Duck eating a Fish

Duck eating a FishWe live on a small lake and have watched a mother mallard raise a family of five ducklings this summer. Today, one of the ducklings brought a fish into the yard and tried to eat it. Who knew that ducks ate fish?

Baby Turkeys: Was it Worth It?

Baby Turkeys


Mike and Chris go for a walk around the block almost every morning. Yesterday, when walking past the park, there were several adult turkeys with some baby turkeys barely visible in the distance. Mike coerced Chris into changing their walk, going back home for the camera and binoculars, but by the time they returned, the turkeys were gone.

So this morning about 6:15, Mike nudged Chris in bed to get up early and see if the turkeys had returned. Chris reluctantly agreed, but when they reached the park, there was a lady walking a dog and no turkeys. After one lap around the block, Mike and Chris returned to the park and the dog was gone but still no turkeys. It was about the same time they saw the turkeys the previous day, so Mike suggested waiting, hiding in the penalty box of the skating rink in case the turkeys returned. About 5 minutes later, the turkeys appeared and Mike got some photos and Chris got some good views in the binoculars.

Great Blue Heron Sticking His Tongue Out

Great Blue Heron

Cliff Swallow Nests

Cliff Swallow





We took the boat out this morning and found two cliff swallow nests.

Barn Swallow Nest

Barn Swallow Nest

Kingbirds

Kingbirds



We often see a solitary kingbird in our yard, but we've never observed a family group until today. When we took the boat out this morning, there were 2 adults feeding a juvenile kingbird. Here are some photos of these birds.

Turtle resting on a log

Turtle

Tufted Titmouse

Tufted Titmouse

Heron at our dock

 

Here's a photo of our dock. The heron on our boat is the most prominent, but if you look closely, you can see a sandpiper on the floating island. This island is also used by ducks, cormorants, turtles, a night heron and a great blue heron. The jelly feeder hanging in the tree is frequented by catbirds, woodpeckers and even by robins.

Negri Nepote: Dickcissel and More

Dickcissel


Indigo Bunting


Tree Swallow





We had a nice little, local birding adventure this morning. Many things combined that influenced our lack of ambition for birding of late; poor spring migration turnout, lousy weather, and work and travel for Mike. We had such success at spotting what we set out for and more this morning, that it really renewed our enjoyment for birding. It was VERY hot, though, even early this morning, so we enjoyed for as long as we could out in the fields and then headed off for other adventures. As an aside, there is a blueberry bash this weekend at Terhune Farms, and Chris thinks the blueberry pie is the best piece of pie she's ever had!

Blue Jays in the bird bath.

The bluejays are lovely to look at all year since their plumage is always a vibrant blue. While lovely to look at, we do often find them to be the bullies of the yard with their loud calls and obnoxious behavior. Babies are always cute, and even though they were making quite a racket, they were enjoying the yard and bath so much one day that even Chris couldn't help reaching for the camera.

Baby Baltimore Oriole

Baby Baltimore Oriole
Well, we never did get a nesting pair of Baltimore Orioles in our tree this year. We are thinking it had something to do with the lake being empty in April when the males arrived. The good news is that the adults are now bringing the fledglings to our yard for feeding. We will keep up with the grape jelly and oranges, but we suspect they will feed on mostly the insects they catch high up in the trees, which makes photographing them a challenge. We will enjoy their company and share any good pictures we get.

Happy Fourth of July

Blue Heron In Front Of Waterfall: Photo by Joe

I took this shot with my canon 7D, 70-200 2.8 IS, a ND filter, and a tripod. F14 at 1.6s at 200mm. I went to the Paulinskill Lake to take pictures of the falls and he happened to be there. What a great surprise. I hope you enjoy the picture as much as I enjoyed taking it.

Thank you,

Joe

Sibling Rivalry: Red Bellied Woodpeckers

The baby red-bellied woodpeckers are growing up. They still visit with the father who feeds them, but they are also eating jelly on their own.

Raccoon at the bird feeder

Raccoon at the bird feeder

Turtle Party on Lake Nelson