Wordless Wednesday

Tags

butterfly magnolia, photography, postaday

Butterfly Magnolia.

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Eastern Bluebird, Finally

Tags

Eastern Bluebird, photography, postaday

The Eastern Bluebird is one of the prettiest birds with its vivid blue and rusty colors, at least for the males. As usual for birds, the females are gray and not as noticeable in the wild. It’s a bird I have not been able to photograph successfully until now, despite putting out four Bluebird houses around our backyard. House Wrens usually end up taking over those birdhouses and I have not yet found a way to discourage them from doing so.

Today, I was photographing some yellow Magnolia flowers when a male Eastern Bluebird flew by and perched not more than 10 feet (3 m) from me. It stayed there for a while, perhaps checking out a nearby birdhouse, and allowed me to take the following photos.

Male Eastern Bluebird.

Male Eastern Bluebird.

Male Eastern Bluebird.

Male Eastern Bluebird.

Frisbee

Tags

frisbee, golden retriever, jackie, photography, postaday

I haven’t taught my Golden Retriever, Jackie, too many tricks, but one game she loves to play is frisbee. Neither she or I are very good at it. However, over the past few days warm and sunny weather has allowed us to play a few games of frisbee as you can see below.

Jackie missing the frisbee.

Jackie bringing the frisbee back.

Jackie accelerating with frisbee in her mouth.

Weekly Photo Challenge: Prolific

Tags

clivia miniata, natal lily, photography, postaday, prolific, weekly photo challenge

The URL for this challenge is: https://dailypost.wordpress.com/photo-challenges/prolific/

This week we were gifted a Natal Lily (Clivia Miniata) with bright orange blooms which immediately brightened our living room. The plant originates from South Africa and is reputed to be a prolific bloomer as well as a nearly indestructible house plant in our temperate climate. It belongs to the Amaryllidaceae family, so it is related to the better known Amaryllis flowers. However, it is much sturdier and requires less care. Even benign neglect, especially as far as watering, would do.

Here are some photos I took of this new plant as soon as the sun made its appearance inside our house.

Clivia Miniata (Natal Lily).

Clivia Miniata (Natal Lily).

Clivia Miniata (Natal Lily).

Clivia Miniata (Natal Lily).

Clivia Miniata (Natal Lily).

Clivia Miniata (Natal Lily).

Rose-breasted Grosbeak and Others

Tags

american goldfinch, norther cardinal, photography, postaday, rose-breasted grosbeak

The Rose-breasted Grosbeak is now a regular at our bird feeder where he takes his time munching on sunflower seeds until he has his fill, or until Blue Jays come and chase him away. Today I used my camera with a tripod to get some better photos of him.

Rose-breasted Grosbeak.

Rose-breasted Grosbeak.

Rose-breasted Grosbeak.

Rose-breasted Grosbeak:”So you really wanted to take my picture, huh?”

What about the American Goldfinch who started all these photo shoots? Here he is.

American Goldfinch.

He was joined today by a pair of Cardinals who waited patiently for the Blue Jays to finish their meals.

Male Northern Cardinal.

Female Northern Cardinal.

Rose-breasted Grosbeak

Tags

photography, postaday, rose-breasted grosbeak

The Rose-breasted Grosbeak is definitely one of the most colorful and handsome birds of North America. A male landed near our bird feeder two years ago, and I took a couple of photos which turned out amazingly good, probably due to a happy confluence of lighting and luck (see https://neihtn.wordpress.com/2016/06/18/rose-breasted-grosbeak-and-hummingbird/). However, since then it has not come back, even though I have been looking out for it in our backyard every now and then.

Early yesterday I saw some Goldfinch in their best breeding yellow color. As I set up the camera to take their pictures, I saw a Rose-breasted Grosbeak by the bird feeder. It waited for a Blue Jay to leave the scene, then spent a leisurely 15 minutes eating the sunflower seeds and did not flee when I opened the patio door for a better look.

Rose-breasted Grosbeak arriving at feeder.

Rose-breasted Grosbeak.

Rose-breasted Grosbeak.

Rose-breasted Grosbeak.

Rose-breasted Grosbeak.

Wordless Wednesday: Cormorants

Tags

cormorants, photography, postaday

Cormorants.

Cormorants.

Cormorants.

Cormorants.

Cormorants.

