I had bought four spicy (with added cayenne pepper) suet cakes for the birds and, as of today, the last of the four is on its way to being consumed by tomorrow. The birds did not come out much in our current 2022 big freeze with temperatures hovering around 8 °F (-13 °C). Here are some shots of birds enjoying (loving) the spicy suet.
Female Downy Woodpecker.Female Downy Woodpecker and Carolina Chickadee.Northern Cardinal and Red-bellied Woodpecker, both female. Male Red-bellied Woodpecker and European Starling.
Three European Starlings came at one time and chased away the Red-bellied Woodpecker.
European Starling after monopolizing the suet feeder.Female Downy Woodpecker under the rain, before colder temperatures prevailed.
Lately I have been hanging suet cakes for our backyard birds which seem to like them very much, especially those labelled as “hot” by the manufacturer. For Red-bellied Woodpeckers in particular, the hot suet cakes are their favorite. One of them, a male, only spent five seconds at the suet holder but really enjoyed the suet.
I took photos of a female Northern Harrier a year ago, and posted some of them last January. Today, while looking through the archive, I found another photo that outshines those. As you can see below, an eye of this raptor is clearly visible on its owlish face.
Yesterday at the refuge several Buffleheads were diving for food. If they catch anything, they eat that while still underwater, so I won’t be bragging about any photo of a Bufflehead with food in its bill. However, their dive can be quite dramatic.
The weather has been too cold and stormy to go out and take pictures. We escaped the snow, but yesterday temperatures went from 50°F (10°C) in the morning to 6°F (-14°C) in the evening, and the winds are still howling outside today, although with less urgency.
So I went through my archives and reprocessed some of my favorite photos from 2012 to display here. They are various views of McWay Falls in Big Sur, CA. It is one of seven places in the United States where a waterfall falls on a beach. Of the seven places, McWay Falls is probably the most famous and most photogenic. Enjoy, and keep warm!
The weather has not been too nice lately. I went out to Barnegat Lighthouse, but it was very windy and cold, and there were no birds other than seagulls flying around. So I dug into my archives and came up with the following shots taken at the beginning of 2022.
Canada Geese.Snow Geese.Snow Geese.
I took these last two photos from our deck during and after a snowstorm.
Buffleheads are the smallest ducks in North America. They have more often than not proved to be difficult for me to photograph. When they are close enough, lighting would not be coming from the right direction for a photo to show their eyes and faces. Buffleheads are also very shy and will fly away if one comes too close or makes any kind of noise.
A few weeks ago, I was lucky to see a group of Buffleheads at the refuge busy swimming around and diving for food. Somehow, they paid scant attention to me! So here are a few shots of them that day, taken from a good distance away.
Male Bufflehead.Male Bufflehead chasing female Bufflehead.Male and female Buffleheads.Male Bufflehead.Female Bufflehead.Male Bufflehead.
Our Christmas Cactuses began opening their flowers the day before Thanksgiving and have not stopped since. Here are a few closeups of some of the flowers in both red and white.
Yesterday I went to the refuge to photograph some of the last birds that are still there before the onset of winter. I spotted a Great Egret that was looking for fish by a stream next to Wildlife Drive.
Great Egret fishing.
Suddenly I saw a Cormorant (I previously misidentified it as a Common Loon) emerge from the water with a fish in its bill.
Cormorant with fish.Cormorant with struggling fish.Cormorant with fish.Cormorant with fish.
The Cormorant dove into the water with the fish. A couple of minutes later, it reemerged at another part of the stream, looking happy after having ingested its meal.
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There was a Blood Moon on November 8, 2022. A blood moon is when the moon falls completely within the earth shadow. It occurred around 4 AM, but I was sound asleep then and could only take the following photo at 8 PM.
Full moon November 8, 2022.
This spring I planted two new azaleas. They are named Perfecto Mundo and are said to be able to rebloom in the fall after the usual spring bloom. I put the two plants in the ground and did not pay much attention, other than regular watering during this summer’s drought. The plants were small, no more 5 or 6 inches high. A few days ago, I was totally surprised when I saw vibrant pink colors in the area where they were planted, and discovered that both had sprouted some amazing flowers.
Yesterday I went to one of the cranberry fields in Southern New Jersey to see how the harvest was going this year. However, it was late in the season and most of the cranberries had already been harvested. By the side of the road, here’s how the remaining cranberries looked in a field flooded with water.
View of cranberry field and harvesting equipment.Cranberries near sluice gate.Closeup of floating cranberries.Sluice gate disgorging water into cranberry field.Cranberries floating in water ready for harvest.
There were some yellow wildflowers growing on the periphery of the cranberry fields.
Wildflower on a cranberry background.
