Birds & Blooms

  I am linking up with Mosaic Monday and Our World Tuesday 

I am amazed the end of June is a day away.. June flew by! Sharing some shots of my yard birds and blooms around my yard..and on Saturday my great-nephew was baptized. 

Above some summer time birds in my yard...the American Goldfinches, A Ruby-throated Hummingbird and the Eastern Bluebird.

 Above a male Downy woodpecker, top right are some lilies with some  Clematis, an Indigo Bunting, Great-Crested Flycatcher, bottom row a hibiscus bloom, male House Finch, Red-bellied Woodpecker and a male Cardinal.

 Stella O'doro lilies, I believe the clematis is called Jackmanii, the clematis vine is mixing in with our huge blueberry bush..

The mommy.. my neice Melissa, my sis with Neill,  Neill with Daddy and Neill kissing Mommy, a relaxed Neill at the party and Neill's doggy the 125 lb Mastiff "Ajax"

I love this surprised look on baby Neill's face during the baptism. I hope you enjoyed my photos from the past week and weekend..

Thanks for stopping by and for the comments.

Join in on the fun and for more wonderful photos please visit  Mosaic Monday and more
 from  Our World Tuesday

 Thanks to our host: Mary our host of Mosaic Monday and to the hosting group of Our World Tuesday: Arija, Gattina, Lady Fi, Sylvia, Sandy and Jennifer.  I wish everyone a happy week ahead!

Saturday's Critters #30

Saturday's Critters #30

Hello and happy weekend!  It's that time to share your critters. I hope to see you join in with the Saturday Critter Party.

I never had a chance to share some more of my sightings from Bombay Hook NWR in Delaware.. It was a quick daytrip for hubby and I. Even though it was a short visit we saw many birds and critters.

I always enjoy seeing the turtles all lined up and sunning themselves..

We watched a couple of Black Skimmers doing ther thing..skimming over the top of the pool.

One of many Great Blue Herons seen at Bombay Hook NWR.

 A Green Heron surprised us, we were looking on the ground for them at Finnis Pool, when we happened to look up and the heron was in the tree.

 The Indigo Buntings were one of the common birds seen at Bombay Hook. He is such a pretty blue.

A juvenile Bald Eagle flies over one of the pools at Bombay Hook.. I hope you enjoyed my visit to Bombay Hook NWR..
Thank you for linking up to the critter party. I appreciate the visits, comments and the support of my blogging friends.. Have a happy weekend!

An InLinkz Link-up

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

Please visit:  I'd-Rather-B-Birdin. Thanks to the gracious host: Anni of I'd Rather-B-birdin. Also, sharing with Camera Critters. Thanks to Misty for hosting.

Weekend Walk_June 22

Linking up with Skywatch Friday  and Good Fences

I am sharing one of my sunrise shots from last week and some shots from our weekend walk along a creek not far from our house..It is just under a 2 mile drive to get to the creek parking area and the trail leads us to a different section of our lake. 

First, I will start my post with a shot of the sunrise over a local field.

For my Good Fence post I have a neighborhood farm, I pass by this farm with their beautiful white horse and a donkey everyday on the way to work..I thought it would make a great fence shot for Tex's Good Fence meme..

I can walk from the house to see this pretty horse, I think there are plenty of fences in this shot. The new fence was put up recently..

Now onto our walk, hubby and I were walking along the creek trail, I happened to see one eagle flying away and then I looked down and across the creek and there was another eagle eating a fish.. I think the reflection is cool. 

We watched the eagle eating the fish for a little while.  Then with the fish still clutched in its claws,  the eagle flew off down the creek with the fish.. Most likely taking the fish back to the nest..

We spooked a large group of Canada Geese when we walked up to the lake shore.. Some flew and some swam just to the other side.

We reached the lake, which was our stopping point for the day.  The sky was a pretty blue with some clouds here and there.  A pretty day for a walk.

A gorgeous sunset shot, thanks to my hubby!


I hope you enjoyed my post and photos from our weekend walk..
To see more pretty skies from around the world please visit  Skywatch Friday
and check more fence shots at Tex's Good Fences


Thanks to Tex @ The Run*A*Round Ranch for hosting Good Fences and to Sylvia, Yogi  and Sandy for hosting Skywatch Friday!   I wish everyone a safe and happy long weekend.

Black-cheeked Woodpecker

I am linking up with Wild Bird Wednesday and Nature Notes

For this weeks Wild Bird I am sharing the Black-cheeked Woodpecker seen in Belize.  It is not a lifer for me because I first saw this bird in Costa Rica.

