Last night I introduced you to an American Dipper (Cinclus mexicanus). I spent quite a bit of time watching and trying to learn more about this unusual songbird, and struggling with somewhat challenging conditions for photography (very dark lighting).
A description I read in the Birds of the World account online mentioned that the dipper's plumage has "earth tones," but I might adjust that slightly to say that it has "stream tones." The dipper's brown and gray and blue coloration were a perfect match for the colors and reflections in the water. Sometimes the dipper looked like water, other times like leaves, or rocks, or shadows. Here are a few more photos from yesterday's visit. [You can click on them for larger versions.]
The plumage is amazingly waterproof. Note the smooth water flow over and around the dipper as it submerged its head and actively searched for prey:
I'm still processing a couple of audio files of the dipper singing, but I'll try to share those soon, too.