Windy and Cold

Tags

Edwin B Forsythe National Wildlife Refuge, great egret, hooded merganser, mute swan, photography, postaday, snowy egret

Temperatures went as high as 84°F (29°C) yesterday, but today they are back down to 40°F (4°C), and it is very windy and cold. Even though I took the following photos last month and last week, they illustrate well this challenging weather we are having.

Mute Swan.

Great Egret and Snowy Egret.

Great Egret looking for fish.

Great Egret catching fish.

Great Egret and fish.

Hooded Merganser windblown.

Spring Flowers 2018

Tags

daffodil, marsh marigold, photography, postaday, sayen Gardens, star magnolia

Here are some shots of the flowers blooming today at Sayen Gardens.

Daffodil.

Daffodil.

Inside a white Daffodil.

Inside a yellow Daffodil.

Marsh Marigold.

Star Magnolia.

Star Magnolia.

Star Magnolia closeup.

Turtle and Snake

Tags

garter snake, photography, postaday, red-eared slider, sayen Gardens, turtle

It was very warm today with temperatures above 80 °F (27 °C), as if we went from winter to summer, bypassing a fabled spring. I went out to Sayen Gardens for pictures of flowers and found a snake and a turtle.

Garter Snake being handled by a man.

The snake was caught near a pond by a man. He showed it to his son, explained that it was not venomous, then released it right after I took the above shot.

On a small island in the middle of the pond, a turtle was sunning itself. I am no expert, but I think it was a Diamondback Terrapin Turtle. If you can identify it, please let me know its correct name. Update: Eliza identified it as a Red-eared Slider, another kind of terrapin.

Red-eared Slider turtle.

Flock of Egrets

Tags

aigrette, Edwin B Forsythe National Wildlife Refuge, great egret, photography, postaday

Hundreds of Great Egrets were still sleeping or waking up and preening at a pond at the refuge. It was a bit nippy and there was some fog and frost on the brown reeds. I had never seen that many Great Egrets in one place, but could not capture the entire flock in one photo.

Great Egrets waking up. Note the Great Blue Heron on the left with eyes still closed.

All the birds were in their best breeding plumage and colors, with long white aigrettes that ladies at the beginning of the last century would have paid dearly to adorn their headdresses with.

Closer look at Great Egrets.

Great Egret.

Osprey Feeding

Tags

Edwin B Forsythe National Wildlife Refuge, osprey, photography, postaday

She was incubating and clamoring for breakfast.

Female Osprey incubating, calling out for her mate.

Male Osprey flying nearby.

Male Osprey bringing part of fish. He had already eaten the fish head.

Male Osprey and part of fish. He flapped his wings and stayed up in the air.

Male Osprey descending:”Here’s your breakfast, dear!”

Male Osprey landing on nest.

As she ate, he pushed her aside to get an older piece of fish.

He took the older piece away to where he was eating before.

She went on eating her breakfast.

Red-winged Blackbird

Tags

Edwin B Forsythe National Wildlife Refuge, photography, postaday, red-winged blackbird

Red-winged Blackbirds are everywhere at the refuge, with the male birds sporting red and yellow shoulder badges. This time of the year the males fly to find high perches from which they belt out their incessant songs. They show no fear of cars and humans, and are easy to photograh.

Red-winged Blackbird.

Red-winged Blackbird singing.

Young Red-winged Blackbird.

Red-winged Blackbird.

Where is Spring?

Tags

cattail, Edwin B Forsythe National Wildlife Refuge, multiflora rose, photography, postaday, typha, typha latifolia

We are still having a little snow today and tomorrow. When I went around looking for flowering plants at the refuge, there were none. The following couple of shots are perhaps interesting, but Spring flowers they are not, yet.

Dried Cattail (Typha latifolia).

Multiflora rose.

Ospreys vs Crows

Tags

crow, Edwin B Forsythe National Wildlife Refuge, osprey, photography, postaday

I saw the first Ospreys for this year at the refuge less than a week ago. One of them was very busy building her nest on a platform.

Osprey building nest. Atlantic City in background.

At another part of the refuge, a pair of Ospreys was making distinct noises. Was the female telling her mate to go fishing?

Pair of Ospreys.

After several minutes, he had enough and flew away to land on half of a fish that he must have brought in earlier and left on the ground not far from their nest .

Male Osprey landing toward part of a fish.

Male Osprey landing on part of a fish.

He just stood on the fish for a long time as she kept calling out to him. Was she still hungry?

Female Osprey calling her mate.

He would not budge, and at times appeared to take a nap!

Male Osprey.

She flew up to a top pole of the nest platform, and kept calling for him.

