Birding Cape Henlopen, Delaware

  I am linking up with Mosaic Monday and Our World Tuesday 

December 8, 2013

This post shares some of the sights hubby and I saw while birding Delaware last weekend. We stopped at so many different places in Delaware, I took tons of photos. Some are scenic and lots of birds photos of course  ;)

I was kind of hoping to see some  Snow Bunting on the beach at Cape Henlopen. There was not a Snow Bunting in sight only a few gulls hanging around.

The beach at Cape Henlopen State Park, it is just around the corner from the Cape May/Lewes Ferry.

A few gulls and a Horned Grebe

The House Finches perched in a tree near the nature center's feeders.

Above the House Finches look like ornaments on this bare tree. And the Brown-headed Nuthatches are so cute, they were one of my favorite sightings.

We were walking back up the trail when this Turkey Vulture flew low over our heads. It was a pretty sky but a very cold day on the beach.

Even though is was a cold day and I missed seeing the Snow Buntings we still had a fun time walking on the beach. I did get to see my favorite Brown-headed Nuthatches..  I hope you enjoyed our walk around the Cape Henlopen beach.

I was happy to take some photos of my great - nephew on Thanksgiving.. Baby Neill is so cute and was one of my favorite guests for Thanksgiving this year...

I have starting a new MEME called Saturday Critters..posted early on Saturday Mornings...join in on the party and post your cute critters.

As always, I hope you enjoy my post and thanks for visiting my blog. I always appreciate your 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!

Brown-headed Nuthatch

I am linking up with Wild Bird Wednesday and Nature Notes

December 10, 2013

The Brown-headed Nuthatch is usually seen in the pine forests of the Southeastern United States. It's sharp beak is a tool to dig for the insects.  The Brown-headed Nuthatch and the Pygmy Nuthatch are the two smallest of the worlds Nuthatch Species.

There are four species of Nuthatches in the US. I have seen three of them, this Brown-headed Nuthatch, the Red Breasted Nuthatch and the White Breasted Nuthatch.. I am missing the Pygmy Nuthatch, somehow and someday I hope to add the Pygmy Nuthatch to my lifelist.  This is a link to one of my other Nuthatches post

For comparison, above is a mosaic showing  both the Red-breasted Nuthatch and the White-breasted Nuthatch in my backyard.

While walking on the trail at the Cape Henlopen State Park in Delaware we noticed 5-6 of these cuties all poking around the same tree. It was hard to focusing on one of the Nuthatches while they were all moving about the tree limb.

I hope you enjoyed seeing my cute Brown-headed Nuthatches.. Thanks for visiting my post and for the nice comments.

 I am starting a new MEME called Saturday Critters..early on Saturday Mornings ...join in with the party and post your cute critters.

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!

Snowy Owl

I am linking up with Wild Bird Wednesday and Nature Notes

December 3, 2013

This seems to be the year for the Snowy Owls.. A Snowy Owl irruption is when the young owls fly south due to their food source Lemmings or prey becoming scarce. Just this past week Snowy Owl sightings have been reported all around New Jersey, Delaware and my state of Maryland.  I was thrilled myself to see one while driving down the Coastal Hwy in Delaware on November 30.. Apparently there were two Snowy Owls in the exact spot, I just happened to see one from my viewing spot.  The lucky people that were on the beach at the time saw two Snowy owls interacting with each other.. awesome photos were posted on the Delaware Birding facebook page..

Here are the few photos I took of just one of the Snowy Owls seen at the Indian River Inlet.

I stayed a good distance from the owl but, I am so glad my Canon SX40 has awesome optical zoom. I am happy with my Snowy Owl shots.

For my photos, I stood on the road... I did not have to be close to the owl or walk over the dunes...

I am always reading the facebook entries of birds being sighted. Some of others places where the Snowy Owls were seen Edwin Forsythe NWR in NJ, Cape Henlopen, DE, Indian River Inlet De, Port Mahon, DE and the place I saw my 2009  lifer Snowy Owl the Assateague Island Nat'l Seashore. They seem to be up and down the East Coast as far as the Carolinas and maybe even a sighting in Bermuda. 

The notice above is being passed around on facebook, I agree birders and photographers should keep a safe distance. Keeping a distance also allows others to view this beautiful bird without flushing the owl.

Check Ebird's got-snowies  for more information..

To see a Snowy Owl in the wild is a thrill, at least for a birder it is..I hope you get to see one too.
Thanks for visiting my post and for the nice comments.

 I am starting a new MEME called Saturday Critters..Saturday Morning 8am EST...join in on the party and post your cute critters.

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!

Birding Delaware

December 5, 2013


I am linking up with NF Winged   and  Skywatch Friday 

I am sharing some birds and sky shots from last weekend and my birding in Delaware.  It was a cold two days but the skies were mostly blue and the birds were everywhere. I was happy!!

