Saturday, March 26, 2016

Saturday's Critters #119

Saturday's Critters #119

Happy Saturday, it's time to share your critters and post. Any kind of critter will do, even a new or old post.. I appreciate everyone who is linking in with this week's critter party.


Happy Easter everyone!

These are local birds from my neighborhood and from the woods next to our home. On March 10th the Great Blue Herons have arrived landing back on their same nests as last year. There may be more Herons this time, I am noticing more nests on different trees than last year. I can see at least 4-5 nest in the woods across from yard. I can watch the Great Blue Herons working on their nest and flying by my yard with stick in their beaks.


One Great Blue Heron on a nest.



There are two herons on this nest, one seems to be looking at me. The other heron is leaning over I only see it butt and legs. There are more nest in these tall pine trees along the fireroad back into the woods.



In the woods across from our house I can watch the herons collecting sticks for their nest.


A video taken from my dining room window, I was able to watch this Great Blue Heron in the tree.



When hubby and I walked on the fireroad checking out the other herons nest we found this Barred Owl. Two different days we found him/her in the same tree. It is nice to have both the Great Blue Herons and the Barred Owl just a short walk from home. We will be checking out the progress on all of these birds through out the season.


From a different day we saw the Barred Owl again, same location as the previous sighting.  I think their nest is nearby!



Another bird sighted off the fireroad, two Wood Ducks.. The male flew away towards the lake but this female stopped and perched in a treetop. I hope you enjoyed this post. As always thanks for the visits and the nice comments. I also thank everyone who is linking up and sharing their critters.. Happy Saturday, have a great weekend!



To see more beautiful birds and cute critters, check out these two memes below.

Also visit:  I'd-Rather-B-BirdinThanks to the gracious host: Anni.  Also check out Camera Critters. Thanks to Misty for hosting this fun meme.

84 comments:

Cath said...

I love the owl Eileen! Hope you are enjoying your Easter Weekend.

diane b said...

You are lucky to have these magnificent birds so close to your home.

Linda W. said...

Those herons pics are awesome! And very cool that you saw an owl too.

NatureFootstep said...

are they nesting already? You must be much ahead of us. Loved to see the images from the nest.

Thanks for hosting.

Small City Scenes said...

How special to have nesting Herons so close to home. Love the Owls too.
Happy Easter
MB

Unknown said...

I love both the herons annd the owls. I wish you a happy Easter, Eileen, and thank you for hosting!

TexWisGirl said...

sweet wood duck hen! love the gbhs.

Charlene N. K. said...

Nicely captured!
Have a beautiful Saturday!

Breathtaking said...

Good Morning Eileen!:) I think that I would spend hours looking out your bedroom window if I could!:) How fabulous that you can see the Great Blue Herons making their nest at such close range and in the comfort of your own home. You are also so blessed to see the Barred Owl so near to where you live, and the Wood Ducks. Great captures, and vĂ­deo. Your zoom is amazing!
Happy Easter to you and your family.

Joyful said...

Love the owls and herons. It's very rare I get to see any and your photos of them are lovely. Have a wonderful Easter Weekend, Eileen. xx

Christine said...

Good morning Eileen and thanks for hosting! Once again your photos of these awesome birds are fantastic!
Very exciting to know they are nesting so close by!
Have a lovely Easter!

Irma said...

Hi Eileen,
Beautiful series of photographs of all the birds.
The video is great.
I wish you and all your loved ones a good Easter weekend.
Best regards, Irma

Magnus said...

Great capture of those birds!

Bob Bushell said...

Lovely image of Heron and the Owl, excellent.

Yamini MacLean said...

Hari OM
Oh how wonderful to think of nesting birdies on this Easter weekend! Blessings, YAM xx

Ohmydearests said...

The herons are beautiful! The owl so lovely + fascinating! Have a beautiful day!

Marit said...

Hello,

Beautiful photos, and the owl was so big! Lucky you who got photos of it! I hear owl here at night, but I have never seen it.

Happy Weekend!

Tom said...

Eileen, your critters are delightful, have a blessed Easter.

Jo said...

Hello Eileen, beautiful post about the herons, barred owl and the wood duck. You're blessed to live near a woodland. I miss Mwadui (Tanzania) for that reason - there are no bushes around our property. Thanks for hosting this meme. Happy Saturday to you. Jo

Kenneth Cole Schneider said...

