• Welcome to the new Internet Infidels Discussion Board, formerly Talk Freethought.

Animals roaming free

Status
Not open for further replies.
From yesterday, I have never seen gulls flying in a "V" formation but I understand it's not that unusual.



Today at a pond that usually doesn't have much, but it is more ice-free than others at the moment, no mistaking the hair do of a hooded merganser.



First of the season. Same pond at long distance, a pair of ring neck ducks.


At the pond by the soccer field, a pair of mute swans. I hope this means I have two families to watch this spring and summer.


Canada geese at the stream that has opened up the water where the swans were.


Back at the official Swan Pond, a pair of mallards


A female northern cardinal.


Finally in my driveway, first wooly-bear of the season.
 
In the last few weeks, a huge flock of starlings has decided that the trees in the gardens behind me make a nice place to spend the night. Fine in the evening when they come in to roost for the night, but they are anoisy bunch in the mornig. I've never been so regularly awake at 7 a.m. before.

Then there's the local frog population. Right now, it's mating season, so they're all hard at it in my pond. It's the best time to get pics of them, as they don't jump into the pond when approached, as they do the rest of the year.

11090897_879417305434410_5496792337377524547_o.jpg


The net they're resting on is there to stop the local cats and herons from getting to the fish in the pond. This morning, though, I found one female frog with her back leg tangled in it, so I had to cut a hole in it to free her. Fortunately, she wasn't dead as I had at first feared, but the leg's pretty messed up from the net twisting tightly around it as she tried to escape.
 
Chatterer the red squirrel in my neighbor's yard.



First American Robin on the ground photo of the season.


Between my feeders and the neighbor's the Wild Turkeys are here every day now.


Under my feeder.



Look closely for the flying turkey in the photo below.
I went around the front walk and the Turkey was a bit cornered so instead of walking out when it saw me, it flew out. Quite a sight the turkey flying in front of me no more than 10 feet away. A very large bird. Photo below it landed down my yard.


Song Sparrow on my wire.


At the swan pond, definitely the same pair as last year and the year before. A new pair wouldn't be looking for a handout so soon.


Later in the day, building a nest in my car is a bad idea.

House Sparrow with building materials hanging from my car in back of the back tire.


Trying to get it up there.


I had yanked it down but a minute later he was back to get the materials.


Will not get the idea out of his head.


He starts putting the material back on my car again.
 
Lots of birds doing their springtime thing.

Common Grackle in the trees


Song Sparrow singing on the fence.


Red wing blackbirds were out nicely






A Mallard riding the ice breakup
 
Really dark today but three photos that interest me including one lifer.

First, I think that this is a nuthatch but it's all twisted so I find it amusing.


Now, Dark Eyed Juncos usually go north for the summer. Usually they would be getting ready to leave and I never see them in the summer. Today I heard a bird song that I didn't recognize and when I finally found it, it was a junco and it makes me wonder if I'll have some sticking around this year. I have never seen them sing and it makes me wonder if it will nest here.



Finally, this is a really crappy photo but it's a liver for me. A Pine Warbler.
 
crazyfingers said

Now, Dark Eyed Juncos usually go north for the summer. Usually they would be getting ready to leave and I never see them in the summer. Today I heard a bird song that I didn't recognize and when I finally found it, it was a junco and it makes me wonder if I'll have some sticking around this year. I have never seen them sing and it makes me wonder if it will nest here.
Click to expand...

Maybe they came here, saw the foot-and-a-half of snow still on the ground and decided to go back to you agaion. :)
 
Today was much nicer than forecasted so I was able to get out.

At the pond at the old soccer field the tree swallows have returned. No insects on dry land I guess there are insects over the water though.



I have never seen common mergansers here at home. I see them in Maine though. I guess they are on their way north now. This is only the second time I have seen male common mergansers. There were two males and a female that I could see.



A chickadee actually sat still for several minutes and I took a lot of photos. This is one of my best.


At the Swan Pond, there were lots of new arrivals passing through.

Buffleheads were diving under the ice.


Hooded Mergansers were also going under the ice.


And ring neck ducks were here too.


An American Robin in my yard
 
The feathered crowd is still down at the swan pond today. Less ice so they were farther out.