Indian River Inlet in Delaware, it was across the river on a sand dune where the two Snowy Owls were sighted.  I had a lot of places to stop and look for birds, so we spent just a few minutes looking at the Snowy Owl. At the inlet jetty, we did see a few Surf Scoters, various Gulls,  lots of Common Loons and some Black Ducks and DB Cormorants were seen flying by.

Canada Geese, Silver Lake in  Rehobeth Beach, Delaware. At Silver Lake, we saw the Canada Geese, Mallard Ducks,  a high count of DB Cormorants, Common Loon, American Black Ducks, a few Canvasbacks and an American Wigeon.

The Common Loon looks like a different bird straight on then the usual side view I see of them.

A Ruddy Duck with the white cheek and long tail and a Canvasback has the chestnut red head and a white body. Both of these ducks were seen at the Silver Lake in Rehobeth Beach, Delaware.

After leaving Silver Lake we headed to Gordon's Pond State Park, Delaware.

At Gordon's Pond we saw lots of Great Blue Herons, a couple of Great Egret and Mallard Ducks were seen at the Gordon's Pond, Delaware. We did have a great view of a Belted Kingfisher, I only wished it would have stayed still for a second or two.

Sunset at Dewey Beach, Delaware. There were not many clouds in the sky, so the colors were not spectacular.  It was still a pretty sky. We spent the night at the Best Western in Dewey Beach close to all the birdie action.

I hope everyone enjoyed this series of birding in Delaware and my sunset shots. Thanks for visiting my post and  blog and I always appreciate your comments.


I am starting a new MEME called Saturday Critters..Saturday Morning 8am EST...join in on the party and post your cute critters.


To see more pretty skies from around the world please visit  Skywatch Friday
and to see more of the winged critters check out NF Winged

Thanks to Sylvia, Yogi  and Sandy for hosting Skywatch Friday! Thanks to Monica the host of NF Winged.   I wish everyone a safe and happy long weekend.

Bald Eagles

I am linking up Camera Critters and I'd-Rather-B-Birdin.

Happy Memorial Day weekend.  God Bless and Thank You to our Veterans and soldiers!

These are some shots of the Bald Eagles hubby and I saw last weekend in Delaware. Most of the Eagles were seen at Bombay Hook NWR and one on a field as we were driving to the wildlife refuge.

We saw this juvie Bald Eagle land on this field, it captured something to eat twice as we watched from the side of the road.

This eagle was perched along the side of the wildlife drive in Bombay Hook NWR.

Also seen at Bombay Hook this Eagle was sitting on top of one of the mounds where we usually see ducks or geese sitting.

A cloudy gray evening, this Bald Eagle was perched on a dead tree limb in Bombay Hook NWR.

A few more critters we saw during our visit to the wildlife refuge.

I hope you enjoyed my critter post. I hope everyone has a happy weekend. Thanks for stopping by and I always appreciate your comments. To see more beautiful photos and cute critters

 please visit:  Camera Critters and I'd-Rather-B-Birdin. Thanks to the gracious hosts Misty Dawn of Camera Critters and to Anni of I'd Rather-B-birdin.

Bombay Hook NWR

I am linking up Camera Critters and I'd-Rather-B-Birdin.

Last weekend hubby and I took a daytrip to Bombay Hook NWR in Delaware. Another one of my favorite wildlife refuges to visit.  We saw tons of birds, one of the largest flocks of Dunlins, Plovers and other shorebirds mixed in. We saw American Avocets, Black necked Stilts, some cute Common Yellowthroats, Great Egrets, Snowy Egrets,  Great Blue Herons, Cormorants, Laughing Gulls, Black Crowned Night Herons and more.

One of the first sights you see when you enter Bombay Hook NWR  is the Purple Martin houses they are close to the visitor center.

Then you can start the wildlife drive, the first pond is a must stop to check out all the birds. On this day they were plentiful. Above are some American Avocets along with some Bellied Bellied Plovers and Dunlins.

Some days are like this, the birds pick up, flying in unison usually to confuse a hawk.

What an amazing number of shorebirds!

I have witnessed this scene many times and it still is just amazing to see. After they calm down, they land and start feeding again.

What ever scared the Dunlins to take off did not seem to bother the Avocets, they stayed in their same happy spot.

The photo above show some of the Bombay Hook marshland habitat. You can see the Cormorant, Egrets and Great Blue Heron are doing well at Bombay Hook.

The Black Necked Stilts are one of my favorite shorebirds. They are so cute!

Sorry, these shots are not the best they were all taken from my car window. I really liked this Snowy Egret perched on a tree. I hope you enjoyed my birds and  post.

