DAILY PICS - Vol. 315

Hi Hugger, That is all very exciting! I hope you get to see more of the Pileated and Baltimore Oriole and have an chance to get some pics. Sweet one of your Bluebird!

gg, Congrats on your Rose Breasted Grosbeak. It's sad, very sad on the oil disaster for our wildlife. Missy-- nice pix of the Tricolor Heron, and Painted Bunting seen at Texas Coast. GG. I'm still looking for Catbird, I have set my suet feeder away, these past months but decided to put it back on for some of the birds that prefer them over the grains feeder. On the pretty Daisy duck, ha! I was going to open a business where I'd send my Redheaded Woodpecker around the States to visit everyone for Grackles-deterrent projects. Now Lord Byron (the Redheaded Woodpecker) has competition. lol.

Red, love those ducks in the pix, I've not seen them in person. The ladybug pic. is colorful. Should they make babies,the larvas are fun to watch. I call them tiny aligators, for they look somewhat like -- tiny aligators. lol

h.g. cute red barn style birdhouse. Love those BB.

Here is Brown Headed Nuthatch this am.

They are so cute Lily! I love Nuthatch!

Home sweet home Alabama so said the couple Redheaded Woodpeckers. These are Lord Byron and the Misus. lol.

editted to add: This is the couple's home. Redheaded Woodpeckers are often found nesting on dead trees. This is the 2nd year I am so lucky to have them called this their home.

This message was edited May 3, 2010 1:19 PM

Thanks for the new start Patti! That first grackel shot is beautiful!

The last thread went by so fast and I was out of twon a couple days, I didn't get to comment on any! I do however, want to comment on Nanny's Pileated close-up! EXCELLENT! Well done!

Gardenpom... is a woodpecker on a stick anything like a popsicle on a stick??? Cute!

Duc... I watched the grebes do their mating dance on that new documentary "Life" and it was wonderful! I wish you had been able to get shots! At least you saw it in person! What a treat!

Lily... I saw my first red-heads on my trip, which I will post shortly! I have read that their nesting areas are very threatened by the oil spill though! Very sad!

Nanny... great R, W, and B photo! You'll have to save that one for July 4th!

Burn... beautiful little goldfinch!

Reddirtretiree... great shot of all the different birds together! That's fantastic! Also a great one of the meadowlark!

Gawzergirl... beautiful rose-breasted grosbeak! We don't get those here I don't think.

Thebestmissy... I love the painted buntings... we don't have those either! :(

Granny... pretty catbird!

Huggergirl... great one of your BB!

Hubby and I drove down to Blackwater NWR last Thursday and Friday to do some birdwatching and photos. we had a good time, and saw alot! Took me a couple days to get some edits done!

I'll start off with our very own herons! We stopped by the river on our way out of town to get some great shots!

Shad for dinner... again! They don't seem to mind though!

In flight... (more than one!)

When posting on Flickr, people were commenting on one of my photos of GBHs "Wow... there are so many of them!" I thought to myself, "Wow! Their were only four in that photo!"

Our GBHs exhibit what seems to be unusual behavior to some... communal fishing! We can see as many as 12 at a time!

This photo is by my hubby... his P&S was able to offer a wider angle view. How many do you see in the photo?

Next... always some eagles to see, though I never got a super close shot of them.

This pair would sit in this tree most of the day...

A juvenile flying over on Friday morning.

Is this a Juvenile Brown Thrasher can someone help me out? There were 3 of them arriving here this morning. The other two were busy chasing one another, this one left standing observing the scuffle of the other two--seemingly bigger Brown Thrashers.

At the visitor's center, so many little birds were building nests on and around the center grounds. The barn swallows were busy building in the eaves. I love these birds! They remind me of my childhood and growing up with them in a big old barn!

A close-up of the BS...

A hummer in a cardinal flower...

Purple Martins, working on their nests. As many PM houses as I have seen, I had never seen the birds before!

Osprey... "What are YOU looking at???"