After cranberries are harvested, water is pumped out and the fields will remain dry to wait for the planting of next year’s crop in early spring. They look purplish in color as of yesterday.
Yesterday, I drove around our area to look for beautiful autumn leaves and colors. However, before leaving our street, I saw the following scene and took my first shot of the day.
Autumn street scene.
In another town about 10 miles (17 km) away, there was a bright display of yellow leaves.
Yellow leaves.
At a park 7 miles (11 km) from home, leaf colors were more muted. A fern on the ground was a better subject.
Ferns.
Back home, I tried to take a picture of a Sugar Maple tree we have in our backyard. Planted 30 years ago, it turned out to be too big to fit in one shot. It may be as tall as 70-80 ft (25 m).
Sugar Maple.
I switched to a wide-angle lens and was finally able to show all of it.
Sugar Maple.
There was at least one tree that still has green leaves. It is a Fuyu Persimmon tree which is now bearing fruit. I tasted one fruit yesterday and it was sweet!
Sayen Gardens does not have many flowers in the fall, but what it has is often very colorful and showy. Sweet William (Dianthus Barbatus) almost completely surrounds the main building where wedding receptions are usually held.
Sweet William in red and white.Sweet William in red and white.Sweet William in red.
Another vividly red flower is the Giant Redhead Cockscomb (Celosia Cristata) along one side of the stairs leading to the banquet room.
I am tentatively identifying the above berries as Winterberries (Ilex verticillata), with one plant showing red berries, and the other orange ones. These photos were taken at Sayen Gardens in Hamilton, NJ.
The main purpose of my visit was to observe and photograph Monarch butterflies at the waystation near Barnegat Lighthouse, but I could not help noticing other subjects also.
Airplane flying over beach, the Red Baron perhaps?A sculpture reading a book right next to bushes beloved by Monarch butterflies.
There were many people fishing at the lighthouse jetty, but two of them were turning up some rocks.
Woman lifting rocks. When I asked, she said she was looking for small crabs to use as fishing bait.Goldenrod blooming on the sand dunes.
Last but not least, many Monarchs were feeding on flower nectar for their trip to Mexico.
Male Monarch identifiable by the two dots on its wings.Male Monarch.Monarch on dried (milkweed?) flowers.Monarch on Verbena flowers.
As I strolled along the beach at Barnegat Lighthouse, Monarch butterflies flew in from the ocean constantly, usually in pairs but sometimes in groups of four or five. They flew too fast for me to get any picture. They landed here and there among the vegetation for a few seconds before flying again toward the waystation where butterfly bushes with their pink and purple flowers and berries provide needed nourishment for the rest of their journey.
Every fall, Eastern Monarch butterflies migrate down the Eastern seaboard before veering toward Texas and eventually settling in the Oyamel fir tree forests west of Mexico City in the states of Michoacán and Mexico. They will spend the winter there before flying North again in the spring. On the West Coast, Monarchs only spend the winter along the California coast and do not fly to Mexico. Monarchs in southern Florida do not migrate at all.
Monarchs have done this annual migration for millions of years, and hopefully will continue to do so for millions more.
I took the photos below after a first batch more than a week ago. These Monarchs seem to be younger, more energetic, and I only saw one with a slightly damaged wing.
Monarch at waystation.Monarch at waystation.Monarch at waystation.Monarch at waystation.Monarch at waystation.Monarch at waystation.
A Northern Mockingbird followed me around the waystation, maybe because it wanted to protect its nest somewhere in the bushes.
Northern Mockingbird at waystation.Northern Mockingbird on a fence.
Yesterday, Barnegat Lighthouse looked more renovated than nine days earlier. More of the scaffolding had been removed. However, there were no workers since it was a Saturday.
Barnegat Lighthouse. Beachgoers had to walk along a new path skirting the lighthouse.
I went strolling in the dunes toward the ocean and captured the following sights.
Beach house at Barnegat.Trail to the Atlantic ocean.Brown Pelicans landing.Fishing from a boat and from the jetty. The sea looked rough.Someone caught a nice dinner.Canada Geese landing.
More eye candies of Monarch photos taken two days ago at the Long Beach Island Foundation (LBIF) waystation in Loveladies, NJ.
Monarch feeding from the aptly named Butterfly Bush flowers.Monarch on Butterfly Bush.Monarch on Butterfly Bush.Monarch bliss?Monarch on Butterfly Bush.Monarch on Butterfly Bush.Monarch favoring purple flower from Butterfly Bush.This Monarch prefers yellow flowers.This Monarch likes a riot of colors.
About one mile from Barnegat Lighthouse is a waystation for Monarch butterflies. It is located on the grounds of the Long Beach Island Foundation (LBIF) in the community of Loveladies, NJ.