I hope everyone has a happy weekend. Thanks for stopping by and I always appreciate your comments. To see more beautiful photos and cute critters please visit:  Camera Critters and I'd-Rather-B-Birdin. Thanks to the gracious hosts Misty Dawn of Camera Critters and to Anni of I'd Rather-B-birdin.

Birding Bombay Hook and Delaware

I am linking up with Mosaic Monday  and  Our World Tuesday

I have been posting so many photos from my trip I have been ignoring other outings I have been on since being home. We visited the Delaware shore and the Bombay Hook NWR the weekend of the Super Moon.

 Above Bonaparte's Gulls, Dowitchers, Super Moon, Swallow at the Dupont Nature Center, last bottom right more Dowitchers.

The mating season of the horseshoe crabs happens during the spring full moon when the tides are high. The female horseshoe crab will dig a hole in the sand and deposit her eggs and then the male will fertilize the eggs with his sperm. Nature is cool. Somehow the migrating shorebirds, especially the Red Knots find their way to the Delaware shore to feast upon these horseshoe crab eggs. Apparently, the birds know the schedule better than I. We were a few days to a week early to see the large count of shorebirds. But, I was happy to see all the Dunlins with their spotted black bellies, the Ruddy Turnstones, Dowitchers and hundreds of gulls.

 From a distance it was hard trying to id all the smaller shorebirds mixed in with the gulls. But, I did see a few Red Knots, Ruddy Turnstones and lots of Dunlins.

During this visit we also make a quick stop at the Bombay Hook NWR. The wildflowers looked beautiful and enjoyed seeing more birds.

The Yellow Crowned Night Heron  was seen near the Black Crown Night Heron rookery. The BC Night Herons were perched in trees between the leaves so it was difficult to see them much less take any photos. I did count at least 7 BC Night Herons but I am sure there were many more.

 The wild irises were gorgeous.

We saw many BC Night herons, Great Egrets, GB Herons, Snowy Egrets,  along with Dowitchers and more Dunlins.

Back at home we were able to see the full moon setting over our lake.


To see more wonderful mosaics and photos please visit Mosaic Monday  and Our World Tuesday. 
Thanks to Mary for hosting Mosaic Monday and thanks to the hosting group at Our World Tuesday: Arija, Gattina, Lady Fi, Sylvia and Sandy.

Also, thanks for stopping by to see my post and I hope everyone has a great week ahead.

Bombay Hook NWR, 75th Anniversary

I am linking up with Mosaic Monday and Our World Tuesday

On Saturday, hubby and I drove to Delaware to visit Bombay Hook NWR. I included a link for Bombay Hook NWR which lists the many activities they will be having during their anniversary celebration. If you want to visit during this time you can check out the calendar of events. We did not know until we arrived at Bombay Hook, they are celebrating their 75th anniversary. The Bombay Hook National Wildlife Refuge was established in 1937.

 In my mosiac above I have a cute Pied Billed Grebe, tree blossoms, Great Egret, raft of Coots, Yellowlegs, three Black Crowned Night Herons in the tree, Blue-winged Teals, and Purple Martins at their house.

I believe the bird with the highest count seen at Bombay Hook were the Coots. Hubby and I were in disagreement over the count. I said there was close to a thousand Coots throughout the refuge and hubby had a lower count of 700-800. The other highest count birds were Dunlins and Sanderlings?  The Coots were in such large groups, I was never able to fit a group on one photo. We also saw some Yellowlegs and maybe Dowitchers. I am happy the shorebirds are arriving.

The Blue-winged teals were also plentiful at the refuge.

We saw lots of cute frogs too.

A few of the Black-Crowned Night herons look like they were napping. Their beaks are tucked into their chest. Do you see three of the Night herons? Their Black Crowns and white chest are pretty easy to see.

One of the activities they had on Saturday was a display of the wild birds of prey which are native or known to migrate thru this area.  Included were the Red-tailed hawk, Merlin, Peregrine Falcon, Broad-winged hawk and a Red-Shoulder hawk.


The Wild birds of Prey program is a cool experience to see these beautiful bird up close and learn more about them. It is sad to learn each one had some kind of disability. The Red Shouldered Hawk was blind in one eye and the Merlin had a broken wing. The Red-tailed hawk was actually the western species and had a beautiful white chest which is different than the east species which has the dark belly band.

I thought the hawk in the back was beautiful and is the western version of the Red-tailed Hawk.

I hope you enjoyed my post and I appreciate the visits and the comments.

To see more wonderful mosaics, post  and photos click here Mosaic Monday  and Our World Tuesday. 
Thank You to Mary of Mosaic Monday and to the hosting group of Our World: Arija, Gattina, Lady Fi, Sylvia and Sandy.