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jondrobny.com
Jon
@jondrobny.com
1K followers 190 following 210 posts
Physicist | Photographs birds | He/him | San Diego County | "Anything can happen in this world, we really know very little" | jondrobny.com
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It's been a while since I posted anything here! I biked to the river mouth a couple days ago and, as I was scouting the flooded lagoon for grebes, this curious Black-bellied Plover walked up to me along the shoulder-height bank, letting me get these shots with the ocean in the background. #birds
A Black-bellied Plover in nonbreeding plumage - a white and tan, medium-sized white plover, with an upright posture, small round head, large, round, black eyes, and a small, pointed, black bill - standing amongst sparse grass, with an out-of-focus background of distant sand, crashing waves, and bright blue sky. An action shot of a Black-bellied Plover - a white and tan, medium-sized white plover, with an upright posture, small round head, large, round, black eyes, and a small, pointed, black bill - stepping from left to right, small red bug in its open mouth, having grabbed it from a nearby blade of grass, surrounded by dry grass on the beach with the ocean and the sky in the out-of-focus background.
October 24, 2025 at 3:13 AM
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Pied-billed Grebe babies are back at the local lake! I think these little gremlins are my favorite young birds to photograph, they are so photogenic #birds
A pied-billed Grebe chick; a tiny grebe with a downy grey body, with streaks of pale orange on its breast, and a dramatic striped black and white face, with a bright orange crown, eyerings, and bill. It is facing exactly forward, looking at the camera, bill slightly open. It is surrounded by green water, streaked with bright grey reflections of the overcast sky.
May 26, 2025 at 4:42 PM
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I also briefly encountered this Spotted Sandpiper making its way around the lake yesterday - I've never seen one in breeding plumage before (they lose their spots in the winter when they're more likely to be here), so getting to see one with spots was a treat! #birds
A Spotted Sandpiper - a smallish brown and white shorebird with a medium-length, orange bill, orange legs, a dark stripe running across its eye accented by a white eyebrow, with a bright white belly, chest, and throat, punctuated by dark-brown polka dots, standing on an exposed tree root in front of dark green lakewater
April 21, 2025 at 4:46 PM
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Poor lighting for photography yesterday encouraged me to try video, and I'm glad I did - I was lucky enough to capture the elusive Marsh Wren singing its unmistakable song through a gap in the reeds #birds
April 21, 2025 at 4:10 PM
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The crows really do not like the kites! #birds
March 17, 2025 at 4:14 PM
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I ran across the park and jogged up a hill hoping to photograph the White-tailed Kite hunting, but by the time I arrived he had already returned to where I had just been to give food to his mate mid-flight - I'm happy I was still able to get this series of shots from very, very, very far away #birds
A composite of five shots taken in quick succession, showing two White-tailed Kites. arrange left-to-right and upwards diagonally. The smaller male kite, above, has a vole in his talons. The female kite swoops upward from behind and below, and, swinging her talons upwards to meet the males, takes the vole from him before twisting away.
March 16, 2025 at 9:15 PM
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Turns out there are two White-Tailed Kites! And it also turns out that they are VERY unfazed by the mobbing crows, haha. #birds
March 2, 2025 at 8:16 PM
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This lone Snowy Plover landed near me while I was (mostly unsuccessfully) trying to photograph some bathing terns on the beach the other day. I'm glad it did, because this ended up being my favorite shot of the morning #birds
A Snowy Plover - a mostly white, tennis-ball-shaped sandpiper with little stick legs, a dark collar, and light brown back and cap with little, black round eyes and a short, stubby, kind of pointy bill - standing on sloped, soft, pale sand on a cloudy day. The surf is barely visible in the out of focus background. The Plover is positioned just left of center in the frame and is facing and looking forward-right just past the camera. Its bill is covered with sand.