The Black-cheeked woodpecker is a resident breeder from southwest Mexico south to Ecuador.

They have  a black patch thru the eyes and on the cheeks and a yellow forehead. The crown is red in the male and black on the female.

These woodpeckers nest in an unlined hole in a dead tree. They feed on insects but will go for the fruit and nectar. Woodpeckers have always been one of my many favorite birds. I love them all.
I hope you enjoyed my post..


Thanks for stopping by my post and for all the nice comments.

Join in and post your birdies and to see more beautiful and wonderful bird photos please visit:
 Stewart's Wild Bird Wednesday and Michelle's  Nature Notes.  Thanks to our host Michelle our host Stewart.  Happy Birding and have a wonderful week!

Almond Beach Resort, Hopkins Belize

  I am linking up with Mosaic Monday and Our World Tuesday 

EDIT: I am linking up with Favorite Fotos thanks to Lydia at Where the Wild Things Were

HAPPY SUMMER  to all in the Northern Hemisphere!

With this post, I am taking you back to Belize..after spending 4 nights at the Sleeping Giant Rainforest Lodge we transferred to the beach and their sister resort called Almond Beach in Hopkins. Hopkins is a small fishing village with some shops, bars and restaurants. And of course some beach front resorts. We arrived at our beach resort and were greeted with a rum punch and a tour of the resort.

Our room was a beachfront room with a fantastic view of the Caribbean Sea. Every morning we enjoyed a beautiful sunrise.

We had a great room with the porch that led to the beach, towel animals on the bed, grass umbrellas and hammocks, infinity pool, a cafe and a restaurant. Magnificent Frigatebirds and Brown Pelicans flying up and down the coast.

 

On the first day, we arranged to take the Bioluminescence tour. The boat ride started off  thru a tunnel of mangroves into a lagoon. The night sky was lit up with stars, more than I can ever remember seeing. And the lagoon was glowing from the schools of jellyfish. Some brave people on our tour were picking up the jellyfish, not me I am a chicken. If you do not pick these creatures up a certain way you will be stung.. The Bioluminescence tour was a cool experience!

 

 On the second beach day after breakfast we went on our second Hopkins tour, a hike to the Antelope Falls in the Mayflower-Bocawina Nat'l Park. Our hike passed by these partially excavated ruins, beautiful fauna and flora and the Black-cheeked Woodpeckers.

Our tour guide showing us the partially excavated ruins. The Maintzunun Terrrace Temple Mound, it is an acropolis complex dated back to approx 800AD.

Hubby took this shot of the Antelope Falls a 100ft waterfall. .. Also at this park, you can do the waterfall repelling and ziplining, there are 5 waterfalls, various trails and birdwatching. I hope you enjoyed seeing some of Belize thru my eyes and camera..

Thanks for stopping by and for the comments.

Join in on the fun and for more wonderful photos please visit  Mosaic Monday and more
 from  Our World Tuesday

 Thanks to our host: Mary our host of Mosaic Monday and to the hosting group of Our World Tuesday: Arija, Gattina, Lady Fi, Sylvia, Sandy and Jennifer.  I wish everyone a happy week ahead!

Saturday's Critters #29

Saturday's Critters #29

Hello and happy weekend!  It's that time to share your critters. I hope to see you join in with the Saturday Critter Party.

 According to the Baltimore Bird Club there has been some upsetting news about the Yellow-Crowned Night Heron rookery in Baltimore. Heron eggs and 13 chicks are missing and have been lost, there is no way of telling what happened. A storm or a predator or humans, very sad...My last visit was on May 31, when hubby and I made a quick visit to see some of the chicks and herons.. Here are some of my shots from our last visit..

 On May 31, we saw 5 eggs in this one Yellow-crowned Night Heron's nest.

A good momma.

 Momma with chick below..

Possible male adult Yellow-crowned Night Heron..one of the daddies.

 Another good momma on the nest.

Momma and heron chick.. I feel so sad over their loss.

An InLinkz Link-up

Thank you for linking up to the critter party. I appreciate the visits, comments and the support of my blogging friends..


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

Please visit:  I'd-Rather-B-Birdin. Thanks to the gracious host: Anni of I'd Rather-B-birdin. Also, sharing with Camera Critters. Thanks to Misty for hosting.

