Just Bluejays

For this weeks  World Bird Wednesday    and  Nature Notes   I have my backyard Bluejays

The Bluejays in my yard are like rowdy teenagers. They fly into my yard all loud, scaring all the little birds away. 

Recently, I was out on my deck and I thought I heard a hawk nearby I looked up and it was a bluejay doing a great hawk imitation.

 The patterns on the jays feathers are beautiful.

They gobble up peanuts and seed  like there is no tomorrow, again kind of like teenagers. I have watched one jay pick up at least 7-8 shelled peanuts before flying away.

To see more wonderful and beautiful birds please visit Springman's World Bird Wednesday  and to see some wonderful nature post please visit Michelle's Nature Notes.

Thanks to Springman for hosting World Bird Wednesday and to Michelle for hosting Nature Notes. I also thank you for stopping by to see my birds and post. I hope the rest of your week is great. Happy Birding!

Birding >>>Gettysburg

I am linking up to Mosaic Monday and Our World Tuesday

On Saturday,  hubby and I decided to brave the windy day and head up to Gettysburg, Pa. Besides being a National Military Park, I had heard it was a great place to do some birding. The auto tour covers a lot of fields perfect for bird sightings. Turned out not to be a great day for the birds we did watch a Kestrel for awhile and saw some Eastern Bluebirds and sparrows on the fields and fences. Also, Gettysburg has been known for owl sightings and red-headed woodies. Next time I decide to go I will avoid going on a windy day. I do have to say I was amazed at all the beautiful monuments and statues we saw while driving the auto tour.

 

One of my favorites (top left)  was a bronze Irish Wolfhound on the Irish Brigade monument. It symbolizes the loyalty shown for the Union cause by the brigade soldiers, most of whom were Irish immigrants or sons of immigrants to the United States. My great-great grandparents were Irish immigrants so I feel connected to the Irish Brigade Monument.

"An enduring light to guide us in unity and fellowship" "With firmness in the right as God gives us to see the right" Quote by Lincoln

Another favorite is the Eternal Light Peace Memorial. This memorial was dedicated by President Franklin Roosevelt. The eternal flame at President Kennedy's grave at Arlington was the inspiration.

Eastern Bluebird

I thought this soldier was going come charging right out of the woods in front of my car. Luckily he stopped.

Lots of great old houses and barns added to the scenes of Gettysburg.

 

The monument above of an oak tree trunk with various items hanging on it like a knapsack, cartridge box, corp insignia, shield and rifle also the cannon ball on the top and a bird nest with a mother bird and babies. There is a story that during the battle of Gettysburg a soldier saw the nest fall out of the tree, the soldier climbed the tree and replaced the nest with the baby robins still alive inside. Nice story!

Have a seat and have your photo taken with President Lincoln.

A little bit of history the battle of Gettysburg was fought July 1-3 , 1863. This battle had the largest amount of casualties in the American Civil War and is described as the war's turning point. In November, 1863 President Lincoln held a dedication ceremony for the Gettysburg National Cemetery to honor the fallen soldiers and redefine the purpose of the war in his historic Gettysburg Address.

To see more wonderful mosaics and photos please visit with Mary @ Mosaic Monday  and Our World Tuesday

Thanks to Mary for hosting Mosaic Monday and to the hosting group of Our World Tuesday: Arija, Gattina, Lady Fi, Sylvia and Sandy.  Also,  Thank you for stopping by to see my post. I wish everyone a great week ahead.

Birds & Critters

For my Camera Critters I have some shots from my Wingscape Birdcam.

I like this capture of the cardinal in mid air it looks cool.

A late evening visitor, usually my Goldie Girl scares them away.  The flash made the raccoon's eyes look blue.

A squirrels reflection, not really... just looks like one.

My crest is prettier than yours!!!

This little piggie is eating all my bird seed.

Move over, I need a drink of water now!!

 

The male Redbellied woodpecker also stops in for a visit.

A large group of Goldfinches and a Mourning Dove.

Along with the male Redbellied Woodpecker above, this must be the female mate.

This Crow wanted a closeup shot taken. Say "AHHH"

 Don't rock the boat Feeder!

To see more cute and wonderful critters please visit Camera Critters.  Thanks to the host Misty Dawn for this fun weekly meme.  As always thank you for stopping by to see my birds and critters. I hope everyone has a safe and HAPPY weekend!  And  Happy Birding!!!

SWF>>>More of my Backyard Sky

For this weeks Skywatch Friday  I have some shots of the skies over my yard. I also included a cool video of sky and the bird sounds coming from my yard this past weekend. I was doing the Great Backyard Bird Count and was enjoy the sky while listening to all the birds in my yard.

A blue sky filled with Turkey and Black Vultures. These vultures were seen from deck, they seem to be just flying in circles.



A Youtube video of the sky and the sounds of my backyard birds.

This was a shot from early in the morning. The snowstorm that was predicted missed us, the storm stayed further south.

Later in the evening, I enjoyed the the contrails and the sunset.

I zoomed in for some color and another vulture in flight.

A closer look at the contrail that turned pink from the sunset.

I hope you enjoyed my skies and to see more
wonderful skies from around the world please visit Skywatch Friday.   Thanks to the host of Skywatch Friday: Sylvia, Sandy and Wren.

I hope everyone has a safe and happy weekend. And Happy Birding to all the birders out there.