Female Osprey flying up.

He did not move until a Crow flew in.

Crow landing near male Osprey.

Another Crow showed up.

Two Crows surrounding male Osprey.

The Crows definitely wanted the rest of the fish but the Osprey held on. The female Osprey kept calling out.

Female Osprey: “Dear, you better hang on to that fish!”

He held on firmly.

Male Osprey: “Don’t worry! I got the situation under control here.”

Crows and Osprey.

One of the Crows started cawing, perhaps calling for reinforcement. The standoff went on for much longer, but I had to leave. Crows are known to attack Ospreys at times, so I am not sure whether these two Ospreys were able to keep their fish or not.

Bald Eagle Near Home

Tags

bald eagle, colonial lake, photography, postaday

Early this morning I went to Colonial Lake, a small lake about 5 miles (8 km) from home where at least one Bald Eagle has been seen on a daily basis. Not more than 15 minutes after I arrived, an eagle swooped down and plucked a big fish out of the lake. I was not quite ready yet, so my first shot is not the best, but at least you do see the action.

Bald Eagle catching fish.

The eagle took the fish to a high branch on a tree and proceeded to eat it there.

Bald Eagle eating fish.

He ate the whole fish in less than 10 minutes, after which he took off right above me to go for a drink.

Bald Eagle flying toward water.

Bald Eagle drinking lake water.

He had several drinks, looking up each time to check his surroundings.

Balk Eagle looking up after one drink.

Then he shifted position.

Bald Eagle turning.

Bald Eagle after turn.

Then he flew up to a nearby tree, perched on a branch, and looked down on the lake and the other birds there, ignoring the few humans who wandered around along the lake shore.

Bald Eagle.

I think he eventually took a nap for I did not see it move from his perch for almost half an hour.

Weekly Photo Challenge: Rise/Set – 2

Tags

Edwin B Forsythe National Wildlife Refuge, photography, postaday, sunset, weekly photo challenge

This is the second part for this Weekly Photo Challenge at the following link: https://dailypost.wordpress.com/photo-challenges/rise-set/

The shot below is of the most colorful sunset I ever saw at the Edwin B Forsythe National Wildlife Refuge.

Sunset at EBF, January 2015.

Weekly Photo Challenge: Rise/Set

Tags

photography, postaday, sunrise, weekly photo challenge

This WPC is at the following link: https://dailypost.wordpress.com/photo-challenges/rise-set/

The following sunrise shot was taken one early morning in December 2017 at a farm about two miles from our home.

Sunrise at Cherry Orchard Farm.

Canada Geese Courtship

Tags

canada geese, Edwin B Forsythe National Wildlife Refuge, photography, postaday

Weatherwise, Spring is late this year with temperatures around the freezing mark, but otherwise it is already here for the birds, ducks, and geese. Spring is breeding season for them, and nature can’t wait. Today, I saw what is likely a courtship ritual between two Canada Geese at the refuge. It went on for about three minutes before the pair swam off together into the sunrise.

Male Canada Goose swimming toward the female, making lots of noise and waves.

Courtship between two Canada Geese.

Courtship between two Canada Geese.

Courtship between two Canada Geese.

Courtship between two Canada Geese. She finally said “Yes!”  

Great Egret

Tags

Edwin B Forsythe National Wildlife Refuge, great egret, photography, postaday

This was the first Great Egret I saw at the refuge this Spring. It was still cold and quite windy so it did not stay too long.

Great Egret.

Great Egret starting its flight.

Great Egret airborne.

Birds in Fourth Nor’Easter

Tags

dark-eyed junco, downy woodpecker, photography, postaday, tufted titmouse, white-throated sparrow

It’s been snowing since early this morning and will not stop until late tonight. So far, eight hours into our fourth Nor’Easter only about 5 inches of snow fell, but the forecast is calling for at least double that by the time the storm ends.

As usual, I cleaned and stocked the bird feeder with sunflower seeds and all the usual birds came, emptying half of the feeder by the end of the day. I did not miss the opportunity to take some photos as they posed among the magnolia branches.

Downy Woodpecker.

Downy Woodpecker.

Dark-eyed Junco.

White-throated Sparrow.

Tufted Titmouse.

Goldfinch in Snowstorm

Tags

american goldfinch, photography, postaday

Same storm, different bird. An American Goldfinch tried to get to the bird feeder, but since it was so windy and snowy, the bird eventually took refuge under the magnolia branches.

American Goldfinch, at lower left, flying toward feeder as a Dark-eyed Junco watched.

