographer 😄
IG: instagram.com/thornphotographywv
West Virginia, USA
IG: instagram.com/thornphotographywv
West Virginia, USA
Field Sparrows sing one of my most nostalgic summer birdsongs, however in winter now they are nearly silent, save a few ‘chips’.
#birding #birdwatching #birds #photography #wildlifephotography 🪶
#birding #birdwatching #birds #photography #wildlifephotography 🪶
December 17, 2025 at 9:06 PM
Field Sparrows sing one of my most nostalgic summer birdsongs, however in winter now they are nearly silent, save a few ‘chips’.
#birding #birdwatching #birds #photography #wildlifephotography 🪶
#birding #birdwatching #birds #photography #wildlifephotography 🪶
The American Robins always seem to flock together after a snow storm. 65 were in one tree beside my house this morning.
#birds #birding #birdwatching #photography #wildlifephotography
#birds #birding #birdwatching #photography #wildlifephotography
December 16, 2025 at 12:35 AM
The American Robins always seem to flock together after a snow storm. 65 were in one tree beside my house this morning.
#birds #birding #birdwatching #photography #wildlifephotography
#birds #birding #birdwatching #photography #wildlifephotography
The Brown-headed Cowbird is North America’s most common “brood parasite.” A female cowbird makes no nest of her own, but instead lays her eggs in the nests of other bird species, who then raise the young cowbirds.
#birds #birding #birdwatching #photography #wildlifephotography 🪶
#birds #birding #birdwatching #photography #wildlifephotography 🪶
December 15, 2025 at 9:53 PM
The Brown-headed Cowbird is North America’s most common “brood parasite.” A female cowbird makes no nest of her own, but instead lays her eggs in the nests of other bird species, who then raise the young cowbirds.
#birds #birding #birdwatching #photography #wildlifephotography 🪶
#birds #birding #birdwatching #photography #wildlifephotography 🪶
European Starlings are horribly invasive in the US, but boy are they pretty.
#birds #birding #birdwatching #photography #wildlifephotography 🪶
#birds #birding #birdwatching #photography #wildlifephotography 🪶
December 15, 2025 at 9:50 PM
European Starlings are horribly invasive in the US, but boy are they pretty.
#birds #birding #birdwatching #photography #wildlifephotography 🪶
#birds #birding #birdwatching #photography #wildlifephotography 🪶
Neat fact I learned today, Canada Geese will switch out who leads the ‘V’ to let the front goose rest.
#birds #birding #birdwatching #photography #wildlifephotography 🪶
#birds #birding #birdwatching #photography #wildlifephotography 🪶
December 12, 2025 at 1:16 PM
Neat fact I learned today, Canada Geese will switch out who leads the ‘V’ to let the front goose rest.
#birds #birding #birdwatching #photography #wildlifephotography 🪶
#birds #birding #birdwatching #photography #wildlifephotography 🪶
Ross’s goose are a rare treat in the Ohio valley. I was lucky enough to spend some time admiring them today. As if they weren’t special enough, they were accompanied by a blue morph Snow Goose!! Lifer 245 & 246! @aba.org
#birds #birding #photography #wildlifephotography 🪶
#birds #birding #photography #wildlifephotography 🪶
December 9, 2025 at 11:36 PM
Ross’s goose are a rare treat in the Ohio valley. I was lucky enough to spend some time admiring them today. As if they weren’t special enough, they were accompanied by a blue morph Snow Goose!! Lifer 245 & 246! @aba.org
#birds #birding #photography #wildlifephotography 🪶
#birds #birding #photography #wildlifephotography 🪶
December 9, 2025 at 2:49 AM
Ring-Billed Gull. Nature is beautiful 🥲
#birds #birding #birdwatching #photography #wildlifephotography
#birds #birding #birdwatching #photography #wildlifephotography
December 5, 2025 at 10:04 PM
Ring-Billed Gull. Nature is beautiful 🥲
#birds #birding #birdwatching #photography #wildlifephotography
#birds #birding #birdwatching #photography #wildlifephotography
Some people call Yellow-Rumped Warblers “butter butts”. I think that’s a much more fun name
#birds #birding #birdwatching #photography #wildlifephotography
#birds #birding #birdwatching #photography #wildlifephotography
December 3, 2025 at 4:35 PM
Some people call Yellow-Rumped Warblers “butter butts”. I think that’s a much more fun name
#birds #birding #birdwatching #photography #wildlifephotography
#birds #birding #birdwatching #photography #wildlifephotography
Recent snow hasn’t seemed to bother this Hermit Thrush
#birds #birding #birdwatching #photgraphy #wildlifephotography
#birds #birding #birdwatching #photgraphy #wildlifephotography
December 3, 2025 at 4:32 PM
Recent snow hasn’t seemed to bother this Hermit Thrush
#birds #birding #birdwatching #photgraphy #wildlifephotography
#birds #birding #birdwatching #photgraphy #wildlifephotography
We’re hitting the big leagues now! I’ve acquired a proper camera! Big jump up from my Nikon P-950 point and shoot. Excited to get out and lug this big gal through the mountains!
