Posted on March 17, 2015 in Birds, Nature, Wildlife, Winter
The most recent snow goose count at Middle Creek Wildlife Management Area is 110,000. Now that is a LOT of birds! I was chatting with one of the park rangers over the weekend and asked how they go about providing the estimates. He told me that they go to a spot on top of the mountain at daybreak and have a method for counting geese as they take flight from the lake. The snow geese roost on the lake overnight and then fly out to nearby fields to feed during the day. As the geese take off in the morning, the rangers count off the birds in groups of 5,000. Today’s image features a large group of snow geese taking to flight from the ice-covered lake and heading in my direction just before sunset. What a sight!
Posted on March 16, 2015 in Birds, Landscape, Nature, Wildlife, Winter
Actually, it was a cold and windy afternoon! As the sun was setting on Middle Creek Wildlife Management Area, the snow geese were returning to the frozen lake to roost for the night. Throughout the day, they were feeding in the fields surrounding the lake. All 75,000 of them. A hardy bunch of birders and nature enthusiasts watched and photographed as the sky filled with snow geese, Canada geese and tundra swans. This image shows the viewing area at Willow Point Trail – a favorite spot for photographers!
Posted on March 5, 2015 in Birds, Nature, Wildlife, Winter
Dark-eyed Juncos are frequent visitors to the feeders in my garden in winter. I love their peach-colored bill. Here’s one sitting on the branch of my Yew bush in between snacking on seeds and visiting with St. Francis (see yesterday’s post). On another bird related topic, this afternoon I noticed that one of my birdhouses was lying in the snow, instead of being mounted to the tree in its usual spot. I saw squirrels near it this morning, so possibly they knocked it down. When I looked inside, I saw the remains of a nest from the summer and acorns! Now I’m wondering if the squirrels dropped the acorns in the opening at the front of the birdhouse and then couldn’t figure out how to get back inside to retrieve them! Guess I’d better put out some extra food for the squirrels!
Posted on March 4, 2015 in Birds, Wildlife, Winter
As the snow fell last weekend, the birds were hanging out near the feeders in my yard. I have a statue of St. Francis at the corner of the porch and directly behind it are two holly bushes. As the birds darted back and forth to the feeders, they sought cover from the snow in the bushes and, every now and then, stopped for a rest on St. Francis’ head! This is a Dark-Eyed Junco. They are in the Sparrow family and generally only visit in winter.
Posted on March 3, 2015 in Birds, Nature, Wildlife, Winter
It’s been a long, cold winter, not only for humans, but for wildlife as well. The ground has been snow covered for months and food is likely scarce. I’ve been filling my feeders with sunflower and wild bird seed, corn, and suet. Not only do the birds love it, but so do the squirrels, deer, and a raccoon or two! The deer are especially hungry. They visit my feeders nightly and look in the window to find me if they are empty. When seeds are scarce, they take to eating any green vegetation that they can find. My Yew and holly bushes are nearly devoid of foliage. I hope they survive. Over the weekend, I spent a little time photographing birds at the feeders. This is a Tufted Titmouse perched on one of the remaining branches of the Yew bush that is green. Such a pretty little bird!