THIS WEEK’S THEME: LIFE ON THE TRUNK
Five encounters from a morning spent photograpFive birds from five different families that have each evolved a remarkably similar way of searching tree trunks for food.hing the birds visiting my sister’s backyard feeding station in Fairfield Bay, Arkansas.
Scientific names
Sittasomus griseicapillus
Taxonomic groups
Furnariidae — Ovenbirds & Woodcreepers
Click photograph to view full size
A photograph is worth a thousand words, but the story makes it worth a few more.
BACKSTORY
This photograph takes me back to early 2022, when we were still in the thick of the COVID-19 pandemic. I had received all of my vaccinations, including the most recent booster in September 2021, but a new variant called Omicron had arrived and was spreading rapidly.
On Tuesday night during my trip to Mexico, I awoke completely drenched in sweat and shaking. A COVID test came back negative, so I continued with the trip. Wednesday night it happened again—only much worse. By the next day, I could barely walk 50 yards without stopping to catch my breath.
And yet, somehow, that afternoon I explored the Calakmul archaeological ruins and successfully climbed the tallest structure at about 2:00 p.m., in the heat and humidity of the Yucatán Peninsula. After making my way back down, I stopped at the bottom to recover.
That was when my guide, Claudio, spotted this Olivaceous Woodcreeper, one of the smallest woodcreepers, working along a nearby tree trunk. Despite how miserable I felt, there was apparently still enough energy left in me to raise the camera.
That evening I took another COVID test.
This time I didn’t have to wait long. Within about 30 seconds, it was positive.
IMAGE DETAILS
LOCATION INFORMATION: Calakmul Archeological Ruins, Campeche, México · January 13, 2022
EQUIPMENT INFORMATION: Canon EOS R5 · Canon RF 100-500mm F4.5-7.1L IS USM
SETTINGS INFORMATION: 500mm · ƒ/7.1 · 1/1250 sec · ISO 800