Saturday, September 28, 2019

Saturday's Critters #302

Welcome to Saturday's Critters!


If you love all God's creatures like I do and also like to blog about them and take critter photos this is where you can share your critter post. Link up your post and share your critters, join in with my critter party ! You can share any kind of critters the real ones, pretend ones, statues and paintings, a new or old post!

For better viewing, click on the photos to enlarge them.


The Icelandic Sheep and horses were seen on all our tours. Sheep farming exist in all areas of the country. Sometimes our tour drivers had to slam on the breaks because the sheep would cross the road.



Every September Iceland has a sheep roundup. The roundup was due to happen soon after our trip ended. The sheep are free to roam high in the mountains to eat. Before winter sets in the sheep are rounded up and put back into the farm sheds in the valleys. Volunteers and even tourists enjoy this sheep roundup, it is almost like a party. It is a group effort with people on foot, horses, with dogs and 4 wheelers. 



These Icelandic Horses were seen closeup during one of our tour stops. The Iceland horses are best known for their 5 gaits, most horses only have 3. They are a smooth ride. 


I tried taking photos of the barns and animals as we drove past many farms in Iceland.  A couple horses off the the right look like they were battling. 




 Below some Icelandic Horses are toward the center and left side near the trees.  



Another Iceland farm, with Icelandic Sheep.  The plastic wrapped hay is seen on every farm we passed. It was nice to learn, the plastic used for wrapping the hay is re-cycled and made into plastic poles you see along the roads. I have to say again Iceland is a very GREEN country.  


Most farm animals found in Iceland now are descended from animals brought by the 10th century Scandinavian settlers. 





The farm animals are called Icelandic because they are hardy and have adapted to Iceland's climate. That includes the sheep, horses and cattle. 






This farm had dairy cattle.  Some cattle are raised for beef, but mostly are dairy cattle. 



European Starlings were a common sight to see around Iceland.  I heard and saw a few different birds on this day, no luck getting photos or ids.






I appreciate and thank everyone who links up their post and for all the wonderful comments !






Here is a list of my linky parties; I have a couple of different linky parties this week. Check out the memes below: 

Tom's Barn Collective on Sunday 

Cath's linky party called  Country Scapes   on Tuesday


57 comments:

Nancy Chan said...

Beautiful sheep and horses. Beautiful mountain view. Happy weekend!

Shiju Sugunan said...

Love the landscapes there. European Starling looks a bit similar to our female Asian Cuckoo.

NatureFootstep said...

lol, yes, that is Iceland alright. :)
The horses are special. I think the heritage is Norway for them. Today they are very careful about the horses. If a horse is taken abroad it will never come back to iceland. They will keep this race clean. This horse if able of Ambling gait. I tried it once on my first trip to Iceland and it is really cool. The horse goes straight and don´t "bump" you. If you go once more, try riding a horse that ambling gaits. :)

Irma said...

Hello Eileen,
Beautiful series of photos from your trip to Iceland.
Were you with a group that did a tour ???
I enjoyed your photos of Iceland.
If you want to add my link, I cannot do this.
Greetings Irma

Bill said...

Beautiful Icelandic critters and scenery. Have a wonderful day, thanks for hosting and enjoy your weekend.

chica said...

Que bom passar aqui e sempre ver tantas fotos lindas desses animais bem cuidados e lindos na natureza! Ótimo fim de semana! beijos, chica

Marit said...

Hello Eileen,

Beautiful photoes! When my daughter was little we rode on islandic horses. The are so small and cute. The European Starlings are here in the summer, but not in the winter. Maybe they flew to Iceland :)
Happy Weekend!

Yamini MacLean said...

Hari OM
You really did have a wonderful trip Eileen... the horses are know for their placid nature and ability to survive the harshest weather. YAM xx

rupam sarma said...

Amazing views. Loved the post and pics.
Happy Weekend.

David M. Gascoigne, said...

If I am not mistaken, Eileen, Iceland is ranked the greenest country in the world.

Rose said...

I think this has been my favorite post about your trip. You showed some fantastic barns, but I loved seeing and hearing about the sheep and the round-up.

Tom said...

...good morning Eileen, I don't see the link, here is my Saturday's Critters.

https://backroadstraveller.blogspot.com/2019/09/the-season-is-coming-to-end.html

podso said...

That is so interesting about the sheep round up by the whole community! I enjoy hearing about other cultures and countries.

Debbie said...

the sheep round up sounds fun, almost like a holiday for the locals!! beautiful horses, and gorgeous countryside!!

it is always wonderful to hear that a country is green. we are getting there but i think we have a lot more to do!!

beautiful pictures today, i have really enjoyed seeing this trip!!

Melbourne Australia Photos said...

Fantastic shots of these unusual animals, Eileen! Iceland is a fascinating country.

Marie Smith said...

My friend owned an Icelandic horse. Beautiful animal!

My Desktop Daily said...

Lovely! Thanks for hosting, Eileen.

RedPat said...

We have been watching Icelandic mysteries lately and the whole setting always seems so dark & for boding so it is great to see your pics of critters and know there is some life in the place, Eileen! ;-))

Gayle said...

I've heard Iceland is a once in a lifetime experience. So glad you were able to take the trip and share with us. Happy Day.

eileeninmd said...

