Birds and Snow
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I’ve put some previous photos in past weeks on hold, so I could continue with the birds I’ve captured in my back yard the first days they were dealing with the heavy snow and wind that arrived Sunday.
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Northern Mockingbird
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Blue Jay
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Red-winged Blackbirds (females and immatures, at least two males)
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Red-winged Blackbird (male)
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House Finch (male)
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Dark-eyed Junco
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European Starling
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Northern Cardinal (male) and House Sparrow (female)
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White-throated Sparrow
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The snow has been melting quickly and making a mess everywhere. Tonight we are forecast for another 3-5 inches of snow. Yay!
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Cardinals in Snow
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We got caught in the surprise snowstorm that swept across the mid-Atlantic Sunday, dumping 9-10″ on us locally. The filled feeders kept my backyard birds fueled and energized, which kept me delightfully entertained for the last couple days shooting from my back door.
So bright and beautiful against snow is our Northern Cardinals. I probably spent more time running to try to photograph them more than any other bird. Here are some of my favorites from the last two days.
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Northern Cardinal (male)
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Northern Cardinal (male)
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Northern Cardinal (female)
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Eating snow gives you…..
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A milk mustache!
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Northern Cardinal (male)
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Northern Cardinal (male)
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Northern Cardinal (male)
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Northern Cardinal (female)
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More ‘snow’ birds next post!
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Bald Eagles at Eastern Neck NWR
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This is my third post sharing my visit December 26th to Eastern Neck NWR. As soon as I arrived, I saw two Bald Eagles flying together. No love taps or chasing, just a nice bonding cruise across the sky.
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Bald Eagles flying together
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This next Eagle proved to be difficult to photography with all those little branches, no matter where I stood.
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Bald Eagle 01
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This last Eagle gave me so many pretty shots that s/he’s the main event of this post.
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Bald Eagle 02
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It had such a beautiful, intense look as it constantly scoured all directions.
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Bald Eagle 03
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In the next photo, notice the Eagle’s head is rotated about 180 degrees to look behind it. Eagles have 14 cervical vertebrae allowing for the 180 degrees rotation.
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Bald Eagle 04 – rotating head 180 degrees
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Bald Eagle 05
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I slowly made my way closer to the Eagle, while my mind was in a repeating loop, “Please don’t fly….please don’t fly…..”
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Bald Eagle 06
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This Eagle was most definitely looking for someone. Those eyes!
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Bald Eagle 07
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The Eagle even gave a couple looks my way but didn’t seem to care about me.
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Bald Eagle 08
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At one point, the Eagle let out a call.
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Bald Eagle 09
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And then looked back at me so pretty!
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Bald Eagle 10
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I excitedly thought it’s mate was flying up behind me!
As I spun around, it was actually a car that had just pulled up, and a family was getting out. The Eagle was no doubt taking note of the humans now gathering. 🙂
The parents and their teenage son had driven two hours to visit the refuge for the first time, hoping to see an Eagle. It was a delight to see their excitement.
We marveled over the Eagle together and then left it to it’s viewing. It wasn’t going anywhere. At least, not yet.
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More Birds at Eastern Neck NWR
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Surrounded by the Chester River, Eastern Neck Island is 2,285 acres and hosts the Eastern Neck NWR. It is accessible by crossing the Eastern Neck bridge to the island. The refuge includes a ramp nearby for launching small boats and kayaks.
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Eastern Neck Island bridge and pedestrian walk (people fish from the bridge)
(photo taken from the island refuge side)
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Here are some of the other birds I captured during my visit December 26th at the refuge.
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Ring-billed Gulls
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American Wigeons
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American Robin
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Song Sparrow
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Swamp Sparrow
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Canada Geese
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Red-tailed Hawk
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Great Blue Heron
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Downy Woodpecker (male)
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This fella gets two photos posted, he is just too adorable and the holly berries in the background gave a nice bonus to the shots.
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Downy Woodpecker (male)
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I’ve planned one more post for this day’s visit to the refuge, sharing the Bald Eagles I encountered……forthcoming!
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Tundra Swans At Eastern Neck NWR
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I mentioned I was going to try to find some time to visit Eastern Neck NWR the week after Christmas. When I got up the day after Christmas and viewed the weather for the week, I realized my present morning was to be the best weather day for the whole week.
So I shifted gears and took off to the refuge roughly ten miles away for a couple hours to see what I could find. I was hoping to see Tundra Swans on the water.
They were there!
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Tundra Swans
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Tundra Swans
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Tundra Swans
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Tundra Swans
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I even witnessed another Tundra Swan squabble. This time I’ll share the action in a slideshow for a different viewing for you. 😁
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Tundra Swan squabble slide show
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The temperatures were in the high 40s-low 50s°F that morning at the refuge, it turned into a very enjoyable couple hours. Very few people were around, so it was awesome to come upon bird sightings just waiting to be seen by me. Some even allowed me some photo ops. 🤗 Those posts forthcoming!
