Agree with V-Tail, all of them! I do like to watch vultures soaring, masters of the air currents.
Last year in the pines across the pasture we watched a goshawk attempt to get a young turkey out of the group. The two parent turkeys flew across the goshawk to protect their young. Being much larger than the goshawk they prevailed! Quite the show!!!

Any raptor. I love to watch as they ride updrafts and thermals. Owls, a rare treat. Herons are cool.

quote:

Originally posted by sigmonkey:
Penguins.

... kiwi
... and pigs!

Nighthawks (really any of the flying insect eaters). Peregrines and Prairie falcons. I said “Red-tailed hawks” a few years ago in a thread because, as I put it, “it looks to me like they enjoy flying for fun.” As I continued, I could imagine a red tail saying to his mate, “It’s a beautiful day, Marge, let’s go flying.” I was quickly corrected, probably by Mars Attacks, “They NEVER fly for fun!” Shit I know that, it just looks like they’re out there soaring because they like it

I too like to watch them all. Game birds included. I feed Mocking birds every day. While they will peck the apple untill it is gone, I give them grapes sliced in half by my baby Swiss Army knife. Those little birds actually swallow a half of a grape. I love seeing their white fighter plane like markings. Their wing feathers are rounded at the tip making the whole wing a radius. Little air Corvettes and they spend all their time chasing the other birds, diving at animals on the ground. Good free entertainment.

White pelicans. Formation flying at its best.

When we had a place on the ocean, loved watching the flights of brown pelicans, like bombers; and Ospreys hovering, then flying to their nests with a fish in their talons.

Also in Northern California, winter trips to Grey Lodge wildlife refuge yielded vistas of tens of thousands of snow geese and other waterfowl flying in at dusk. One of nature’s grand spectacles.

In Hawaii, particularly Maui, loved watching native Hawaiian birds at Hosmer Grove on Haleakala; and for seabirds shearwaters, tropicbirds, and frigate birds.

For San Diego, we have hummingbirds in our back yard, among others.

quote:

Originally posted by Vanwall:
Barn swallows

My front porch is covered with their nests.

I get to sit in my chair and watch them zoom right past me every afternoon.

They are so beautiful and if you hold your hand out, they will count coup and brush your fingers with their wingtips.

Humming birds and peregrine falcon,

quote:

Originally posted by TMats:
Nighthawks (really any of the flying insect eaters). Peregrines and Prairie falcons. I said “Red-tailed hawks” a few years ago in a thread because, as I put it, “it looks to me like they enjoy flying for fun.” As I continued, I could imagine a red tail saying to his mate, “It’s a beautiful day, Marge, let’s go flying.” I was quickly corrected, probably by Mars Attacks, “They NEVER fly for fun!” Shit I know that, it just looks like they’re out there soaring because they like it

Nighthawks are what immediately came to mind for me. I don't see them around my home, but up in northern Michigan where I like to fly fish I see them all of the time. While waiting for an evening hatch or spinner fall, I like to just sit on the bank of the river and watch them. Aside from being extremely beautiful in their elegant and graceful flight, they are also a great indicator of if the bugs are starting to come out of the trees.

Swallowtail Kite. Poetry in motion

Living in the Sonoran Desert gives me a lot of new viewing opportunities. I love watching the Harris hawks hunting in our neighborhood! They work in family packs of up to five or six, cooperatively. Very cool! I also like watching the Nighthawks chasing bugs in the evening. So graceful.

Who's going to start the "Enough With The Bird Pictures" thread?

I love to watch them in slow motion.

Boobies in a bird thread?

I'm with David Lee, I like the mockingbirds in flight. Hummers, too.

Purple Martins and Barn Swallows. they're so maneuverable they're like mini F16's.

Quite a few years ago Purple Martins would gather at the south end of the Lake Pontchartrain Bridge. They would arrive just before sunset in the summer months. There were thousands of them. They would put on an aerial display for about 20 minutes before they would nest under the bridge for the night. This attracted large crowds and a viewing area was setup for the attraction. Eventually the birds stopped coming. I haven't seen them in quite some time.

Also, We have Mississippi Kites that nest here and stay for a few months before heading out. Their high speed dives are something to see. They're here now.

I like the contrasts. An albatross looks like it isn't working its wings at all. A duck just beats his wings to death.

Anything that soars - seagulls, eagles, crows, geese. It just looks like so much fun.

Also love to watch the crows tormenting the eagles. Looks like fighters attacking a bomber.

Add pelicans to my list. I love to watch pelicans cruising around, and diving for fish.