February 27, 2025 at 8:00 PM
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This picture didn't turn out exactly as I'd hoped, but I do really like that you can see the reflection of the sunset over the ocean in this Black Phoebe's eye #birds
A close-up portrait of a Black Phoebe - a small, black flycatcher with a little crest, a bright white belly, and wise brown eyes - lit by the orange light of the sun setting over the ocean, facing forward but looking to the left, in front of a pitch-black background that fades to orange-tan in the upper left corner. The setting sun over the ocean can just be made out in the reflection in the phoebe's round, brown eyes.
February 27, 2025 at 5:42 PM
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I captured this Marbled Godwit the other day looking very pleased with its foraging while making the most of overcast conditions #birds
A Marbled Godwit - a large, tan shorebird speckled all over with gold and dark brown spots. It has an extraordinarily long, slightly upcurved, very narrow prehensile bill that is pink at its base and black at its end. It has large, dark brown eyes and is wading in shallow, foamy water. The lighting is very diffuse and the background and foreground have been overexposed, so the Godwit appears to be surrounded by soft, white light.
February 24, 2025 at 5:23 PM
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A surprising sight at Guajome park: a beautiful White-tailed Kite has been hanging out at the top of this eucalyptus for a couple of days, despite regular mobbing by the resident crows. I've only ever seen one at a great distance before, so this was cool to see, despite the stick in the way! #birds
A photograph of a White-tailed Kite - a medium-sized, bright white falcon with a flattish face, short bill, and very large, round, bright orange eyes, perched at the very top of a Eucalyptus tree, green with long and narrow oblong leaves. The background is a bright, completely clear blue sky, and the scene is lit by harsh, late morning sun.
February 24, 2025 at 5:10 PM
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American Pipits are still here - I watched this one foraging in the dew this morning. #birds
February 23, 2025 at 9:08 PM
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Pelicans at sunset #birds
A photograph of the ocean at sunset. A slightly-out-of-focus wave, blue with shadow, churns seafoam as it approaches the camera. Flecks of orange-pink light glisten off the top of the wave. Along the horizon, the silhouettes of 15 brown pelicans can be seen, flying single file, almost evenly spaced, right to left. The smooth ocean is reflecting the light from the sunset sky, which is a smooth gradient from grey-purple at the horizon to bright orange at the top of the image.
February 22, 2025 at 11:22 PM
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Captured this beautiful Northern Flicker calling from the top of a tree where Ash-throated Flycatchers nested last year - although I did my best to stabilize this video, it's still pretty shaky! I should've brought my tripod, but alas #birds
February 17, 2025 at 7:01 PM
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Diving pelican lit by the sunset filtered through a raincloud #birds
A small-in-frame, almost completely silhouetted brown pelican, a very large bird with a massive, scoop-like bill, diving from a great height vertically into choppy water. The sky is uniform gold, and everything is lit by diffuse orange-yellow light. Large waves are frothing against the shore in the slightly-out-of-focus foreground.
February 15, 2025 at 3:11 AM
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Non-bird shot - saw this coyote a while back munching on some small critter across the parking lot from my car at Wilderness Gardens; very wary of me, but not too wary to not finish its breakfast before scurrying off.
A tan, light-grey, and dark brown coyote, mouth open comically, chewing on something unidentifiable covered in live oak leaf litter in front of two sawn log barriers to a parking lot. It is looking at the camera with its tail down in a mostly relaxed posture, standing amidst dried leaves and underbrush.
February 12, 2025 at 8:07 PM
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I think this shot from last month is my favorite Ruddy Duck picture I've ever taken. I just got my camera back from Canon for a shutter repair, so hopefully I can brighten people's timelines with more bird photography soon. #birds
The dark brown, fan-shaped tail of a diving Ruddy Duck, poking just above the water, making a small splash. The background is bright gold, dry reeds reflecting the golden light of sunrise, and the water is extremely still, reflecting the same light, making the duck's tail appear suspended in smooth, golden light.
February 12, 2025 at 5:40 PM
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Sometimes I think high key black-and-white is the only way to make photos taken on a dreary day pop - like this Nuttal's Woodpecker for #WoodpeckerWednesday #birds
A high-key, black and white photograph of a female Nuttal's woodpecker - a small, black and white woodpecker with black back and wings striped with white, a white throat, chest, and belly speckled with dark grey, a black head adorned with a white face mask that wraps around to the back of the head, and a very sharp, shortish dark grey bill - perched on a diagonal branch free of foliage that hangs from a larger horizontal branch that has been photographed along the top edge of the image. It is facing to the left in profile.