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Five On The Wing – #22
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Another five bird species in flight, with these all also being raptors!
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Cooper’s Hawk
Wingspan 24.4-35.4 inches (62-90 cm)
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Bald Eagle
Wingspan 72-90 inches (182cm-229cm)
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Northern Harrier
Wingspan 40.2-46.5 inches (102-118 cm)
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Red-tailed Hawk
Wingspan 44.9-52.4 inches (114-133 cm)
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Red-shouldered Hawk
Wingspan 37.0-43.7 inches (94-111 cm)
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Christmas Day Sightings
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Enroute to our daughter’s home Christmas morning, there were two wonderful sightings we stopped for photos.
The first was this gorgeous rainbow!
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Christmas Day Rainbow
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A few minutes later, we could see ahead a beautiful sight of Snow Geese on my side right alongside the road. We were able to slow down quickly and pull over on the shoulder. It was perfect for me to shoot from my passenger window as my husband moved along slowly for different angles.
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Snow Geese 01
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Snow Geese are another excitedly anticipated migrant bird that winters over the mid-Atlantic region by the thousands. Delaware’s Bombay Hook NWR is seeing high numbers already.
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Snow Geese 02
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Snow Geese 03
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The cloudy skies, faint sun rays, and close-to-me landings provided great composition set-ups. I went crazy with clicking…..
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Snow Geese 04
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And crazy here with sharing too many. 🙂
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Snow Geese 05
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Snow Geese 06
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Snow Geese 07
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Snow Geese 08
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Snow Geese 09
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Snow Geese 10
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Snow Geese 11
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Both the rainbow and Snow Geese were for definitely right place right time moments, and surely a delight to see that morning!
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Merry Christmas
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Merry Christmas to you!
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Rock Hall, MD, Christmas Crab Basket Memorial Trees
Rock Hall Crab Basket Memorial Christmas Tree
My treasured ceramic Christmas tree that my grandmother made over 40 years ago.
My treasured hand-crafted carolers, a present from my grandparents 35+ years ago.
Our fireplace mantel
Our Christmas tree
My treasured Nativity scene, made by my Mom for me many Christmas’ ago. Dad made me the simple stable at the same time.
Our Christmas tree topper
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Our grandboys (10, 5, 4) are beyond excited for Santa, and it truly is a delight to see their eyes widen with the sights and sounds of the magic of Christmas. We are fortunate to be able to have two Christmas Days in a row, going to each home for their day of fun and joy; and honestly, I cannot wait! 😊
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Wishing you and yours a wonderful Christmas holiday season. May it be filled with the blessings of peace, love, good health, and many delights!
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Tundra Swan Squabble
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All was quiet with the few dozen Tundra Swans at the farm field when I pulled up to them one morning last week. They were stretched in a line, parallel with the road. I quickly saw an oddball in the mix and got my lens on a small Snow Goose.
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Tundra Swans and a lone Snow Goose (center)
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Just as quickly as I spotted the Snow Goose and got a couple shots, I lost track of it when I heard some action going on with the swans.
A pair of Tundra Swans to the far left of the line had started squawking and strutting down the line towards the center.
How another pair on the far right knew it was them being squawked at who knows, but that far right pair decided they had things to say as well and started their squawk strut to the center too.
And then the showdown began!
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Two pairs of Tundra Swans meeting in the middle, starting a ruckus
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Whether it was a verbal squabble or an excited greeting when they met in the middle, it was fun going through to pick a few photos to share the Tundra Swans’ communication expressions and body language.
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Tundra Swans #01
(a fifth one got caught standing behind them as the four went at it)
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Tundra Swans #02
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Tundra Swans #03
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Tundra Swans #04
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Tundra Swans #05
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It looked like the pair on the right were larger and had the upper-hand, causing the other pair to retreat back. I needed to get going myself, so I left and missed the final outcome.
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Tundra Swans
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“We’re here!” Yes, the Tundra Swans have arrived to the Chesapeake Bay region!
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Tundra Swans
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Typically, you would find them in the surrounding waterways and estuaries, but several weeks ago, I continued to find this small flock resting each day in a farm field for a few weeks before moving on.
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Tundra Swans
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Tundra Swans breed in the remote arctic tundra of North America and visit the U.S. during migration and winter. The majority of the Tundra Swan population that breeds in eastern Alaska (east of Point Hope) migrates 4,000 miles to winter here in the Chesapeake Bay and coastal mid-Atlantic region.
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Tundra Swans ‘on alert’ stance as a farm tractor begins to pass between them and me
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I captured these two pairs coming in for a landing one of my days’ stops alongside the road.
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Watch Out!
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Incoming!
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No one on the ground cares 😅
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Steady…..steady…..
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Landing gear down…..
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Bay Photos by Donna 