Hello, as we were leaving we saw part of a show where riders were on these Icelandic horses carrying a glass of beer. They were just showing how smooth the ride was on this horse, the beer did not spill. Thanks for the comment.

Jeevan said...

The Iceland looks quite a grassland or full of meadow to become a best cattle ground for horses and sheep to feed on fresh grasses. Lovely capture on the open farms and animals and sound good use of plastics... i believe plastic is discovered on purpose but we over exercised to create environmental issues.

Happy weekend

Sussi said...

Beautiful!

eileeninmd said...

Hello Irma, we did take tours on each day. We would be picked up at our hotel for each tour. Thanks for the comment.
Enjoy your weekend.

eileeninmd said...

Yes, Iceland is the number one greenest country in the world. Thanks for the comment.

R's Rue said...

Thank you.

Jenn Jilks said...

It would be a wonderful place to visit! Great photos, great trip.

carol l mckenna said...

Love the horses and sheep ~ great photos and that is quite the bird in your photo ^_^

Happy Day to You,
A ShutterBug Explores,
aka (A Creative Harbor)

Red said...

It's quite amazing how Icelanders have adapted many things to suit the climate in their country.

Barbara Rogers said...

Hi Eileen...lovely photos of Icelandic critters. I am glad you reminded me it's Saturday. My days have run all together this week!

~Lavender Dreamer~ said...

The sheep and horses are so beautiful in those wide open spaces! How wonderful to have a good camera with some zoom to see all there is to see in this amazing country! Love the feathers on the Starling! Happy weekend!

Ailime said...

Hello Eileen,
Beautiful landscape and animals!
I have loved all of them.
Have a nice week end e week ahead.
Ailime

MadSnapper said...

I had no idea that Iceland is farm country, sheep and cattle and farms and they look like they could be anywhere in the usa.. can't decide which I like most, the horses or the sheep... so beautiful

Jeanie said...

I adore those horses -- and of course, I'm SUCH a sucker for sheep! I'd love seeing that most of all.

Small City Scenes said...

Wow such interesting commentary. Iceland is truly green in every aspect of the word. Thankfully.
Love the sheep and horses
Thanks for sharing
MB

Cloudia said...

Thank you dear. Always a pleasure walking with you

Kenneth Cole Schneider said...

What a beautiful place. So interesting how the horses and sheep adapted and actually evolved over the centuries.

Bob Bushell said...

Iceland is beautiful, horses, sheep and brilliant photo of a Starling, lovely hiking Eileen.

Black Knight said...

Wonderful landscape and wonderful critters.

HappyK said...

Beautiful photos. What a wonderful place to visit.

Ranten said...

Iceland is a beautiful country! The sheep in Norway are also on the mountain all summer, and are brought down in the fall :-)) Happy sunday!

Jeanna said...

Yikes, sorry autofill put in the wrong title once and then I made it worse. Geez, sorry about that hope you're enjoying the day, we got a nice one for Badger Saturday and here I thought it was going to be cold and rainy all weekend.
They must be plenty hearty to adapt to that climate, brrr and I thought it was cold here.
Having critters running about willy nilly has got to jangle the nerves. I remember bumping up against cows in the river once, lol (they were cooling off). That's a starling, wow, not at all what I pictured, that's a very cool looking bird and a great picture.

italiafinlandia said...

Hello, I enjoy following the report of your trip to Iceland!
The landscape fascinates me.
Thanks for sharing.
Have a nice Sunday!

Sondra said...

Its so nice to see a country not over developed...so nice to see the landscape uncluttered with so many structures etc. Iceland is a really Fab place!!

Joyful said...

Lovely photos Eileen. I loved seeing the animals in Iceland :-) Have a wonderful weekend.

William Kendall said...

Beautiful country views!

Our photos said...

Extraordinary landscape ! Very nice !

ellen b. said...

Fun to see these critters from Iceland!

Hootin Anni said...

Eileen, I have enjoyed all of your posts on your Iceland trip! It's been a 1st hand educational experience with wonderful photos. Great image of the Starling!

DeniseinVA said...

Super photos of all those lovely critters today Eileen, beautiful scenery too. We have a good family friend who is in Iceland right now. Looking forward to hearing of her experiences too. Happy Sunday and have a great week :)

21 Wits said...

Good morning Eileen what an incredible place you visited and sharing it with us is almost like being there too! This trip will long be in your memories!

Anonymous said...

You had a wonderful time in Iceland...I can tell...:)jp

A Bit of the Blarney said...

Thank you for your visit! Your photos are pastoral today! Really lovely! Have a wonderful week!

CRYSTAL said...

Lovely pictures. Joined blog hop.

JoAnn ( Scene Through My Eyes) said...

What a glorious trip - and the photos are amazing. Thanks for the info too - I definitely learned a lot from your post. Happy week ahead.

Sallie (FullTime-Life) said...

That was so interesting learning the history the Icelandic livestock ... and how they do that sheep roundup. Sounds like we could take some lessons on being green from this small progressive country... I am really enjoying your tour!

Author R. Mac Wheeler said...

lovely countryside critters

Lowcarb team member said...

So lovely to see your Iceland photographs …

All the best Jan

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