American Goldfinch on magnolia branch.

American Goldfinch in a pensive mood.

Chickadee in Snowstorm

Tags

carolina chickadee, photography, postaday

Last week, heavy and wet snow fell, blanketing everything with a thick white coat while reducing light and visibility. Many birds still came to the feeder in our backyard, especially Dark-eyed Juncos which seemed impervious to the elements. There was one Carolina Chickadee that took a brief time-out under the magnolia branches heavily laden with snow. Here are two versions of the same photo, one in color and the other in black and white.

Carolina Chickadee.

Carolina Chickadee, monochrome version.

Birds in Snowstorm

Tags

dark-eyed junco, european starling, nor'easter, photography, postaday

This week a second Nor’Easter dumped heavy snow in our region, with as much as 2 ft (60 cm) in some areas, but much less in coastal areas. I stocked up the bird feeder and many birds braved snow and wind to come during the storm.

Here are some shots of the birds. It was so dark I had to use the flash.

European Starling.

European Starling.

Dark-eyed Junco.

Signs of Spring

Tags

amaryllis, crocus, orchid, Phalaenopsis, photography, postaday

I am writing this as a Nor’easter is raging outside, dumping rain and snow, with strong winds added to the misery. Keep safe, all of you who are affected by it!

A few days ago, some brave Crocuses were starting to bloom in the mild weather we experienced for a few days.

White Crocus.

Yellow Crocus.

Inside, the Orchid and Amaryllis are in full bloom, with no bud left that has not opened up yet.

Phalaenopsis Orchid.

Amaryllis Apple Blossom.

Great Blue Heron Fishing

Tags

Edwin B Forsythe National Wildlife Refuge, great blue heron, photography, postaday

Not too far from the Snow Geese, a lone Great Blue Heron was fishing for breakfast, with excellent results.

Great Blue Heron fishing.

Caught one. Small but good to eat.

Looking for another fish.

Quick!

More good eating.

Amaryllis

Tags

amaryllis, photography, postaday

Outside is a dismal rainy day, but inside an Amaryllis brightens up a room.

Amaryllis, not yet fully opened.

Snow Geese Migration – Part 2

Tags

merrill creek reservoir, photography, postaday, snow geese

Today was the warmest February day for this area, and it felt like summer as I stood at the observation area near the Inlet/Outlet Tower of Merrill Creek Reservoir in Harmony Township, NJ, and watched tens of thousands of Snow Geese resting on the water during their migration back to their tundra breeding grounds. In the photo below, the geese form that white band in the middle. A birder next to me estimated there was probably 50,000 Snow Geese in that long band.

Snow Geese at Merrill Creek Reservoir in New Jersey.

Suddenly, something disturbed the geese and they flew up in the air.

Snow Geese flying up.

The sound was extraordinary, like the noise a million bees would make when they swarm. The undulating cloud of thousands and thousands of Snow Geese was a sight not to be missed, with shapes and colors changing as the geese turned in synchronized motion according to signals that only they could understand.

Snow Geese flying up.

Snow Geese flying up.

Once again, there was no easy way to get closer to the geese, so these photos taken from at least half a mile away will have to do. However, I may try again another day.

Snow Geese Migration – Part 1

Tags

Edwin B Forsythe National Wildlife Refuge, photography, postaday, snow goose

Shortly after the Snowy Owls, thousands of Snow Geese appeared at Edwin B Forsythe National Wildlife Refuge. New Jersey is on their migration path, and the refuge is a rest stop for them as they fly back to breeding grounds in the Canadian and Alaskan tundras.

The sky was a painterly mix of blue with gray and white clouds, and it was good to be clicking away knowing that one can get good shots no matter what. If you miss one there were always more geese to oblige you.

Snow Geese migrating North.

Snow Geese.

Snow Goose.

Snow Goose.

Snow Geese.

Snow Geese.

Snowy Owls 2018

Tags

Edwin B Forsythe National Wildlife Refuge, photography, postaday, snowy owl

I photographed my first Snowy Owl in December 2013, and again in January 2014 and 2015. Then for two years in a row, it made itself scarce. There were reported sightings in New Jersey, but every time I went to those places it was nowhere to be seen.

This past Sunday, there were two Snowy Owls at the Edwin B Forsythe National Wildlife Refuge. However, they were quite far, and there was no way to come nearer to them. I had to crop as much as 90% of the images, and the final results are disappointing.

Snowy Owl 2018.

