Clay Taylor's Digital Guide Backyard List

We have a full lineup of free webinars and live sessions this week! Join birding and optics experts daily (EDT):

Monday, May 11
2PM: Clay Taylor (Swarovski Optik): Choosing A Binocular for Birding
6PM: Jeff Bouton (Kowa): Open Optics Q&A

Tuesday, May 12
2PM: Clay Taylor (Swarovski Optik): Binoculars – 32, 42, or 50mm?
6PM: Richard Moncrief (Zeiss): Birding for Kids and Their Mentors

Wednesday, May 13
2PM: Clay Taylor (Swarovski Optik): Spotting Scopes Choices
6PM: Jeff Bouton (Kowa): Phonescoping Basics

Thursday, May 14
12PM: Paul Hackett (Kowa): Digiscoping Tips and Tricks
2PM: Clay Taylor (Swarovski Optik): Spotting Scope Photography with a Smartphone
6PM: Richard Moncrief (Zeiss): Ten Things You Can Do to Help Birds

Friday, May 15
2PM Clay Taylor (Swarovski Optik): Spotting Scope Photography with a DSLR
6PM Jeff Bouton and Luis Gles (Kowa): Hawkwatching in the Florida Keys

Saturday, May 16
12PM Alvaro Jaramillo and Kowa: West Coast Pelagic Birding
2PM Clay Taylor (Swarovski Optik): Tripods and Heads for Spotting Scopes - Tips and Tricks

Sunday, May 17
2PM: Clay Taylor (Swarovski Optik): Optics Care and Maintenance

Clay Taylor's Digital Guide Backyard List updated their website address.

Our first Birders T-day - where birders around the world share their birdwatching experience during lockdown - was a great success yesterday.
Now, we are already looking forward to tomorrow's LIVE session with Clay Taylor.
Clay was hooked on photography in 1970, started birding in 1975, and has been working for SWAROVSKI OPTIK North America since 1999. He still enjoys doing all three every day. He is currently living in Corpus Christi, TX, where his Yard List boasts 252 bird and 97 butterfly species.

Don’t miss this birding fun: Tomorrow, April 9, at 5 pm CET on our SWAROVSKI OPTIK Nature channel.

Never stop exploring.

#10 Rufous Hummingbird
This little male was in the yard in February. I did not see him for 6 weeks, and now is back to ferociously defend “his” feeder. I wonder when he will depart for the breeding grounds out West?
On the left is the cropped dG photo as inserted into the Merlin Bird ID app, and on the right is Merlin’s identification.

#9 Black-chinned Hummingbird
The Black-chins nest here, and are trying to defend “their” feeders from the invading Ruby-throats.
On the left is the cropped dG photo as inserted into the Merlin Bird ID app, and on the right is Merlin’s identification.

#8 Ruby-throated Hummingbird
It is spring migration for hummingbirds here in S TX, and the Ruby-throats are taking over the back yards! This was taken from my dining room table.
On the left is the cropped dG photo as inserted into the Merlin Bird ID app, and on the right is Merlin’s identification.

#7 Great Southern White Butterfly
The tricky part about photographing these is getting one to sit still.
Identification made using the Leps app. The dG photo is at the top, the app’s species listing is below. Click on the image to see the whole thing.

#6 Hooded Warbler
One of my favorite warblers, this male Hooded was bouncing through the brush on the hillside, stopping long enough for me to snap a few pictures from about 60 feet away.
On the left is the cropped dG photo as inserted into the Merlin Bird ID app, and on the right is Merlin’s identification.

#5 Pipevine Swallowtail
The most common swallowtail butterfly here in S TX, they are constantly in motion. It was challenging to get the butterfly centered in the frame and timing the shutter correctly.
This identification page is from the Leps app, with the dG photo at the top, and the app’s identification below. Click on the photo to see to see the entire image.

#4 Killdeer
yes, you can use the dG Digital Guide to take flight photos! The tricky part is dealing with the shutter button lag of about two seconds. I picked up the Killdeer as it was approaching, and the shutter fired as it was passing overhead.
On the left is the cropped dG photo as inserted into the Merlin Bird ID app, and on the right is Merlin’s identification.

#3 White-winged Dove
yes, this is a two-fer identification from the same dG photo. Some birders consider these to be real feeder pests, hogging all of the seed.
On the left is the cropped dG photo as inserted into the Merlin Bird ID app, and on the right is Merlin’s identification.

#2 Great-tailed Grackle
loud, flashy, and widespread in South Texas. A.K.A. “The Wal-Mart Bird” down here, as they love to congregate in Wal-Mart parking lots and pick the bugs out of car radiators.
On the left is the cropped dG photo as inserted into the Merlin Bird ID app, and on the right is Merlin’s identification.

#1 Northern Mockingbird
It seems fitting that I put the Texas State Bird as the first one on the page. I have at least 5 pairs in my yard, and it is constant war.
On the left is the cropped dG photo as inserted into the Merlin Bird ID app, and on the right is Merlin’s identification. Yay!

Clay Taylor's Digital Guide Backyard List updated their phone number.