All that was new and slightly surprising is that the turtles were actually out today basking with the pond still half frozen over. And it wasn't really all that warm today. Still in the 40's. Perhaps they are tired of this long winter.



Oh and a female red wing blackbird in my yard. That's slightly unusual also.
 
An Odd Duck

I think it's a Tufted Mallard. Might be a hybrid species. Either way, it was very friendly. If I'd had food, it probably would've sat in my lap :)

16422836143_72660f4001_b.jpg
 
The multitude of Mallards at what I call the Swan pond are very used to handout and come to follow people around. Of course Mallards are known for doing that.

The Swans are also used to being fed. But they are a lot more aggressive about it. This pair came out of the water and stood 3 feet from me and when I didn't produce a handout the closer of the two started to bite my feet and and would go for my hand if I took them out of my pockets. Nasty critters the way they growl when they don't get what they want.

 
Only two pictures today before the clouds came rain and sleet.

First white tail deer photo of the year.



Goldfinch way up high. It was hard because the wind was blowing and so the tree and the bird kept swaying around.

 
Nice sunny day today. It might have hit 60 degrees.

I went to the soccer field and the tree swallows have arrived at the bird houses.


At the swan pond this swan was picking reeds from the stocks and placing them on dry land at the spot where they had their nest last year. I was hoping that they would choose a different spot as the locals think that they lost a lot of small chicks to the snapper than hangs out there. They did lose all 6 chicks last year.



Back at the house a brown headed cowbird. I'm no fan of this bird. It drops it's eggs in the nests of other birds expecting other birds to tend and feed them. They often pick the nests of smaller birds so that the cowbird chick will get the most food.


Yummy worm!


Wild Turkey in the yard


From down my trail where I dump my stick and leaves, I can photograph the new home of a pair of red-bellied woodpeckers. There were two.
Here is a male.


The female was inside and was tossing wood material out. It appears to still be under construction inside. It's located so that I can easily check on it like the nest last year.


Northern Cardinal


Common Grackle
 
One I forgot from yesterday.

First Phoebe of the year.


Today, nothing actually special but fun.


Song Sparrow on a stump


Hairy Woodpecker


Red-bellied woodpecker


Spring peeper


Tree Swallow


Painted Turtles


Most of the juncos have left but a few are still around


Wild Turkey strutting his stuff


First time to photograph a chickadee actually doing his song.
 
A pair of mourning doves on a wire.


Hairy woodpecker on the suet


Cowbird


The star of the day. I was driving down to the grocery and saw this in the yard of a house on the way.

Groundhog/Woodchuck/whistle Pig




 
Today I saw the female red-bellied woodpecker at the new hole.



And the male was inside


Down at the swan pond the snapping turtle is around


And the swans are nesting where they were last spring


It's behind the reeds.


Down at the "frog pond" that dried up last summer, the pond is full and there are some pollywogs. No sign of any turtles. I expect they left or were eaten. There are some turtles in the little pond close by. I don't recall seeing turtles in that pond, it's very small. I wonder if some of the ones from the one that dried up had moved.

Anyway, the pollywog.


Walking home the chickadee was nice enough to sit still for a few moments


I'm going to have to quit the suet now. The grackles are just eating them up in a day.
 
A landmark day today in my yard.

All this....


Had become THIS and in 10 minutes it was all finally GONE


Cardinals are happy


House sparrows are happy


And despite his expression, the red wing blackbird is happy
 
It was an interesting day and I got one lifer.

I don't usually crop photos but this one I cropped to show that he has a mouthful of of wood chips from the construction project.



Down at the old soccer field the tree swallows are becoming more numerous. Sun was wrong direction unfortunately.


This is the lifer. Savannah Sparrow.


My daughter caught a painted turtle. After taking the photo we let it go.


At the swan pond this snapping turtle was crossing the road. It is relatively small but looks bigger in the photo. The shell was about 8-9 inches long.


Back home a goldfinch singing.


This is a pile of thousands of those tiny ants.


Last, I ran into a pair of Northern Flickers doing a courtship dance in a tree.
Here is one swaying back and forth.




Here is the other one.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Back
Top Bottom