Happy Monday!

Wishing everyone a great day and a happy new week!

"The future will be green or not at all."

"Green spaces in cities are essential for people and nature."

St. Stephen's Green Park, Dublin, Ireland May 2023

"We take photos as a return ticket to a moment otherwise gone."

Comments off, enjoy your day!

Saturday's Critters # 493

Welcome to Saturday's Critters!

Hello and happy Saturday!

Happy Memorial Day weekend, remember and honor!

 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!

And we were off again, this time a trip that has been on my bucket list for a long time. May 5-17th we went on a 9 night 10 day tour of Ireland. We did have to fly in a day early and stay an extra nights for the plane flights coming and going. Arriving a day before our tour we were able to walk around the city of Dublin, checking out all the highlights and of course I was looking for all the birds.  Fun Times.

1. Below are the River Liffey and various streets scenes around Dublin. Our walk took us on a loop across the O'Connell Bridge and coming back on the Ha'penny Bridge. 

Dublin Castle and the gardens.

We spent a few hours walking around St. Stephen's Green Park. I found the Eurasian Wren, Hooded Crow, European Goldfinch, Tufted Ducks, Mute Swans with Mallards and Gulls. 

Tufted Ducks were seen in a pond at the park.  

Eurasian Blackbird, it is a pretty blackbird. 

European Goldfinch, very different than our American Goldfinch. 

Eurasian Magpie, looks similar to the Magpie I have seen in Yellowstone Nat'l Park in Wyoming.

Hooded Crow, a handsome crow. 

Mute Swan, Gulls and Mallards these are all common birds seen around the world. 

Eurasian Wren looks similar to our Caroline Wren.  I was happy to catch this one singing. 

More later on our Ireland trip, the tour was a small group of twelve in a large van. A great tour, visiting towns of Westport, Clifden, Doolin, Dingle, Killarney and Kilkenny. We saw so much in the time we were there. 

I am sharing more scenic photos on my travel blog. 

Thank you for sharing your critters and post!

Thanks to all my visitors and for your past and present comments. Stop back to see any replies to your comments. I appreciate everyone who loves and respects wildlife. Thank you for linking up a critter post.

Here is my linky:

I am also linking up to Anni's blog party found here I'd Rather B Birding   Anni always has some beautiful birds to be seen on her blog, check it out! Also, I am also linking up to Heidrun's Mosaic Monday  I hope you can stop by and visit Heidrun and check out the Mosaic Monday post. 

Happy Monday!

 Wishing everyone a great day and a happy new week!

"You are the sky. Everything else is just the weather."

Assateague Island National Seashore

"Life is like photography. You use the negatives to develop."

"We take photos as a return ticket to a moment otherwise gone."

Comments off, enjoy your day!

Saturday's Critters # 492

Welcome to Saturday's Critters!

Hello and happy Saturday!

 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!

A little behind here sharing my images and outings. On April 10-12th, hubby and I enjoyed a getaway which included visits to Blackwater NWR, Assateague Island Nat'l Seashore and Ocean City Md, Delaware's Indian River Inlet and Bombay Hook NWR. These images are from our first day. 

1. These are some sightings from our ride on Blackwater NWR wildlife drive. Photos were taken from our car windows. Great Egret, Willet, King Rail, Osprey, Bald Eagles, Slider Turtles, Blackwater wetland and river, Great Blue Heron. 

Click on photos for larger viewing.

2. The Ospreys have returned and there are a few nests just off the wildlife drive. We had great views of the Ospreys on their nest. 

3. The Great Blue Herons are a common wader seen in Maryland.

4. The highlight of our Blackwater NWR visit was seeing this King Rail right next to the road.  It was out in the open for quite a while, we parked the car and watched the King Rail foraging for food.  

5. We saw the King Rail at all angles, showing off it's pretty and colorful feathers. The King Rail is a large chicken like bird. It has reddish wings and breast, black and white stripe plump belly and a short tail. 

6. At the Ocean City, Maryland inlet we saw the Common Loons, lots of Laughing Gulls and Ring-billed Gulls and a pretty sunset. 

7. Common Loons can be seen at Ocean City's inlet often.  You can see this Loon has the black and white spotted back, the summer colors. 

8. At the back of the hotel we could still see some pretty colors from the sunset on the bay side. 

Thank you for sharing your critters and post!

Thanks to all my visitors and for your past and present comments. Stop back to see any replies to your comments. I appreciate everyone who loves and respects wildlife. Thank you for linking up a critter post.

Here is my linky:

I am also linking up to Anni's blog party found here I'd Rather B Birding   Anni always has some beautiful birds to be seen on her blog, check it out! Also, I am also linking up to Heidrun's Mosaic Monday  I hope you can stop by and visit Heidrun and check out the Mosaic Monday post. 

Happy Monday!

 Wishing everyone a great day and a happy new week!

"Reflection: looking back so that the view looking forward is even clearer. "

Blackwater NWR, Cambridge Maryland

"Make each day your masterpiece."

"We take photos as a return ticket to a moment otherwise gone."

Comments off, enjoy your day!

Saturday's Critters # 491

Welcome to Saturday's Critters!

Hello and happy Saturday!

 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!

I am sorry I will be late visiting, I will be away from my computer. As always thank you for participating with Saturday's Critters. I hope you can visit some of the other links and I will be visiting and commenting as soon as possible. 

