Tuesday, July 26, 2011

Duck eating a Fish

Duck eating a Fish
Duck eating a Fish
We 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?

Tuesday, July 19, 2011

Baby Turkeys: Was it Worth It?

Baby Turkeys
Baby Turkeys

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
Great Blue Heron

Sunday, July 17, 2011

Cliff Swallow Nests

Cliff Swallow
Cliff Swallow

Cliff Swallow

Cliff Swallow


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

Barn Swallow Nest

Barn Swallow Nest
Barn Swallow Nest

Kingbirds

Kingbirds
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
Turtle