You are lucky to have them nesting so conveniently close to your home. We need to walk a mile into the wetlands to visit our local rookery (or what is left of it). I think that Barred Owl may also be thinking that the heron babies will be choice morsels at about the time their own owlets are hungriest!

Hootin Anni said...

My favorite owl!!!! The Barred Owl!!!

FANCY the Red Standard Poodle said...

Hi Y'all!

Love wood ducks.

Y'all come on by,
Hawk aka BrownDog

Suza said...

fantastic pictures of wonderful exotic birds. I never saw such birds in germanny.
best regards
susa

Seraphinas Phantasie said...

Hi Eileen,
wonderful photos of the heron, the owl and the duck.
I wish you a hapy Easter with your family and friends.
Best regards, Synnöve

Phil Slade said...

Hi Eileeen. To have both Barred Owls and Great Blue Herons just across from you must be wonderful. And the added bonus of a Wood Duck which looks a little strange to me as we don't have Wood Duck in the UK and I never see ducks up trees.

Have a great weekend.

Jenn Jilks said...

How exciting for you! Our rookery is so far off into the swamp I cannot get close. Which is just as well. I often see birders parked on the side of the road trying to get photos!!!

DeniseinVA said...

Great set of photos Eileen. Love all of them but the last but one where the owl is staring right at you is super. Happy Easter!

rainfield61 said...

Your feathered friends are coming back.

rupam sarma said...

Nice photos.
Happy Easter. Greetings :)

rainfield61 said...

You feathered friends are coming back.

Blogoratti said...

Great day out it seems, and nice photos. Warm Easter greetings!

Debbie said...

boy eileen, you sure do live in a "wild" spot!! lucky you!!! i have to travel so far to hope to get a view like this!!!

very cool duck!!! have a wonderful holiday weekend!!!!!

Lee Ann L. said...

Love the owl!

Brian King said...

That's awesome to have the herons nesting so close! The owl is magnificent!

Anonymous said...

Lovely images.

photodoug said...

Eileen, may you have a Happy Easter. Thanks for sharing.

Author R. Mac Wheeler said...

Enjoyed.

Is it me...or does it just look wrong to see ducks in trees?

There's a 200yo oak on the corner a muskovie likes to lay her eggs in. Find the eggs splattered on the sidewalk below quite often. Makes me sad.

Jemma@athomewithjemma said...

Happy Easter, Eileen!
Jemma

Sharon Wagner said...

I love the curious owl. Happy Easter to you as well!

JoAnn ( Scene Through My Eyes) said...

Happy Easter to you too my dear. I just love the photos today - big birds in trees always fascinate me. Fabulous photos.

MadSnapper said...

my first ever viewing of a Heron's Nest... I see them everywhere, but never the nest. what a wonderful window to nature you have on your home. great video.. love the owl

21 Wits said...

Good morning Eileen and best wishes for a wonderful and Happy Easter! What a lovely critter filled post to enjoy too!

Lynne said...

I am so happy I met you . . .
You teach me, treat me . . .
And remind me often of how much I love my birds, nature . . .
Happy Day my friend!
Once again you brought the best . . .

Nancy said...

Nice to be here again Eileen. Thank you for hosting and Happy Easter!

Coloring Outside the Lines said...

Happy Easter Eileen! I am so jealous of your owls- what a sight!

Ranten said...

Hei Eileen! Lovely pictures! Happy easter!

Jeevan said...

Great having such wonderful birds around home… and sure it must be interesting watch the great heron building its nest and hope to see the chicks some time here. I have seen only crows building its nest. The owl peeks nicely from the wood

ifthethunderdontgetya™³²®© said...

You are so lucky to have that photogenic owl in your neighborhood, Eileen! Have a great Easter.
~

carol l mckenna said...

You are surrounded by nature's gems and wonderful photography as always ~
Happy Easter to you and your family ~ ^_^

Happy Weekend to you ~ ^_^

Inspired By June said...

Wow! How fantastic that you have such a variety so close by! Wonderful captures, Eileen. Happy Easter to you!

Sallie (FullTime-Life) said...

Wonderful photos and video of the herons ..seems so incredible how they balance those gangly bodies on those tree limbs! Neat to see from your own window! And the owl is amazing. I don't know whether I'm more envious of those photos or the daffodils on your earlier post! Would love to see either in person! Thanks so much for posting the beauty and for hosting. Happy Easter!