Canon 7DmkII, Sigma 150-600
#birding #wildlifephotography #photography #birdwatching #canon
Canon 7DmkII, Sigma 150-600
#birding #wildlifephotography #photography #birdwatching #canon
November 27, 2025 at 12:29 PM
We’re hitting the big leagues now! I’ve acquired a proper camera! Big jump up from my Nikon P-950 point and shoot. Excited to get out and lug this big gal through the mountains!
Canon 7DmkII, Sigma 150-600
#birding #wildlifephotography #photography #birdwatching #canon
Canon 7DmkII, Sigma 150-600
#birding #wildlifephotography #photography #birdwatching #canon
Today’s #birdoftheday theme is #mottled so how about Marbled Godwits, that’s close enough right? 😄
#birds #birding #birdwatching #photography
#birds #birding #birdwatching #photography
November 18, 2025 at 11:42 AM
Today’s #birdoftheday theme is #mottled so how about Marbled Godwits, that’s close enough right? 😄
#birds #birding #birdwatching #photography
#birds #birding #birdwatching #photography
Sweet-gum trees are a vital source of winter long seed food for finches like this American Goldfinch, they also make for neat pictures 😄
#birds #birding #birdwatching #photography 🪶
#birds #birding #birdwatching #photography 🪶
November 15, 2025 at 1:49 PM
Sweet-gum trees are a vital source of winter long seed food for finches like this American Goldfinch, they also make for neat pictures 😄
#birds #birding #birdwatching #photography 🪶
#birds #birding #birdwatching #photography 🪶
This Purple Gallinule is the first reported sighting in West Virginia in over a decade! What an exotic and special bird!! Lifer #239, and one I never thought I’d see! @aba.org
#birds #birding #birdwatching #photography 🪶
#birds #birding #birdwatching #photography 🪶
November 14, 2025 at 4:43 PM
This Purple Gallinule is the first reported sighting in West Virginia in over a decade! What an exotic and special bird!! Lifer #239, and one I never thought I’d see! @aba.org
#birds #birding #birdwatching #photography 🪶
#birds #birding #birdwatching #photography 🪶
Now that we’re down to the last few fall leaves clinging to the trees it’s becoming MUCH easier to see and photograph the birds. This Downy Woodpecker is a year round resident here, but difficult to see in the summer!
#birds #birding #birdwatching #photography 🪶
#birds #birding #birdwatching #photography 🪶
November 13, 2025 at 10:46 PM
Now that we’re down to the last few fall leaves clinging to the trees it’s becoming MUCH easier to see and photograph the birds. This Downy Woodpecker is a year round resident here, but difficult to see in the summer!
#birds #birding #birdwatching #photography 🪶
#birds #birding #birdwatching #photography 🪶
Lifer #236 was this neat little snow bunting! A county first for us! I like the way they crawl on their bellies 😄
#birds #birding #birdwatching 🪶
#birds #birding #birdwatching 🪶
November 13, 2025 at 2:33 AM
Lifer #236 was this neat little snow bunting! A county first for us! I like the way they crawl on their bellies 😄
#birds #birding #birdwatching 🪶
#birds #birding #birdwatching 🪶
This is a leucistic Red Tailed Hawk I saw today. What a beautiful and rare creature! It’s easy to see why many Native American tribes saw animals like this as sacred, because they are certainly nothing less than otherworldly!
