Birds

Categories Apollo, Artemis, Birds, Dog

Photo dump

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Great Crested Flycatcher

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Hummingbirds

IMGP4554 IMGP4548House Wren

IMGP4498 IMGP4504Osprey with Fish

IMGP4485a IMGP4486a IMGP4487a IMGP4488a IMGP4489aGreat Blue Heron

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Mopey puppy after he snatched (yet another) sparrow out of mid-air and we wouldn’t let him bring his new friend into the house

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Apollo and Arty enjoying one of our (rare) sunny days

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The moon a couple days ago

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The Squirrel that Apollo decided was EVIL!!!!!  Damn thing just sat there and stared at the giant slavering dog going ballistic behind the glass less than 10ft away….

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And a butterfly that caught my eye

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Categories Birds

Something killed the Bluebirds

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Or at least momma and baby Bluebirds.  They were dead in their birdhouse this week.  I’m assuming House Sparrows, though I didn’t see it happen.  There’s not much that’ll go after mom and chicks INSIDE the house and not try to remove them.

Categories Birds

Baby Robin and a Raven

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I couldn’t find the nest this little guy came out of so I moved him a couple feet into the brush where the dogs are less likely to spot him.

 

IMGP4250 IMGP4255 IMGP4258Then a while later this guy soared over.  I had an instant of HOLY COW GIANT CROW, wait, thats not a crow…..

Categories Birds

Juvi Bald Eagle

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In molt, hence the notches in his wings

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I actually thought this was another Osprey, and was taking the pictures to try to figure out why his wings looked weird.  Wasn’t till I was looking at the pictures later that I realized that wasn’t an Osprey…..dammit, now I’m going to be taking pictures of every “Osprey” I see…..

Categories Birds, Gardening

I’ve been over-run by Pine Siskens

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Huge bunches of them, perched on every surface waiting their turn at the finch feeder.  I’m refilling that feeder once a day…..they’re such secure little birds that even me stepping out onto the porch to get this picture (instead of through the dirty window and screen) didn’t even phase them.

 

And the male Rose-breasted Grosbeak brought along his mate yesterday

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And I still can’t get over how different the female Red-wing blackbirds look from the males

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Not much else going on here other than the birds.  We’re supposed to be getting a frost tonight (and come with in a degree or two of it last night, though I haven’t confirmed if it did or not).  So all the garden containers got frost protectors last night, and considering the lack of warmth predicted for today I’m not going to remove them, just loosen them for some ventilation.  I just hope the various fruit trees, which are all in bloom, can hold up cause I can’t do much about them.

Categories Birds

Rose-breasted Grosbeak

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I’d never seen one before!  They supposedly nest in this area, and there’s been a male (no way to tell if its the same one though I think so) back to the feeders several times yesterday and this morning, so I’m hoping that means that he’s looking to nest here.  I’ve not spotted a female yet, but from the pictures online she’d look like a large sparrow so I might have just missed her…..

And a gratuitous BlueJay, just because:

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Categories Birds

Osprey

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Yesterday Husband and I were enjoying the lovely sunny warmth and doing all kinds of yard work, when suddenly I heard a WHOOSH of wings over my head, and looked up in time to see a pair of very large birds of prey swoop by.  I ran for my camera and managed to catch these:

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I posted the pictures on a birding forum to see if anyone had any ideas, and was informed that they are Osprey.  The first ones I’ve ever seen outside of a captive program!