A Dragonfly and Two Butterflies
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Not birds, but they still have wings! 😏 Here’s three photos for those of you who love dragonflies and butterflies.
Generally, you would find a Halloween Pennant in wet habitats such as ponds, marshes and lakes, perched on vegetation. Well, this is certainly a different take….
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Halloween Pennant
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Of these next two butterflies, the common Gulf Fritillary was a favorite to follow (and distract me) while searching for birds.
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Gulf Fritillary
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It certainly was a challenge when I came across this next new-to-me little butterfly, a Cassius Blue. Tiny, with a wingspan of only 1/2 – 1 inch (15-25 mm), I photographed it for several minutes before it fluttered on and out of my reach. I got one lucky shot! 😃
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Cassius Blue
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(Photos taken in Florida, February & March 2021)
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Five On The Wing – #9
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Coming or going, birds are amazing in flight. Even if ‘from behind’. 😉
So without further adieu, here are five ‘butt’ shots that I thought turned out pretty and created interesting compositions.
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Glossy Ibis “My Shadow”
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Tricolored Heron “Twinkle Toes”
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Bald Eagle “Low & Swift”
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Crested Caracara “Takin’ A Hard Turn”
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American White Pelican “Feet Illumination”
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(All photos taken in Florida; exception Bald Eagle, taken in Maryland)
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Snowy Egrets
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Here are a few photos of the elegant Snowy Egret from this past winter in Florida I had missed and wanted to share.
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Snowy Egret “Sleek and Suave”
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“Snowy Egrets 1, 2, 3”
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Snowy Egret “Focused”
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Snowy Egret “Close-Up”
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Snowy Egret “Twinkle Toes”
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The Snowy Egrets who breed in the mid-Atlantic have been arriving. Here’s a photo not previously shared captured this time last year in Maryland of a Snowy Egret with its breeding colors around the beak beginning to appear along with those growing elegant plumes.
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Snowy Egret “The Wind In My Hair”
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Great Blue Heron
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I am looking forward to exploring Eastern Neck NWR next year when we build nearby. It is a small, out of the way refuge that I’ve only visited a few times in prior years. It is especially known for the approximate 2,000 Tundra Swan that arrive late November and winter there until March.
Of course, I’ve already been down to Eastern Neck NWR a few times the past month, and I easily found this beautiful Great Blue Heron hanging out, waiting for Spring to arrive.
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Great Blue Heron
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Cattle Egret
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A few weeks ago, a small flock of Cattle Egrets sporting their breeding colors were flying in to our community late afternoons to hunt everyone’s freshly manicured lawns for insects.
For over a week, I tried so many times to get out the door when I saw them come our way, but they were startled easily and would take flight before I could get lined up for a shot.
Finally, I got lucky with one worthy shot. 😏
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Cattle Egrets
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You can see the first one sees me, so, of course, they then took flight! 😅
Cool fact: Cattle Egrets are native to Africa but somehow reached northeastern South America in 1877. They continued to spread, arriving in the United States in 1941 and nesting there by 1953. Since then, Cattle Egrets have become one of the most abundant of the North American herons, showing up as far north as Alaska and Newfoundland.
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Red-tailed Hawk
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The most common hawk in North America is the Red-tailed Hawk. Even with their stouter body and broader wings, the Red-tailed Hawk is slightly smaller than the Osprey but larger than the Red-shouldered Hawk.
The Red-tailed Hawk’s wingspan is 45-53″ (114-133cm), compared to the Osprey’s 59-71″ (150-180cm) and Red-shouldered Hawk’s 37-43″ (94-111cm) wingspan.
I captured this beautiful Red-tailed Hawk soaring in circles above me.
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Red-tailed Hawk
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Red-tailed Hawk
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Red-tailed Hawk
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Red-tailed Hawk
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As it continued it’s circling, the hawk was quickly carried away in the slight wind. What a beauty!
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Eastern Bluebird
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An Eastern Bluebird visiting our dock, waiting for me to arrive.
At least, that’s the way I saw it. 😉
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Eastern Bluebird (male) hanging with a pair of House Sparrows
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Osprey vs Eagle
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With both the Eagles and Osprey nesting across the creek from each other, they are both soaring in the same sky space.
This doesn’t always sit so well, if it’s at the same time.
Being the underdog, it is the Osprey that gets defensive and chases the Eagle, who just flies away faster, trying to avoid those extended Osprey talons.
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Osprey vs Bald Eagle
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No one gets hurt, and I’ve told them to keep it that way. We can all live together and get along!
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Welcoming Sightings
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Exciting news to share, we’ve purchased a little over two acres raw land and will be moving back to Maryland’s Eastern Shore and the Chesapeake Bay waters, near the small fishing town of Rock Hall.
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Our boat pier 🙂
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As soon as we got back from Florida to do our feasibility study before settlement, we walked the overgrown property, and flushed out a herd of piebald deer (one is almost entirely white!) laying down in our deep thicket. Wow!
Everything around was beautiful and quiet. It was perfect for what we were looking for.
And, during that first day’s visit, the following three of my top favorite birds were there to greet us. That was definitely the icing on the cake! 😉
The flash of red instantly caught my eye down by the pier as a male Cardinal landed to say hi.
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Northern Cardinal (male)
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A pair of Bald Eagles soared overhead. I’ve already narrowed down the approximate location of their nest across the creek.
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American Bald Eagle
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And, of course, the bird that started it. A pair of Osprey were busy re-establishing their nest at a distance across creek.
The Missus was fishing and came over to greet me on the pier. 🙂
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Osprey (female)
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Osprey (female)
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Osprey (female)
I think she likes me! 😏
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Now’s the fun and challenging part of designing our dream house, hopefully breaking ground Spring 2022. Until then, we’ll continue to do some RV traveling this summer to see our beautiful country and wildlife that I’ll be sharing!
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Warblers
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Sharing three warblers captured back in January and February in Florida. By now, they are all migrating north for breeding!
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Black-and-white Warbler
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Palm Warbler
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Palm Warbler
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Yellow-rumped Warbler
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Bay Photos by Donna 