Bombay Hook NWR

Linking up with Skywatch Friday  and Good Fences

Since being back from our vacation, hubby have taken daytrips to Shendoah in Virginia and Bombay Hook in Delaware.. On this post I am sharing some of the photos from Bombay Hook wildlife refuge in Delaware.  I have some shots for Tex's Good Fences and some sky shots for Skywatch Friday!

Before leaving for Delaware I took this shot the moon setting from my deck on the morning of June 14.

One of the first birds we saw when we entered the wildlife refuge was this Eastern Kingbird sitting on a fence..You can just barely make out the white edge on this birds tail, they say it looks like the bird dipped its tail in white paint.. My photo doesn't show the whole fence but I thought it would still be good for my Good Fence post..

Black-necked Stilt on a nest, it is a breeder bird for the Bombay Hook NWR.

 

A pretty scenic view of the Great Egret and Bombay Hook's marsh land, pool and the pretty blue sky.  I am not sure why but I was surprised there were not more Egrets being seen on this day..

It seems the birds at Bombay Hook knew I would be looking for photos for my fence post.. On the wildlife drive heading to Finnis Pool, I found this Great Egret posing on the fence. Perfect!

The Black-necked Stilt is one of my favorite birds seen at Bombay Hook..

I took this shot off the road on the way home from Delaware..The pretty clouds, blue sky and the fence, make a great scene for both Good Fences and Skywatch Friday!

I hope you enjoyed my post and photos from the wildlife refuge.


To see more pretty skies from around the world please visit  Skywatch Friday
and check more fence shots at Tex's Good Fences


Thanks to Tex @ The Run*A*Round Ranch for hosting Good Fences and to Sylvia, Yogi  and Sandy for hosting Skywatch Friday!   I wish everyone a safe and happy long weekend.

Crimson-collared Tanager

I am linking up with Wild Bird Wednesday and Nature Notes

 This week I am sharing another Belize lifer the Crimson-collared Tanager. All my sightings of this bird were at our Belize Sleeping Giant Rainforest Lodge.

On a pretty day, this bird was gorgeous! Black with a red collar, tail coverts are also red. Habitat is the edges of humid evergreen forest.

 Looks like I captured this Crimson-collared Tanager singing.. In the morning at breakfast, these birds were hopping around in the trees..

They have a pale colored bill. The plumage is identical in both sexes..This bird is found from Mexico south to Panama..

 Above is the same bird on a rainy morning at our Sleeping Giant Rainforest Lodge. Even on a gray day the Crimson-collared Tanagers red nape and neck really stand out. I hope you enjoyed my Belize lifer.


Thanks for stopping by my post and for all the nice comments.

Join in and post your birdies and to see more beautiful and wonderful bird photos please visit:
 Stewart's Wild Bird Wednesday and Michelle's  Nature Notes.  Thanks to our host Michelle our host Stewart.  Happy Birding and have a wonderful week!

Shenandoah National Park

  I am linking up with Mosaic Monday and Our World Tuesday 

Happy Father's Day to all the father out there!

Last weekend, hubby and I went on a daytrip to Shenandoah Nat'l Park. We hiked on my favorite trail  called the Limberlost  trail.  We had awesome weather and saw great birds.. We also saw some deer, turkey and one black bear.. We took a picnic lunch and ate our lunch at the Big Meadows, always a pretty sight..

A view of the Shenandoah valley from the Skyline Drive in Shenandoah National Park.

 

Birds above are the Veery, Chestnut- Sided Warbler, Scarlet Tanager, Hooded Warbler, Eastern Towhee and a Cedar Waxwing

Some scenes from our hike on the Limberlost trail, the boardwalk, wildflowers, mushrooms and clovers.

The ferns were gorgeous next to this down tree, it is a pretty scene to me


Scenes from my favorite Limberlost trail in Shenandoah..an easy 1.3 loop trail with gorgeous flowers and greenery..

More from the trail, these low growing bushes seem to attract the warblers, pretty ferns and some wildflowers..

These clovers? grabbed my attention,  the shadows and lighting looked pretty to me.

The only sighting of a Black bear, it had just crossed the Skyline Drive and walked into the woods as we drove by.

Hubby and I had a great day, Shenandoah National Park is a wonderful place to visit..
Thanks for stopping by and for the comments.

Join in on the fun and for more wonderful photos please visit  Mosaic Monday and more
 from  Our World Tuesday

 Thanks to our host: Mary our host of Mosaic Monday and to the hosting group of Our World Tuesday: Arija, Gattina, Lady Fi, Sylvia, Sandy and Jennifer.  I wish everyone a happy week ahead!