Birds of a Feather Flock Together

Birds of a Feather

I’m back! It’s been a while since I’ve posted here. I’m ready to return to the flock! I spent some time on twitter the other day and decided interacting there is really not for me. Now I understand why people make a comment but then never seem to reply to comments. It’s exhausting. And not really that much fun to battle opinions. It seems like there is more room for cheer and camaraderie on the blogs here. Now, if I can just figure out all the format changes.

Winter is in full effect. But, these little birdies help brighten the day! Maybe they will bring a smile to your face too!

Daylight Savings Time Bird

Lady Cardinal

I love daylight savings time! I didn’t miss the hour of sleep. I just got up later the next day. More time to sit on my back porch and watch backyard birds, like this pretty lady cardinal! Extra daylight in the evening makes me happy! I wish we stayed on DST all year round. What do you think?

Cedar Waxwing Wonder!

Cedar Waxwing 1

cedar Waxwing 2

Cedar Waxwing 3

birds and berries

I finally saw Cedar Waxwings last weekend during a walk in the park! I have been hoping to spot this kind of bird for a long time so the sighting was a celebration. Some passers by even stopped to see what I was so excited about. They congratulated me on my find as they went on their way! Another pretty bird to add to my list!

It’s been tough to devote time to my blog lately, but hopefully I can start to give it more attention. Hope you all are well!

Little Green Finally Seen

Little Green Heron

This is a photo of a Little Green Heron that I finally saw mid September. Years ago, I glimpsed this kind of bird at the park creek and have been looking to spot one there ever since! Finally, there it was! Very exciting! It was starting to rain (like nearly every day recently) so I was glad I got the chance to take the picture when I did. That’s one more bird for my list!

Ok, I must admit that I backdated this post to yesterday! I didn’t want to miss posting in September since I’ve been trying to post every month since I started four years ago. I got distracted and suddenly it’s October! I did take the picture in September, so that will have to do for now!

😊 happy fall, y’all!

Sweet Sugar Water

Sweet

This tiny Ruby Throated Hummingbird was a nectar seeking visitor this past summer. He, and these other hummingbirds who stopped by, sure loved the sweet sugar water! It must have compared to the the natural sweetness of honeysuckle growing on the nearby fence!

I love watching these sweet little birds every summer. This past summer, I spotted them from July 10th until September 16th. They come and go like clockwork! You can see more Hummingbird pictures by clicking on the Hummingbird header at the top of my page!

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Posted for the daily post weekly photo challenge: sweet
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Red Bellied Woodpecker-Three Views

Red Bellied Woodpecker-View One

I spotted this Red Bellied Woodpecker in my dogwood tree this morning.

Red Bellied Woodpecker-View Two

I was lucky to have my camera in hand when it landed!

Red Bellied Woodpecker-View Three

The bird stayed long enough for me to capture his beauty in three different poses as he looked around, gracing me with a brief, but amazing, morning sighting! It was a nice way to start my day!

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Posted for the WordPress weekly photo challenge: Variations on a Theme

In and Out of Focus

Standing Focus

Focusing on the vibrant colors of this Eastern Bluebird was easy while it stood among the leaves on the ground. Once it took flight, however, all focus was lost. Although it is lacking in clarity, I still like the way the essence of movement is captured in the next photo of this lovely little bird!

Flying Out of Focus

*posted for the daily post weekly photo challenge: focus

Scarlet Beauty (CYW-Scarlet)

Scarlet

This puffed-up, rain-soaked, male house finch shows off its scarlet coloring. Beautiful!

*posted for JNW’s Color Your World photo challenge: scarlet
*to see more of my bird photos, click on the birds header at the top of the page

Cardinal Red (CYW-Red)

Cardinal Red

Red feathering immediately draws our attention to the cardinal. We can’t miss it. It is a stand-out bird. I have been wanting to capture a picture of a cardinal in my flowering dogwood tree. The Cardinal is the Virginia state bird and the dogwood is the state tree. Finally, I got my chance! Here is the photo, recently posted on my Instagram.

Representing Virginia

Here is one more photo of a cardinal perched on a pole above the bird feeder in my yard. He’s a beauty!

Pole Position

*posted for JNW’s Color Your World challenge:red

Great Blue Surprise

Great Blue Heron Surprise

I had never walked this path before. I was almost back at the starting point when I unexpectedly spotted this magnificent bird wading in the water. I was shocked by its size since I had been watching for little songbirds. It was certainly a surprise to see this great blue heron take flight! It was also a surprise to realize I had actually managed to capture the moment!

Here it is standing tall, with its long neck extended, before it was surprised by me.

Standing Tall

These last two pictures were taken later at a different nearby location, but it could be the same bird! I have now seen a single great blue heron standing near water at four different spots in my town!

Coiled Neck

Here is a view of its face and beak.

Profile

Isn’t this a cool bird? To see more about birds, you can click on the bird header at the top of my page.

*posted for the daily post weekly photo challenge: surprise