At the time I prepared this post, we had been enjoying some nice warm Spring weather days, perfect for our early morning walks and to do some birding.  On this day we went to a local park called Hashawha Nature Center. We had some nice sightings of the Eastern Bluebird, Eastern Towhee, Goldfinches and Tree Swallows. I heard a lot more birds than I was able to take their photos. The wildflowers were looking beautiful. 

1. Wildflowers blooming at Hashawha, the Bluebells, Helleborus, possibly Bloodroot or I'll say a couple of unknown flowers. The Mourning Cloak Butterfly, turtle and possible Eastern Spring Beauties. Eastern Bluebird, Eastern Towhee and an American Goldfinch. 

"Spring: the music of open windows."

Click on photos for larger viewing.

2. This pretty Helleborus or also known as the Lenten Rose had a lot of blooms. 

3. The Mourning Cloak Butterfly landed on the boardwalk near the lake. 

"Every day holds more magic."

4. One of the many turtles we saw at the Hashawha Lake. 

5. The American Goldfinches were perched high in the tree tops.  This looks like a female Goldfinch. 

6. The Eastern Bluebirds have lots of birdhouses to nest at this park.  

7. The Eastern Towhee, a pretty bird with a black head and back, rufous sides with a white belly.

8.  I am happy to see the Eastern Bluebirds doing so well, we heard and saw a lot during our walk at the park. 

9.  The Slider Turtles share the lake with the larger Snapping Turtle.

 

I am behind sharing my birds, these are my yard birds seen in early April. I had a mix of some winter birds and some new spring birds have arrived.

10.  April 7th : my yard birds are the White-throated Sparrow, Eastern Bluebird, Brown Thrasher, Dark-eyed Junco, Tufted Titmouse, Purple Finches. 

11. April 8th: my yard birds were the Blue Jay, Red-bellied Woodpecker, Carolina Wren, White-throated Sparrow, Northern Cardinal, Brown-headed Cowbird. 

Thank you for sharing your critters and post!

Thanks to all my visitors and for your past and present comments. Stop back to see any replies to your comments. I appreciate everyone who loves and respects wildlife. Thank you for linking up a critter post.

Here is my linky:

I am also linking up to Anni's blog party found here I'd Rather B Birding   Anni always has some beautiful birds to be seen on her blog, check it out! Also, I am also linking up to Heidrun's Mosaic Monday  I hope you can stop by and visit Heidrun and check out the Mosaic Monday post. 

Happy Monday!

Wishing everyone a great day and a happy new week!

"Sometimes this is all you need."

"Make peace of mind your priority."

 "We take photos as a return ticket to a moment otherwise gone."

Comments off, enjoy your day!

Saturday's Critters # 490

Welcome to Saturday's Critters!

Hello and happy Saturday!

 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!

I will be away from my computer, as always thanks for participating with Saturday's Critters. I hope you can visit some of the other links and I will be visiting and commenting as soon as possible. We are celebrating our 33rd Anniversary!

Hiking and birdwatching is always fun at the Susquehanna River State Park. Spring time,  the wildflowers along the trail in the park are a beautiful sight. An added bonus is stopping at the Conowingo Dam and fishing pier to see the Bald Eagles. 

1. In April lots of  migrating  Bald Eagles can be seen at the Conowingo Dam and Susquehanna River. We also saw a Bald Eagle on a nest across the river. 

Click on images for better views!

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2. If you click and enlarge this photo, you can see quite a few Bald Eagles sitting on the rocks next to the river. Both adult and juveniles are hanging out together. 

3. A proud looking Bald Eagle perched in a tree above the parking lot. 

4. The island in the middle of the river near the dam is a Great Blue Heron rookery.  

It is great to see these herons doing so well, they were also seen up and down the river. Perched on rocks and looking for food and taking care of their nest. 

5. It was a Cormorant day, they were everywhere we looked.  

A Double-crested Cormorant tree.  

There had to a thousand or more Cormorants, they were near the dam, on the rocks up and down the river and in the trees.  

6. At the Susquehanna River State Park we stopped at the picnic area and walked around a small pond.  We saw the American Robins, Dark-eyed Juncos, Tree Swallows, lots of turtles, Pileated Woodpecker, Mourning Dove and an Eastern Phoebe. 

7. The Susquehanna River trail is a great place for a walk to see the wildflowers. Some I am not sure of their names, but I saw the Dutchman's Breeches, lots of Bluebells and the bottom two (Possible Cutleaf Toothwort and Lesser Celandine) left are unknown and the pretty weeping cherry was on the ride out of the park. 

8. The Bluebells were starting to bloom, another week or so they would look wonderful. They were all along the trail.  We have to go back and check them out again.

We saw a carpet of these pretty yellow flowers, I am not sure of their name.  I am guessing about the id of these yellow blooms but there is something similar and invasive called Lesser Celandine.

Thank you for sharing your critters and post!

Thanks to all my visitors and for your past and present comments. Stop back to see any replies to your comments. I appreciate everyone who loves and respects wildlife. Thank you for linking up a critter post.

Here is my linky:

I am also linking up to Anni's blog party found here I'd Rather B Birding   Anni always has some beautiful birds to be seen on her blog, check it out! Also, I am also linking up to Heidrun's Mosaic Monday  I hope you can stop by and visit Heidrun and check out the Mosaic Monday post. 

Happy Monday!

Wishing everyone a great day and a happy new week!

Happy May everyone!

"Enjoy every single moment."

Beautiful palm trees and pretty blue skies @ Riu Resort, Nuevo Vallarta, Mexico 2023

"Take action towards dreams."

 "We take photos as a return ticket to a moment otherwise gone."

Comments off, enjoy your day!