#birds #birding #birdwatching #raptor
#naturephotography #leucistic 🪶
#birds #birding #birdwatching #raptor
#naturephotography #leucistic 🪶
November 12, 2025 at 9:19 PM
This is a leucistic Red Tailed Hawk I saw today. What a beautiful and rare creature! It’s easy to see why many Native American tribes saw animals like this as sacred, because they are certainly nothing less than otherworldly!
#birds #birding #birdwatching #raptor
#naturephotography #leucistic 🪶
#birds #birding #birdwatching #raptor
#naturephotography #leucistic 🪶
First snow of the season, had to practice my photography on the House Sparrows some
#birds #birding #photography
#birds #birding #photography
November 12, 2025 at 9:12 PM
First snow of the season, had to practice my photography on the House Sparrows some
#birds #birding #photography
#birds #birding #photography
@aba.org got my #lifer Clay Colored Sparrow way out of it’s typical range on the North Carolina outer banks recently! Then I got home to get my #lifer American Avocet in West Virginia of all places! Great luck with vagrant birds so far this fall! Excited for waterfowl this winter 😃
#birds #birding
#birds #birding
November 9, 2025 at 10:04 PM
Sanderlings are only one of three species of shorebirds with a nearly world wide distribution. The Ruddy Turnstone and Whimbrel being the other two. Unless you go to the high arctic breeding grounds you’ll probably only see their black and white non breeding plumage though. Still beautiful!
#birds 🪶
#birds 🪶
November 8, 2025 at 2:05 AM
Sanderlings are only one of three species of shorebirds with a nearly world wide distribution. The Ruddy Turnstone and Whimbrel being the other two. Unless you go to the high arctic breeding grounds you’ll probably only see their black and white non breeding plumage though. Still beautiful!
#birds 🪶
#birds 🪶
Brown pelicans are one of only two species of pelicans that plunge dive for their food, and the only one you could see do it here in the US. Watching a flock hammer the water like cannonballs is really something else! Here is a striking male in breeding plumage I saw recently!
#birds #birding 🪶
#birds #birding 🪶
November 6, 2025 at 6:49 PM
American Oystercatchers are my favorite bird! They have such goofy little personalities! I got lucky enough to see a few in North Carolina recently. Even more lucky, it was a banded pair!
#birds #birdwatching 🪶
#birds #birdwatching 🪶
October 29, 2025 at 9:03 PM
American Oystercatchers are my favorite bird! They have such goofy little personalities! I got lucky enough to see a few in North Carolina recently. Even more lucky, it was a banded pair!
#birds #birdwatching 🪶
#birds #birdwatching 🪶
Piping Plovers are pretty endangered due to the destruction of the dry sand habitats they nest in for human development. The world probably needs a few less beach rentals, and a few more plovers, so let’s save two birds with one stone and protect habitat!
#birds #birding #birdwatching 🪶
#birds #birding #birdwatching 🪶
October 23, 2025 at 5:15 PM
Piping Plovers are pretty endangered due to the destruction of the dry sand habitats they nest in for human development. The world probably needs a few less beach rentals, and a few more plovers, so let’s save two birds with one stone and protect habitat!
#birds #birding #birdwatching 🪶
#birds #birding #birdwatching 🪶
It wasn’t until I was editing the photo did I notice the PORTUGUESE MAN-O-WAR in the background!!! Oh, there’s a Marbled Godwit in there too I guess…😄
#birds #birding #birdwatching 🪶
#birds #birding #birdwatching 🪶
October 20, 2025 at 11:52 PM
It wasn’t until I was editing the photo did I notice the PORTUGUESE MAN-O-WAR in the background!!! Oh, there’s a Marbled Godwit in there too I guess…😄
#birds #birding #birdwatching 🪶
#birds #birding #birdwatching 🪶
Here’s one I don’t see every day, a Sora! I was sitting waiting for a swamp sparrow to come up out of the reeds when she peeked out. Never saw the swamp sparrow again, but the consolation prize isn’t too bad! 😄
#birds #birding #birdwatching 🪶
#birds #birding #birdwatching 🪶
October 9, 2025 at 6:03 PM
Here’s one I don’t see every day, a Sora! I was sitting waiting for a swamp sparrow to come up out of the reeds when she peeked out. Never saw the swamp sparrow again, but the consolation prize isn’t too bad! 😄
#birds #birding #birdwatching 🪶
#birds #birding #birdwatching 🪶