Yesterday, after a two-hour drive, I arrived there at 9 AM with temperatures still in the low sixties (around 15°C) and no Monarch or any other butterfly in sight. I went to the lighthouse and walked for almost two hours before driving back to LBIF. It had warmed up by then and there were Monarchs fluttering around from flower to flower. Monarch migration has begun and will last until October.
Monarch with damaged wing.Monarch on buddleia (Butterfly Bush) flowers.Monarch on buddleia (Butterfly Bush) flowers.
As temperatures rose into the eighties, other Monarchs came to the waystation.
Another Monarch with its wings intact.Monarch butterfly feeding as sunlight shone through it.Male Monarch with two black dots on its hindwings.Monarch butterfly, probably a female.
I have not been to Barnegat Lighthouse since March of this year. Yesterday, I went there and was surprised by what I saw.
Barnegat Lighthouse being renovated.
The lighthouse is undergoing renovation including recoating the outside, minor repairs to its brick structure, a new inside steel platform, new light, new roof and new windows. The $1.3 million work is supposed to be completed in October of this year. Of course, no one except workers can go inside, and a special walkway to the lighthouse jetty was put in place for visitors to walk a safe distance from the construction activities before reaching the jetty.
As I walked toward the beach, a wild rabbit crossed my path and scurried into the grass. It remained absolutely still as it observed me.
Wild rabbit.Barnegat Lighthouse as seen from the beach.
Sayen Gardens in Hamilton, NJ is a favorite place for hosting weddings. In the Spring, almost every spot is filled with flowers of all colors and shapes. In the summer, especially during this year’s drought, you see more green than any other color, and there is no brown spot anywhere. However, as you walk Sayen’s grounds, your eyes will be drawn toward patches of flowers in the most vibrant, almost outrageous colors.
Salvias.Dianthus.
The above should make brides and grooms happy, but Sayen holds even more surprises.
Great Blue Lobelia.Hydrangea.Fern.
If they look closely, dragonflies and Koi fish are also near and in the water of the small pond where many newlyweds have had their photos taken.
Cleome Serrulata, commonly known as Spider Flower and other not so flattering names, has done very well this drought year. It came up naturally around our house and required no hand watering at all.
I looked up Cleome and discovered it has many uses as food for Native Americans, dye, medicine. It is also an excellent pollinator as it attracts bees. This morning, coming back from an early walk with my dog, Jackie, the early sun shone brightly on the Cleome flowers and I could not resist taking the following shots.
Cleome.Cleome.Bee visiting Cleome.Bee getting nectar from Cleome.Cleome, the lazy gardener flower.
Today I went to the rookery at Ocean City Welcome Center. Dispersed among the trees were hundreds of egrets, ibises, night herons, and other shore birds. It was a photographer’s paradise as one could look in almost any direction and click away.
An adult White Ibis landed on top of a tree.
A young ibis immediately jumped next to it.The young one begged for food.And it begged …The adult ibis allowed the juvenile to feed from its throat.In no time all the food was gone.“I am still starving!”The adult Ibis wanted to fly away.The juvenile tried to restrain it by draping a wing over the adult’s back.“If you want more food, you have to let me go!”
Finally, the parent was able to fly away to look for more food. White Ibises eat insects and crustaceans that they find in the mud.
Last night, loud thunder announced the arrival of rain which gave everything a good soaking and lowered temperatures a bit. The weatherman said we may get some more rain tonight and next week, so maybe this year’s drought is over.
This morning, I went around the yard taking pictures of the only flowers that survived and are thriving this summer: Cleome (spider plant), Crape Myrtle, and Hibiscus.
Cleome.Cleome.Cleome.
These Cleome plants require little care and have endured for several years despite my intentional neglect of them.
This morning a Sharp-shinned Hawk flew in to our backyard and perched on an oak branch to look at our empty bird feeder. I thought I would take its picture first before filling up the feeder.
Since 2014, I have been going to the Lotus Pond in Carnegie Center in Princeton, NJ every summer to photograph its beautiful Lotus flowers and the bees and dragonflies that flew over the pond. Unfortunately, last year all the Lotus plants died or were killed for some unknown reason and the Lotus Pond is no more. It is just a small pond with water but no vegetation growing in or on it.
The photos below show the flowers at their best eight years ago in 2014. I have reprocessed some of them using newer software, while other photos have never been published before.
This is how the Lotus Pond looked at its prime.
Lotus Pond in 2014.White Lotus with a red one in the background.Pink Lotus flowers.Pink Lotus flower.Red Lotus flower.White Lotus flower.White Lotus flower.Pink Lotus flower.Bee hovering over white Lotus flower.
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