The Pennsylvania Migratory Count...PAMC

Little did I know when I packed my peanut butter and jelly sandwich early Saturday morning that I would be walking the local nature center for almost 7 hours!! I arrived for the weekly 7am bird walk about 6:30 am (I like to get there early and check the blind for the screech owls)..when I noticed several bird-walk leaders arriving, as well as some of our more well known experts ( one lady who co-wrote "The Plants of Pennsylvania" and still teaches botany at The University of Penn) I found myself becoming more than just a little curious..Huh? Everyone seemed to be preparing to join the morning walk..dragging the socks up over the cuffs of their pants to keep out ticks... spraying Off on caps and sleeves...WOW! how nice to have all these people along to share that birding enthusiasm.. but what was up??? ...and then I am told this was a PAMC count/walk. A hike would have been a better word. Our purpose was to count every bird we might see... through mud and swampy areas. Places I have never visited before.. ( all voluntary of course) but in the end I lasted the whole day and was one very happy birder, having seen many new species of birds, reptiles and plants. I survived 7 hours of walking and birding!! Exhausting but fun!!
Our first sight of the morning was a real eye opener for me..the Scarlet Tanager..OMGosh..what a sight for my eyes!! He was almost at eye level and was too involved in his "aria" to bother with "we" who stood staring in awe!!


Not far from where we spotted the Tanager, we came across a flock of Cedar Wax Wings..gorgeous of course...so many colors on one bird...awe..they just made my morning!!
...this little Rose-breasted Grosbeak was playing hide and seek and just wouldn't allow me that one good shot! He was quite actively hopping around the tree.. but what a delight to see this guy!!
Mr Thrush was just the opposite..he was quite content to just sit. ..slightly turning his head to say , "Oh hi, just passing through?"This little Eastern Towhee, on the other hand, was not the least bit quiet...a bit ruffled in his appearance and very serious and intent about singing what he needed to sing!! Such a look!!


and then there are the cute little silent types ...who just sit quietly hidden in among the leaves...just letting the morning glide by..not a care in the world. Such sweet eyes on this little warbler...pine warbler, I think.

We had stopped to take a break when this beautiful Spice-bush Swallowtail butterfly landed near me..stunning me with colors that just sing so well together .. how wonderful!
This was puzzling at first...but then I realized it was a turtle...a box turtle that was hiding under water near this log...did you know box turtles can completely close the space between their shells for protection? ...I didn't, but found that pretty interesting.

and yes I know this was a bird count day but who wouldn't stop to look at this guy...a red-eared slider...not a native species to Pennsylvania. Apparently someone had them as pets and let them go in this park and they seem to be doing fine. One last cool fact, tho, they live to be 50 to 70 years old and check out those toe nails!!! Bet he didn't walk 7 hours... ouch!

My Personal Best...

Hannibal, of hannibals animals, has asked us to try and choose a picture that would represent our personal best. My birding library continues to grow but I have a looong way to go to try and emulate photos taken by many of my bird-blogger friends. I am always so amazed at what unbelievable subject matter, quality, detail and color my blogger friends acquire in their photos and I hope that some day I , too, will reach such a level of craftsmanship with my photos.....
...so here goes, I took this picture on December 18, 2008 from inside my office window. It is a Nashville Warbler who must have strayed from its flight path trying to get to its winter destination and some how landed in my backyard. It was eating larvae from my Azalea bushes. Such a wonderful surprise for me and according to the many bird experts who saw my picture, a very rare find in December. This is the original photo......and this is the cropped version I posted back in December. I was thrilled to have had the opportunity to photograph this bird and only hope it survived our winter weather. :(
Thanks Hannibal for creating this meme and if you want to see more "personal best" please visit Hannibal's blog at... http://hannibalsanimals.blogspotcom

Happy Mother's Day!!

Nobody knows the work it makes
to keep the home together.
Nobody know the steps it takes,
Nobody knows-but Mother.

Are you talking about me, said the little Warbling Vireo??
I caught this shot yesterday not far from the parking lot overlooking the lake!! Such a sweet bird and so determined...and as we all know.. the toughest job in the world is waiting....
you might have to click on this pic...as I didn't want to get too close...

The Bushy Tail Nutcracker!!!

Gimme, gimme gimme...we all know the the call of the Bushy-Tail Nutcracker... I can feel his presence even before I open the curtains in the morning. Oh, I know he has to eat too, so I ignored his lack of manners and continued to fill the peanut feeder.
it wasn't until that Blue Jay caught my ear and shared his opinion about those bushy-tails that I decided it was time...time to buy and create a few new feeders that I have had my eye on for a while...

I had been surfing the net and came across this large platform feeder. I liked the fact that one can remove the metal trays for cleaning and that several birds can feed at once. The feeder pole has several different sized extensions one can buy to add supports for items, such as meal worm feeders or suet holders. The one inch steel pole will also support a hopper feeder at its top...but for today we just picked up a few necessaries and of course that all important squirrel baffle.
I capped it with a metal silhouette of a cardinal...and I'm loving the fact that as of day four no squirrels have made it onto the platform....but they are clever little creatures ..so I won't say ah ha..just yet!
as for the peanut feeder, itself, my husband created the one below that now holds whole peanuts. The woodpeckers, blue jays and the real Nuthatch seem to love it... The piece at the bottom unscrews which makes it easy to empty the shells and replenish it with fresh peanuts. We have watched those ole bushy-tails attempt to reach it and so far their calls have gone from gimme gimme gimme to.. I think I can, I think I can...but with no success..so far...;0

May Maddness

You, my dear, call it maddness....

but I call it love!! ~ Don Byas

Dining out!

Oh yeah, here comes lunch!!
you might have to enlarge this pic to see the fly...zipping right up next to this chipping sparrow...

All dressed up and no where to go...

I know, for me, capturing a decent picture of the Northern Flicker in my lens is quite a challenge, always flitting, always on the move, always out of range. Today, however, I was looking for the Great Horned owl and her owlets but with no success when those yellow tail feathers of the flicker caught my eye. I have tried before to capture this guy as he swooped through the sky flying as if he had the hiccups. Flapping and then gliding....and as you would expect... always going AWAY from me.
...but this time, he landed not too far from where I was quietly standing...in a thicket of trees and pines. I don't think he noticed I was there, as he started to preen himself...shaking and ruffling all those colorful feathers... as if he was getting himself ready to go out and find that special someone!! hmmm.. tis, that time of year!!
..it's not easy reaching all those areas that need attention...
and just when I thought he had it all together..feathers fluffed, clean and pretty, that suave look upon his face...
...he went to sleep! Lol, I only stayed another ten minutes or so but when I left he was still perched on that branch... all dressed up but with no where to go. Shhhhh.