Posts from the ‘nature’ Category
Spring has gone missing!
I wonder where it went and when it will return? Last week we were basking in sunshine and wonderfully warm days. Trees and flowers burst into blossoms. I saw an oriole, a rose-breasted grosbeak, and a few ducklings on the bog. And I concluded that the long (very long) and slow (very slow) winter were finally drawing to a close. And then something strange happened. In the words of the cashier at Lowe’s Hardware Store where I purchased some birdseed and new feeders today, “We went backwards!” Back to winter…or so it seems. Rain, sleet, even a few snowflakes, and temperatures nearing the freezing mark…what a wakeup call! “Dont become complacent!” it seems to say. “Be thankful for the sights and sounds of spring; for the warm breezes, colorful flowers, and the sweet scent of blossoming fruit trees; but don’t take them for granted! Remember to “Take time to smell the roses.” Make the most of every moment. Sunshine and blue skies are not a guarantee. They are a gift!
This has been a public service announcement by Carolyn aka Skip
Red, white, black, and prehistoric
The pileated woodpecker was in the park today. Because it has been more than a month since I last saw him, I was pretty excited. I thought perhaps he had moved on, so spotting him today was a treat. I have an iBird app on my phone that includes the songs of many different birds, so when I caught sight of him, I dug out my phone, opened the app, and played the song of the pileated woodpecker. To my surprise, he reacted by swooping across the trail in front of me, landing on a nearby tree. Eventually he flew out of my sight and up to the top of the sledding hill. I followed and found him again, bagging a few more pictures. In several of the pictures, I was actually above the W.P. because I was on the observation platform at the top of the hill, and he flew to one of the trees slightly below me. From that point, I had a pretty amazing view of Mr. Woodpecker! If you want to see larger pictures, click on one of them. I think the pileated is a pretty fascinating bird.Even on a cloudy and chilly day like today, spring photo walks can be filled with fun.I hope you enjoy the gallery.
Carolyn aka Skip
P.S. In the title, “prehistoric” refers to the look of the bird. To me, it looks like a throwback to prehistoric times.
Bluebird and more!
On my walk in the park today, I netted two spring birds and a chipmunk that I couldn’t resist snapping multiple times. I am aware that chipmunks can be pests, and they certainly can do a lot of damage, if given half a chance. A few years ago, one little chippy took out the air conditioning unit at our daughter’s house. Not just a little window AC unit, mind you, but the whole house unit. It was done for, and so was the chippy! Consequently my son-in-law is not one bit fond of chipmunks, but then he isn’t a photographer, and I am, so I like chippies because they are such photogenic little critters. Take a look!
A thunderstorm put an end to my walk today, but not before I had captured a bluebird. It’s not the greatest picture because he flew away before I could creep any closer, but bluebirds are beautiful, and I don’t get too many opportunities to photograph them, so here he is in all his glory:
Finally, here is one of our summer residents, an American goldfinch:
That’s it for today! Hope you enjoy them.
Skip aka Carolyn
No doubt about it…
Spring has arrived! I wouldn’t be silly enough to believe we won’t have any more cold, wet weather, but I’ve seen the signs, and I am announcing the arrival of spring! Today, on my walk in the park, I spotted a golden-crowned kinglet and a yellow-bellied sapsucker for the first time, and there were lots of people enjoying some sunshine and warmer temperatures. Yay for spring! We’ve waited a long time for it to arrive. Here are my favorite pictures from today:
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- Chipper the chipmunk
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- Looking around
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- White-tail deer
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- Downy woodpecker
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- Downy with a sunflower seed
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- Another view
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- Yellow-bellied sapsucker
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- Golden-crowned kinglet
Hope you enjoyed them!
Carolyn aka Skip
Is it spring yet?
That’s the question everyone is asking these days. Even today, although it seemed a little milder and I didn’t wear my winter jacket for our trip to the Cleveland Aquarium, the temperature barely inched above 40 degrees. In the afternoon I took a photowalk in the park. For that I wore my winter jacket and hat, and I wasn’t any too warm. Here are my favorite photos from the walk. I hope you like them.
Carolyn aka Skip
Mallard Mania
With spring on the horizon (hopefully), the mallards on the bog have gone into courtship mode. They are great entertainment on my daily photowalks. You can see more Mallard Mania here.
Busy days recently. I will try to be more regular in my posts!
Skip aka Carolyn
The rear of a deer
Several whitetail deer crossed the trail in front of me. As I watched, this one leaped off the trail and into the woods. Their grace and beauty make these animals a joy to watch. A very large herd of whitetails lives in our neighborhood park, which is fine so long as they stay in the park. However, they don’t! Every night, and sometimes during the day, they migrate from the park into the surrounding neighborhoods. There they feast on flowers, bulbs, flowering trees, and, under cover of darkness, the seed I put in our bird feeders for the chickadees, nuthatches, and other songbirds. The deer are also a hazard on the highways. It’s too bad they can’t comprehend boundaries. On the other hand, it’s too bad that people have taken over so much of their habitat with housing subdivisions, shopping malls, six-lane highways and the like.It’s an ongoing problem with no good solution.
That’s all for tonight!
See you soon.
Carolyn aka Skip
An uninvited dinner guest
I have been playing around with creating diptychs and other collages, so today, after I “developed” my pictures in Lightroom, I chose three related images that I think tell a story. Can you follow the storyline? Hint: Start in the upper left corner.
Here’s the sequence:
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Sparrow was ready to tuck into his favorite meal: black oil sunflower seeds.
The uninvited guest, a tufted titmouse, flew in, thinking the sparrow should share, but the sparrow told him to clear out pronto!
The titmouse knew when he wasn’t welcome, so he flew away.
I just came across this app for creating collages recently, and it has been a lot of fun. Hope you enjoyed “reading” the story as much as I enjoyed “creating” it.
That’s it for today!
Carolyn aka Skip
Dancing Duck
Wondering what was sitting on top of the duck nest in the middle of the bog, I walked a little closer, and this is what I saw, a lady mallard. At first she just seemed to be taking a siesta, but as I watched, she stirred, stood up, stretched, and performed a little dance routine. From the expression on her face, she must have been pretty satisfied with herself! Here’s a little slideshow of Momma Mallard in action:
Thanks for stopping by today.
Carolyn aka Skip
Great horned owl
A great horned owl is sitting on a nest in the park where I usually take my photowalks. Last week it was pointed out to me, but the owl was not in sight, although others had seen it. Today I took a few pictures of the nest, came home, and brought them up on my computer screen, and I could see the little tufts on the top of her head. Can you see them?
According to the bird app on my computer, the owl lays one to five dull white eggs in an abandoned nest made by hawks or crows, which this nest is. She will incubate the eggs for 28-35 days, and it is mostly the female who does the hard work of sitting on the eggs until they hatch. If all goes well, we could see at least one nestling in four weeks or so.
I find that exciting, and I will keep you updated.
Carolyn aka Skip
