My first encounter with the Judíos (Crotophaga ani) was unexpected. I didn’t realise it was a bird I’d never had the chance to photograph or even see before… And yet, I had a feeling... when I saw them, I felt there was something new in what I was looking at—even though they resembled a flock of zanates. Maybe it was the elongated feathers at the back when they all took flight… well… and the song, the song was different too. Still, since I consider myself a novice in these matters, I just shrugged and thought: maybe they have a call I didn’t know about. I also sensed they were in a kind of watchful mode, because as soon as I stepped into that spot I sometimes visit—because it’s damp and sometimes the water rises and it looks like a little lagoon—the judíos felt my presence and they drifted even farther away. I saw them take off in unison from different spots, as if performing a choreography. I think there were more than a dozen birds. And I only managed to photograph this one. 😏

I tried to get a bit closer to take more photos and sank into the mud—up past my ankles. What a laugh… luckily, I was wearing my wellies (acabo de aprender una nueva manera de llamar a mis botas de goma en inglés británico). 😅

Its diet includes termites, large insects such as grasshoppers, spiders, centipedes, small snakes, lizards, and frogs. They tend to eat fruit and seeds when insects are scarce. _Wikipedia

I’d been doing some research to learn a bit more about these birds, and I also spoke with some of the fellow birdwatchers in the group. Opinions there were divided—there were mixed feelings about these birds. 😄 Someone mentioned that they’ve been seen approaching fire. Another replied that it was probably to catch the insects fleeing from it.

When it comes to birdwatching, I also like to show the setting I was in… so let’s rewind this film a little.

Nature is an expert in floral arrangement.

But before all that, another sighting caught my attention—a photo of what seems to be a chubby sparrow. Just look at the spot she chose to perch!

She’s got a nest right there! 🙃 I just hope it’s not dangerous.

My thoughts were bouncing between several themes at once, and I was trying to connect them. I’d just passed through a neighbourhood by the railway tracks, not far from home, and I stopped to take in the sight of its humble little houses—wooden structures, often pieced together from salvaged wood or whatever materials they could find here and there.

There was a man hurling a piece of metal against the railway tracks. He was trying to smash it apart! I carried on without judging him, but it did bother me a little—I was hoping to film another feathered encounter I’d just had. Still, with all that banging, it was impossible.

At least I managed to take these photos of another bird I hadn’t yet had the pleasure of photographing: the Eastern Meadowlark or Sabanero (Sturnella magna). I’d only caught a glimpse of one once at Playa del Chivo. A friend did the bird count and included it, but this—this feels like my true first time!

Maybe they were in the middle of a courtship ritual—ayyyy… 😭 I just couldn’t get them both clearly in the same frame. Everything always happens so fast...

I walked a bit further and took more photos of that neighbourhood. I found myself thinking about my paternal grandparents’ wooden house. It was ever so modest, with a guano-thatched roof and walls made of palm boards. The floor was smooth cement, and the windows—those old wooden shutters that opened outwards—let in the breeze so gently. I remembered those childhood days, how I loved the coolness inside that little house. All of this was drifting through my mind as I walked along...

This has been my entry for the Feathered Friends – Show Me A Photo Contest, Round 245. There’s still time for you to share your bird photos too.