Snowy Owl 2018.

Update: the banner image is from a photo taken in 2015.

Year of the Dog

Tags

lunar new year, photography, postaday, year of the dog

Today is the first day of the Lunar New Year, and according to the Chinese zodiac, it is the Year of the Dog. I thought it would be appropriate to post a photo taken of a man and his dog in October of 2015 at Great Sand Dunes National Park in Colorado.

Happy New Year of the Dog!

Dark-eyed Juncos on Snowy Day

Tags

dark-eyed junco, photography, postaday

On a snowy day three years ago, I watched the birds flock to our feeder. Traffic was heavy, with the Dark-eyed Juncos being the most assiduous and energetic. With my camera on a tripod from inside the house I tried to get shots of them flying and competing for seeds.

Dark-eyed Junco preparing to land.

Food fight?

Four Birds from Three Years Ago

Tags

dark-eyed junco, northern cardinal, nuthatch, photography, postaday, white-throated sparrow

I took the following photos in 2015 on the 11th of February. Today, going through my archives and seeing them, I am surprised I had not posted them at that time.

Female Northern Cardinal. In other shots, it was obvious that she was blind in her left eye.

Nuthatch.

White-throated Sparrow.

Dark-eyed Junco.

The Red and the Black

Tags

dark-eyed junco, northern cardinal, photography, postaday

Le Rouge et le Noir (The Red and the Black) is the title of a novel published in 1830 by the French writer Stendhal. That said, the following two images have nothing to do with the book.

The Red, a Northern Cardinal.

The Black, a Dark-eyed Junco.

Two Woodpeckers

Tags

downy woodpecker, photography, postaday, red-bellied woodpecker

Two kinds of Woodpeckers are regular visitors to our backyard feeder: the smaller bird is the Downy Woodpecker, and the much larger one is the Red-bellied Woodpecker. Here are two shots of them as they perched on nearby trees.

Male Downy Woodpecker.

Red-bellied Woodpecker.

Blue Jays and Others

Tags

blue jay, house sparrow, northern cardinal, photography, postaday

I still have not ventured out since coming down with the flu. There may also be quite a few people similarly afflicted for the local pharmacy shelves have been laid bare of the more popular flu and cold medicines. The weather has not been cooperating either, being mostly cold, snowy at times, and windy almost always. This has given me time to cull through some recent shots of Blue Jays and other birds in our backyard.

Blue Jay.

Blue Jay.

Blue Jay.

Young House Sparrow.

Female Northern Cardinal.

Male Northern Cardinal.

Mourning Doves

Tags

mourning dove, photography, postaday

On a short trip to California, I came down with the flu last week and have not gone out to take any picture after coming home. Hopefully soon, as I am feeling better today. In the meantime, here are some pictures of Mourning Doves taken since 2017, including one taken at the beginning of this year.

Mourning Dove, 2018.

Mourning Doves, 2017.

Mourning Dove, 2017.

Red-breasted Merganser

Tags

barnegat inlet, photography, postaday, red-breasted merganser

Red-breasted Merganser spend their winter on both coasts of North America. There were quite a few of them a week ago swimming and diving in the Barnegat inlet. The male duck can be very striking, and even funny looking with its Mohawk head feathers.

Male Red-breasted Merganser.

Male Red-breasted Merganser.

However, the female ducks are very pretty, with their super model looks and colors.

Female Red-breasted Merganser.

Female Red-breasted Merganser.

Female Red-breasted Merganser.

While they are considered large ducks, they look small when swimming by a seagull.

Female Red-breasted Mergansers and Herring Gull.

Orchid and Crape Myrtle in Winter

Tags

crape myrtle, orchid, photography, postaday

Our orchids usually don’t bloom until March, but this year a new white orchid has been doing that since early January. No complaints from me, as we have no other plants with flowers at this time of the year.

January orchid.

Meanwhile, some more snow fell and provided interesting photos of the Crape Myrtle tree covered with it.

Crape Myrtle branches covered with snow.

A closer look at Crape Myrtle branch.

Sleeping on Ice

Tags

canada goose, photography, postaday

Canada Geese are always present in our area, even in the deep of winter. I found a group of them sleeping on ice at the EBF refuge, with temperatures in the teens (-10°C)  during the day and even colder at night.

Canada Geese sleeping.

Some, however, were not sleeping and were already dabbling for food in a patch of water.

Canada Goose dabbling. Note the open eyes of the two other geese next to it.

Canada Goose dabbling.