In flight...

The Least Terns were in residence in the refuge...

And a Lesser Yellowlegs I shot early Friday morning...
These little guys like to walk in the road in front of the vehicles travelling along Wildlife Drive!

I think I see 8 in that one shot....

I love the first one you posted! So pretty with the water drops.

And then there are the red-heads! They were just arriving... as one guy told me, they were not there two days ago! Well they not only arrived farther north than has previosly been reported, but they are nesting! Woo-hoo for Blackwater!!!

A close-up... working on the nest hole!

There are nine in that photo!

Please see it here on Flickr, with notes... http://www.flickr.com/photos/42275909@N07/4575881019/

Hah, like Nan I found only eight of the GBH. The setting is soooo beautiful there, Wild Rose. All fabulous pics. Thanks. Oh, the Redheads are just as pretty as 'mine'. lol.

It is beautiful there! Only place better (so far...) is Chincteague/Assateague.

Wonderful shots VA!!! I love the Great Blue Herons,Osprey and Barn Swallows! The Least Tern is a favorite tern of mine. the Red-headed Woodpecker's are so handsome.
Thanks so much for posting these, I've got to get down to Blackwater some day soon!

Lily, I can't help with that one but I'm sure Resin or one of the others will be able to help soon. :-)

Mockingbird with a tasty caterpillar for one of his young ones.

Woodpecker in b/w.

This message was edited May 4, 2010 8:45 AM

Nice ones GP!!

P_Edens - nice start. I fully understand the love / hate relationship with Grackles. When the light is just right, it's hard for me to see a prettier bird.

ducbucln - that Turkey Vulture is flight is really well done. I liked the detail.

Lily_love - nice capture of the Redheaded Woodpecker, but who is Mizzy? - I must have missed something.

burn_2007 - Good pic of the Robin in the birch tree.

reddirtretiree - I liked the pics of the meadowlark, esp. it singing.

gazergirl - Cpongrats on your first Breasted Grosbeak! I've never seen one.

thebestmissy - the Painted Bunting is great. Pretty bird

GrannyGrunt - my Catbirds have returned, too. Mine enjoy suet, too. You snapped a nice pic.

huggergirl - sweet looking pic of Mr Bluebird.

VA_Wild_Rose - so many great photos, but I think I liked the pic of the Least Tern the best.

gardenpom - great shot, but I think your Mockingbird in b/w, is really a Red-bellied Wp in b/w.

Hack

This message was edited May 3, 2010 10:21 PM

Hello Hack, Mizzy is the Redbellied Woodpecker, who/which came to the feeder all winter long. But since the Redheads return to nest. Poor Mizzy hardly gets enough to eat any more. For the Redheads are King of the hill--sorta.

Wonderful series of birds, looks like you had a great birding day with DH, VA. Like the others, I had counted 8 herons in that pic. GP is that Mocking bird a " want to be" Red-bellied WP in your b/w ? :))

The White-crowned Sparrow have arrived, Mrs-Ed.

Burn, that's one exotic looking Sparrow! Please send me one. lol

another one of the White-crowned Sparrow.

Ok Lily, one in the air mail tomorrow. ;) You can send me one of your handsome Red-headed or Red-bellied, I have neither of those here.

This is a lazy Song Sparrow, preening while laying down on the roof of the bird house.

White-throated Sparrow have been here for a while, but have been hanging in and around our hedge. This on came and pose for me, today.

A curious Robin at the pond.

Burn, I love that white-crowned Sparrow! Good ones of the Sparrows and Robin!

Aww Lily, I love the red-bellied!

Nice shots everyone!! Getting tougher to keep up with these..lol Thanks for the new thread P_Edens!
Just a couple shots from Sunday...Mr.Cooper has had an attitude lately...Ive been looking for a nest...he's been patrolling through the yard and even tried to take out (more like chase-out) the Sharp-shinned Hawk which got away just in time.

Been waiting for some good light for the Northern Flicker nest...maybe tomorrow? lol