Saturday, April 30, 2011

Protein

Fat and happy. They're still at it, putting on body mass for hard work ahead.





Suddenly- blue jays screaming, feathers wafting downwards. That means only one thing. Hawk lunch overhead, pigeon de jour.













Shades of SALOME. Give me the head! (And forget about the silver platter.)



















The blue jays resumed being bombarding pests. Hawk moved to another branch.










No rest from the invasion, so hawk headed East.

Next blog I'll get back to tiny birds.

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Friday, April 29, 2011

Fall over backwards

Did you see it? Did you see it? There, way up in the tree! Did you see it??? How to go nuts. Great bird, a first for me, -way, way, way, way up in the pin oak tree. (I don't know trees either, but I met the man who did a map of every tree in the park and he told me.) Blackburnian warbler, gorgeous bird.... but did it have to be half way to heaven in the leaves? Sure! That's where the insects were. So now I've seen one and maybe in this lifetime I'll see one at eye level. Now I need to rest my aching neck.







I like low-down birds.

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Rainy Thursday

The best way to deal with yesterday's rain was to stroll in the garden in between storms. The Tulips have been pretty much blown to bits, but color patterns are there for the image maker.

One lone kinglet was working the tree out back. One tiny bird, oodles of visible bugs.








Oh, NO!!! This is the tree by the path that has been home to two robin nestlings in the past. It is too close to human traffic, shoulder height. This looks like the beginnings of another nest.




If this is what I think it is I hope the robin comes to her senses. This is not a safe location.

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Thursday, April 28, 2011

Yellow

We have a big garden, good viewing from lobby window. From the outside the birds see a reflection of the garden. From inside it's hard getting pictures because of glare. The first thing I saw was the flicker facing-off with a robin. Good bugs in this tree.

Then twitchy movement caught my eye. Oh, boy.... a warbler I know, the blue-winged warbler. I ran out into the garden. Hot, humid, sweat pouring into my eyeballs and one warbler being totally uncooperative, scarfing down bugs non-stop. I tried my best, but could not get the ideal photo.











Into the park, also uncooperative, scurrying along after insects. This made for a nice panning image, the common yellow throat, male.


Finally, a cooperative bird, the yellow warbler at the Upper Lobe.












Walking on air.

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