Summer Sightings

My First Bath

There have been numerous fledglings in the backyard this Summer. We have been getting several House Sparrow and House Finch fledglings. This is a female H. Finch bathing in the sun :-)

This fledgling Sparrow is still trying to figure things out.

I believe the Orioles have left the backyard :-( I was hoping to see some fledglings at the Oriole feeder. They probably found someone's backyard that is serving Grape Jelly.

The House Finches have finished nesting and fledging, but, we still continue to get the occasional Male House Finch at the feeder.

We had a pair of Brown Thrashers from early Spring through the end of June. The white stuff you see in the photo is not snow or hail, it is cotton from the mature Cottonwood Trees.

This is a fledgling female Cardinal. I have a story to tell you about this photo opp. She is on the back deck and I am shooting from inside the house. My camera has a red flashing dot while focusing...the Cardinal froze in this position, as if shot by a stun gun or something! Needless to say, I took several shots of this pose...LOL!! I was getting worried about her...she finally "unfroze" and went on with life. Remember the game Freeze Tag :-))

I really don't have the camera for these little guys, but, I couldn't resist. To ID the above butterfly, I studied the Butterfly & Moth website and decided to go with Gorgone Checkerspot. Let me know what you think?

My grand-daughter helped me spot these Dragonflies. She has really good eyes. I know zero about ID-ing dragonflies, but they sure are pretty.

I traveled up to South Dakota to visit my Dad (the place where I grew up). The Killdeers like to nest there.

This is an Upland Sandpiper in South Dakota. All the years growing up there and I'd never noticed it before. They like nesting in this part of the world near Alfalfa fields. And that's just where I saw them all. I was thinking, "Is that a Road Runner, or what?!"

Another view of the Upland Sandpiper standing on cut Alfalfa. The field guide says they are rarely seen near water. They like native prairies and hay fields.

This is an Upland Sandpiper perched on the utility wires. They are fond of perching on posts and utility wires.

Killdeer nest in South Dakota.
I was so thrilled when my brother showed me this Killdeer nest right inside the feedlot. He is interested in wildlife, too, so tries to avoid running over these nests with the tractor while feeding the cows. He was expecting the eggs to hatch soon. I would have loved getting some photos of Killdeer chicks :-)

Dances With Fledglings

Two little wallflowers.

Thoughtful Thursday

In peaceful repose,
She softly sits,
The gentle Mourning Dove.

Wordless Wednesday

Wordless Wednesday

House Finch Chicks Launch

This is an update about the House Finch family living in the Boston Fern on our front porch. We had a thunderstorm yesterday and after it passed over we heard the H. Finch parents calling and calling like they were distressed. They were also flying in and out of the fern. We became concerned thinking maybe one of the chicks fell out. My husband got the step ladder and peeked inside. We were both surprised as 2 chicks flew out instantly! NOW we understood why the adults were calling them. It seemed too soon that the chicks would be at the launch stage. They flew toward the big Maple as the parents flew on each side of them. An awesome sight. We looked back into the nest and there was 1 left...the one pictured above. She was not ready yet. We took the fern down and she flew out after a minute but, away from the rest of her family, and near the ground. That didn't look safe to me because the neighbor has cats. I went over and she allowed me to pick her up...my plan being to fling her up toward her family in the tree, but, she flew out of my hand and was clinging to a black tarp, in the neighbor's yard (the one with the cats) I tried again to capture her, but she flew under the neighbor's pick-up. I waited for awhile then decided it would be better if I backed off and let nature take it's course. The adult finches continued to call for over an hour. So, hopefully she found her way off the ground and into the tree :-)

A Chorus of Peeps

I'm enjoying a peeping chorus from right outside my front door. There are 4 sweet little House Finch chicks that are being raised by 2 diligent parents. If you look closely in each photo you can see all 4 chicks.

A Sunflower in Watercolor
by cindyzlogic

With this painting, I was working on the technique called "under painting". First came the sketch from still life. Then I applied 3 different color washes, tilting the page until all the colors ran together. Then let this dry or to speed up the process use a blow dryer. Lastly, you paint in the subject. Under painting works like the effect of glazing.

Woohoo! Our 1st Indigo Bunting to visit the backyard this Spring!

Meet Cinnamon

Cinnamon is one of my pet Society Finches. He is a lot of fun and keeps us company. In this photo, he is enjoying his vegetables. (spinach)

New Arrivals

The House Finch family that have been housed in my Boston Fern have new arrivals. I didn't want to disturb them so I can't tell how many have hatched...I think three.

This is my newest watercolor using the wet-in-wet technique. I'm enjoying this new medium and the watercolor classes.

We have a female Ruby-throated at the feeder! I saw the male again today, he's really small and about half her size. We have seen a 3rd Hummer but they are all being so cautious and allusive it is hard to get a good view.

We were thrilled and surprised that the Hummingbird feeder attracted these Baltimore Orioles. My husband went out and bought an Oriole feeder and the Orioles are a lot less frustrated trying to get to the sugar water ;-) We have seen 2 males and 3 females. It is new this year to have them in the yard and to hear their cool song.

Orioles like to play games too! "Peek - a- Boo"

We have a Wren pair nesting nearby! This is the first time I've seen Wrens at the feeder. When I got home this evening they were in the front yard in the flower bed gathering nesting materials.

Wordless Wednesday

Wonderful Spring Beginnings

Eastern Tiger Swallowtail

My son captured this picture for me at the Chaplin Nature Center. This beautiful piece of earth is located just a few miles from town.

House Finch Nest

I was so pleased and excited when I took the Boston Fern down to water it and found this Finch nest with a little speckled egg in it. The nest is about 3" across and the egg a little over 1/2" long.

This is the fern I was talking about. It sat out the Winter inside and was looking like a pretty sorry plant.

Another view of the nest to give perspective.

Ruby-throated Hummingbird

This little guy just arrived! He's still sort of shy.
Here is a link to post your Hummer's arrival:

http://www.hummingbirds.net/map.html

"Frogs and snails and puppy dog tails"

A snail,

in the hand,

of a grandson.


"Roses are Red, Violets are Blue"


Flora & fauna at the Chaplin Nature Center.