Maude Lynn said...

Marvelous shots, Eileen! I am so envious of your owl.

Sandi said...

You must be very tiny or covered in leaves to be able to get this close and get these great shots! :-)

Nancy Chan said...

As always, great photos of beautiful birds. Love the owl, I think it is very cute! Happy Easter!

Indrani said...

Wow! What a variety you have!
Great captures through the branches.

Anonymous said...

Great captures of the owl, Eileen! Thanks for hosting, and a beautiful Easter to you and your hubby:)

Maggee said...

How very neat that you get to see Great Blue Herons from your house! And that there is a Barred Owl very close by! Awesome! I am going to be looking up for nests now... not just in the waters edge! I finally linked up--yay!

RedPat said...

I would love to see an owl - have only ever seen one snowy owl many years ago!

This N That said...

I don't think I ever saw a duck up in a tree ... Love the owl. Great shots. Have a wonderful Easter.

Linda said...

Gorgeous and delightful, Eileen! Happy Easter. :)

Giga said...

Egrets are beautiful birds. The owls are also very pretty, of course. I wish you a happy Easter!

Ela said...

Oh, these critters are beautiful !!
Happy Easter !!

Anonymous said...

Thank you for these great pictures

HappyK said...

Nice collection of critters. Love the owls and the herons in the tree.
Happy Easter to you and your family. : )

Country Gal said...

Happy Easter . Lovely photos . Thanks for sharing , have a good day !

Alexa T said...

Delightful to have such critters into your yard... So cute to have this chance to make observations from so up close! The owl is so sweet; also the heron and duck...
Happy Easter to you! with this occasion I came by to say: All the best, a happy day filled with joy and warmth in souls!! Happy Holidays of Easter!

Marie-Anne said...

Dear Eileen,
I wish you a lovely and happy Easter for you and your family!!!
Many hugs from Greece!

Rose said...

Wow, that would be wonderful to have those so close to home to watch!

Arnoldo L. Romero, MLA said...

I love blue herons, but we don't get any in my part of the world. Happy Easter!

Anonymous said...

Great images! Love the owl.

GranthamLynn said...

Sorry I didn't join today. Looks like you had a great party.
Happy Easter.
XXOO

GreenComotion said...

Hi Eileen,
Hope you had a wonderful Easter!
I love the way you have captured the birds, particularly the Barred Owl.
Thanks for hosting Saturday's Critters.
Have a Happy Week ahead.
Peace :)

~Kim at Golden Pines~ said...

Hi Eileen! What a treat to have the Heron's and the owl's together! I hear the Barred Owls all the time but rarely see them, even though I'm pretty sure they're nesting in our woods again this year.

I hope you've had a good week, and have a wonderful Easter too!!

Linda said...

I hope to happen upon an owl one of these days. Happy Easter!

Vilt og vakkert said...

Heisann, this week is also time for interseting birds on your post.... still Happy Easter ;:OD)

Anni said...


I would like to convey my thanks for your sharing of wonderful birds and photos today and adding your link at I'd Rather B Birdin'. It's always a pleasure visiting with you Eileen.

Anonymous said...

Happy Easter, Eileen. These are fantastic photos, video. The owl is fascinating to me.

Melbourne Australia Photos said...

Great shots, Eileen. Hope you are having a wonderful Easter holiday!
Thanks for hosting.

orchid0324 said...

Dearest Eileen; Happy Easter to you, hope you had are or having wonderful holiday with all of your family, Dear friend♪
Oh My, I love blue heron and really enjoyed seeing your Video♡♡♡ Lucky you spotted 'Owl’as well♪  It is kind of funny Wood Duck perching on the tree not in the water p:-)

Sending Lots of Love and Hugs from Japan to my Dear friend in America, xoxo Miyako*

John's Island said...

Hi Eileen, I enjoyed all the bird photos and the video too! Another excellent Saturday's Critters! A very happy Easter to you and your family.

Ana Freire said...

Beauty all around home... on this sequence of super shots!...
Splendid work, Eileen!
Happy Easter!
Ana

Lowcarb team member said...

I just love that owl!

All the best Jan

Minoru Saito said...

Hi! Nice collection of beautiful birds's photos.I like the two herons. Thanks for sharing.

Hannah said...

The wood duck is so cute perching in the tree, Eileen. Somehow I can't imagine duck feet being very good at perching in trees, but I guess they do OK.

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