January 15, 2025 at 3:23 PM
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A very curious Marsh Wren that, after I took this picture, got so close to my boots that my lens could no longer focus on it - I had to zoom out to 200mm to get this shot! #birds
A Marsh Wren - a small, round, fluffy brown Wren with buff belly and throat, dark brown cap, medium brown wings, and a rectangular striped brown and black tail - perched on a twisted root overlooking smooth, pale blue lake water, facing forward, looking at the boots of the photographer (that's me!) and considering getting too close for the camera and lens to focus on.
January 8, 2025 at 5:53 PM
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A very fluffy Marsh Wren at sunrise on a cool winter morning #birds
A puffed-up Marsh Wren - a small brown Wren with light tan breast and throat, dark, chocolate brown cap, striped tan and dark brown tail, a thin white eyering, and grey and medium brown smooth markings on its face and sides - perched on a curved dried reed, facing forward and looking left, surrounded by other tan, dried reeds.
January 3, 2025 at 5:13 PM
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The Shearwaters have stuck around Oceanside - it's amazing to watch so many birds swoop and dive in formation. With their dark backs and bright white undersides the flock shimmers as they fly back and forth.
#birds
December 20, 2024 at 2:22 AM
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An incredible sight just off the coast this morning. I think these are Black-vented Shearwaters, which are not usually seen up here - thousands and thousands of them! #birds
A flock of hundreds of black and white seabirds, extremely distant, swimming and flying in both directions in choppy deep blue water.
December 15, 2024 at 5:45 PM
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Christmas Bird Count was yesterday! Had an incredible time with @heaposheep.bsky.social and @socalleslie.bsky.social. Highlights included: Loggerhead Shrike, Tropical Kingbird, Burrowing Owl (!) and an immature male Vermillion Flycatcher. What a blast; can't wait to do it again next year. #birds
A Loggerhead Shrike - a medium-sized white and grey bird with stark black facemask, long grey tail, and hooked bill - photographed at an extreme distance, facing left, perched atop a bunch of sticks free of foliage in front of a pale blue sky. A Tropical Kingbird - a large, brilliant highlighter yellow and grey flycatcher with white chin, brown-grey tail, and yellow plumage up to its throat - perched on a stick covered in buds. A Burrowing Owl - a small, round, brown and white owl with large, round, bright yellow eyes - standing upright in a field of mown, brown grass. An immature male Vermillion Flycatcher - a small, grey and bright red flycatcher with dark grey wings barred with faint light grey stripes, a tiny dark bill, and a brilliant red crown, belly, breast and throat. The belly and chest are spotted with pale grey feathers and the flycatcher is perched on a rusted, post, surrounded by chain-link fence and barbed wire, in front of an out-of-focus background of blue tarps and sheet aluminum.
December 15, 2024 at 5:12 PM
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From this past Spring - a Black Phoebe parent with an adorably fluffy juvenile #birds
Two Black Phoebes - small, black and white flycatchers with long, dark bill with a tiny hook at the end - one juvenile, fluffier and rounder with orange stripes on the wing and yellow bill, and one adult, sleek and black , perched together on a broken branch in front of a completely out of focus bright green background. The juvenile is on the left, facing right, looking at the adult expectantly. The adult is on the right, facing left, looking towards the camera.
December 12, 2024 at 7:17 PM
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A brave and loud Song Sparrow from the lake shore the other day #birds
A Song Sparrow - a medium-sized brown and grey sparrow with brown cap, brown back and wings, and dark brown specks on its pale grey breast, standing legs clasped on a branch and a stalk of some willowy-leaved plant. The Song Sparrow is facing forward, looking to the left, bill open in song. The background is out-of-focus pale blue sky and yellow, dried reeds and foliage lit by the morning sun
December 11, 2024 at 7:47 PM