Eagles at the nest

I am linking up with World Bird Wednesday   and Nature Notes

I have to edit this post. I do not want people or birders to think I was close to the nest.  I was standing a good distance away from the nest and I did comment below my photos are cropped for a closer look.  Also, I do not give out nest locations for any bird. I believe the birds can get stressed.

Hubby and I were on our way on Saturday for a hike in one of our favorite Maryland parks when we noticed this eagles nest. Actually, first we noticed the guys with their huge cameras standing in the road looking at the nest. . We got there right when the male eagle was flying off the nest to another tree where it grab a branch and flew back to the nest . 

All these photos have been cropped to get a closer look. The Eagles are a common sight in Maryland and they have made such a great come back. For me seeing the eagles will always be an awesome sight to see. I have been lucky to see both adults and juveniles fly over my yard. Hubby and I have seen the eagles at our lake and flying over the fireroads near our house.

It seemed like the female was directing the male as he moved the tree branches around on the nest. Usually eagles will build their nest in large trees near rivers or the coast. They will use the same nest year after year. If the old nest is damaged from the wind the eagle pair will rebuild the nest within a few weeks near the nesting season. They are territorial and the nesting territory is one to two miles. The eagles will look for a mate around the age of 4 or 5 and will mate for life.

To see more beautiful birds and nature photos from around the world please visit Springman's  World Bird Wednesday   and Michelle's Nature Notes.  Thanks to Springman for hosting World Bird Wednesday and to Michelle for hosting Nature Notes.  I also thank everyone for stopping by to see my post. I hope the rest of your week is great.

GBBC & a hike in the neighborhood

I am linking up my post with Mosaic Monday and  Our World Tuesday

This weekend I have been participating in the Great Backyard Bird Count . It is a joint project with Cornell and Audubon and could be called a Citizen's Science project. Yesterday and today I took fifteen minutes of my day to count the birds in my backyard. Yesterday the bird with my highest count was seeing 31 Turkey Vultures and today the bird with the highest count of 22 was the American Goldfinch.

Two of my regular backyard birds in the mosaic above were the Pine Warbler and the male Downy Woodpecker.

 A male Downy Woodie on my pergola.

It turned out to be a great day..... the so called forecast of snow missed us and stayed south.  So, hubby and I decided to drive around our lake and take a hike on another trail. We parked for a bit near the dam to take a look and some photos. Other shots in the mosaic besides the bridge going over the dam, my Goldie Girl, a neat looking snake like vine, some cool looking fungi, the reservoir and a Golden Crowned Kinglet. While hiking on the trail near the lake we again spooked off some Common Merganser and saw a huge flock of Canada Geese way on the other side of the lake.

I liked the reflection of the bridge going over the dam. It will be nice to start seeing all these trees turning green once again.

Some cool looking fungi, almost heart shaped.

Goldie Girl is a great hiker. 

To see more wonderful photos and mosaics please visit with Mary @ Mosaic Monday  and Our World Tuesday.  Thanks to Mary for hosting Mosaic Monday and to the hosting group at Our World Tuesday: Arija, Lady Fi, Gattina, Sylvia and Sandy.  Thanks, also for stopping by to see my post, I wish everyone a great week ahead.

I am still protesting the horrible Word Verification that blogger is now using. My eyes are going batty.

Great Backyard Bird Count

GREAT BACKYARD BIRD COUNT    AND CAMERA CRITTERS

This long President's Day weekend is the Great Backyard Bird Count. It is easy to participate, all you have to do take fifteen minutes of your time and count your backyard birds or anywhere you want to do your counting. I usually always do my backyard birds.  Here is a link to Cornell's website and  more information and where you enter your count Great Backyard Bird Count

Anyone can do it from beginner bird watchers to experts and if you like to take photos of your birds you can enter the photos in the contest. It is a fun project do with your children and have them involved in a Citizen Science Project.

This is also my Camera Critters entry I posted a few Canada Geese. I stopped to watch these Geese and to look for some ducks while taking the back road to my sisters house in Pennsylvania. I can see some good birds taking the back roads that wind thru some farmland and countryside. The Canada Geese were seen at the Cordorus State Park in southern York county.

If I were to do a GBBC count at Cordorus, using this photo above would help me count the Geese.

Not the best photo, but I like the action shot of the hawk taking off from the telephone pole. I see a lot of Hawks perched on poles along the roads. I believe with the signs of a belly band this is a Red Tailed Hawk maybe a juvenile. Please correct me if I am wrong.

If you love critters like I do, please visit by Misty Dawn's Camera Critters You will see lots of cute and wonderful critters.  Thanks to Misty Dawn for hosting and thanks for stopping by to see my critters. Have a Happy President's Day weekend and Happy Birding.

SWF>>>>>Another Backyard Sunset

I am showing off my skies for Skywatch Friday 

These shots were actually from last month and I never got around to posting them on skywatch. This backyard sunset was one of my favorites. I love the colors of the clouds and the cloud formations.

This shot is a little dark but the White Throat Sparrows usually show up early in the morning and come back in the evening just like my Cardinals. They are sweet looking birds. And one of my favorite winter birds.

I hope you enjoyed my backyard sunset and to see more beautiful skies please visit Skywatch Friday.

Thanks to the hosting group of Sylvia, Sandy and Wren. I hope everyone is having a great week and I wish all a very happy weekend.  Thanks for stopping by, I appreciate the visits.