Saturday's Critters # 377

 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!

1. Looking out my dining room window, I found a few male Cardinals, can you find the lone Goldfinch? On the bottom of the mosaic is the female Red-bellied Woodpecker with a Starling, in the bottom middle are various birds and bottom right is the Hairy Woodpecker. 

2.  Looking out my front window from my exercise bike, there were five Blue Jays motivating me to go one more mile..

3. During one of our recent snow days, I saw lots of Cardinals, Dark-eyed Junco, White-throated Sparrows and the Starlings.

4. In the back part of our yard, I have been seeing the Pileated Woodpecker at our wood pile.  

5. The Cardinals do look so bright and pretty with a snowy background. Far bottom left is a female Cardinal and far right is the Goldfinch.

As I type this post it is so cold out, a mere 14° early in the morning.

We had a snowy February, I will be happy to see winter come to an end.  Take care, stay safe and warm.  See you next Saturday! 

 Thanks to all my visitors and for your comments. Stop back to see any replies to your comments. I appreciate everyone who loves critters and has linked up their critter post. 


Here is my linky:

 

 Also visit:  I'd-Rather-B-Birdin. Thanks to the host Anni.

 

Wolf Moon

Happy Thursday,

I hope everyone is staying warm and safe in this cold weather we have been having, I am ready for Spring.  Sorry, if I am repeating myself, but I am not a Winter lover.  The almost full moon on Jan 3rd. This moon is called the Wolf Moon and there will a second full moon on January 31st called the Blue Moon. Both January full moon are supermoons. 

Jan 3rd, I captured this pretty female Cardinal.

The Starlings are not one of my favorite feeder birds, they are pigs and make a mess on the deck. They are pretty with their green and purple sheens.  I was happy to see these birds move on. Here is a Starling fact, they were introduced to Central Park NYC in 1890 and quickly spread.

January 4th the morning of the big storm, we had a dusting of snow. Much of the storm stayed east of us and closer to the coast. 

What is your latest favorite book?  I saw that Jeanie of The Marmelade Gypsy recommended The Red Notebook by Antoine Laurain. I was able to download this ebook and read in one day, it was not very long but I enjoyed the story. I am always looking for good books to read and would be happy for more recommendations. 

I am thankful for a good book to read on a cold winter day.

I am thankful we had heat and a warm house on the super cold days. I can not imagine going without heat, we have much to be grateful for. 

I am thankful for all your visits and comments this past year. 


Thank you Michelle for hosting. Thankful Thursday

Thank you to the hosts of   Skywatch Friday


Thanks so much for visiting and for your nice comments on my previous post. Have a happy day!

Hurry Spring!

Linking up with Skywatch Friday  and Good Fences  

I just can not get over how fast time is flying, it is almost the end of February.. I am happy that Spring is almost here.. The Mid-Atlantic states have not been enjoying the early and warm weather that the west coast is having. I wish it was a warm winter here, it has been an awfully cold winter!  I am sharing more scenes from this past weekend and earlier in the week, I hope you enjoy!

A cute snow covered squirrel. And another can you find the Junco shot?  BTW, do you see the fence?

A multi fence shot, with my deck railing, chained link fence and a fence further off. Do you see my neighbor with his snow blower.. He was very nice and helped hubby clean the snow off our driveway..Can you see the snow blowing up and into the woods..

You know me by now, I just have to share some birds on my post, some more colorful Starlings..

My skywatch shot, some neat contrails and the sunset...At least I enjoy the pleasures of skywatching.

A pretty sky, the contrail and  sliver of moon on the far top left.. Do you see the moon?

My moon capture taken on Feb 22nd.. I hope you enjoyed my latest post.. Thanks for stopping by and for the nice comments..

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

Thanks to Theresa @ The Run*A*Round Ranch for hosting Good Fences and thanks to Sylvia, Yogi  and Sandy for hosting Skywatch Friday.    I wish everyone a happy day and weekend ahead..

Around the Yard_Feb 18

Linking up with Skywatch Friday  and Good Fences  

During these cold winter days I am like a bear and just hibernate. I have not been out of the house, except to go on the deck to fill up the bird feeders and birdbath..So I am sharing some archive fence shots or some sky shots taken from my deck and yard and some from the neighborhood.

I have been having problems with my reading list on blogger.  Some post do not update and then I seem to have had one called Ihsan NR @ Bathroom Design Interior. I do not remember following this blog..and I had the hardest time trying to find a way to unfollow this blog, it was so ANNOYING. This blog had posts  updating every couple of seconds on my reading list.. I finally found a way to unfollow this advertisement blog..If I have unfollowed you, it was by mistake. I was unfollowing any blog I did not recognize which may have been a mistake..

A cold but pretty sky..our temps have been in the single digits and low teens..with the wind chill even below zero..Come on Spring, hurry up and get here..

Above is my view while walking on the treadmill..the blue jays always scare away the small birds.

On days when we head over to the local town, we drive by this farm..They have goats, a donkey and lots of hogs..

I have shown this fence before, they have birdhouses on each post..We pass this fence on the way to the local town also..Some times they replace the old houses with new fresh new bird houses..

One day my yard and feeders were taken over by a large flock of blackbirds, the flock included this Common Grackle. Not sure if my deck railing counts as a fence shot..I am stretching it some..

A sunrise with some pretty pink clouds beyond our trees..

This moon shot was taken on Feb 12..

More of the blackbirds..Starlings blending in with one of our pine trees in the back yard..How many starlings do you see? I hope you enjoyed my photos and post. I hope everyone stays warm and safe on these brutal cold days..

Thanks for stopping by and for the nice comments..

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

Thanks to Theresa @ The Run*A*Round Ranch for hosting Good Fences and thanks to Sylvia, Yogi  and Sandy for hosting Skywatch Friday.    I wish everyone a happy day and weekend ahead..

Saturday's Critter's #56

Saturday's Critter's #56

Hi everyone, I hope you had a great first week or so of the New Year.. It's Saturday and its time to share your critters.. Any kind of critter will do, even a new or old post.. I appreciate everyone who has linked up in the past and for those who are linking in on this week's critter party. And of course I always appreciate my blogging friends stopping by just for a visit.

Also, I hope you can check out the post at Anni's I'd-Rather-B-Birdin.  You should also check out Misty Dawn's Camera Critters.


Since being retired I am checking out my local bird list to see what new birds maybe in the area.  Usually I have not been able to chase down birds since I was working.  Now I am going to have to check on the list and I may be able to pick up a lifer or two.. This weeks rare birds in the area were not lifers just an odd bird for Maryland. The Sandhill Crane was one of my chase birds but I have seen them here before.

So I am off and hubby is along with me. I decide to make this huge loop trying to first find the Sandhill Cranes.. The weather was not the best for birding..we drove in and out of fog and drizzle..I find the correct road and the parking lot suggested for the Cranes sighting..The corn field (where the cranes were sighted) was socked in with heavy fog. If the Cranes were there they were hiding in the fog. Hubby must have thought I was crazy going out in these conditions..Oh well no luck with Cranes but I did see a few chickens running around the parking lot in the fog.

Next I decided to drive to where the Warblers were being seen, I am not sure if it was the fog, but I missed the spot and drove right past it. I figure what the heck we come this far lets check out the Marshy Point Nature Center. You can see above a few swans and some Gadwall and something else out there lurking in the fog..We walk back to the visitor center to use the loo and we see some odd sights inside..

A starling on a bear's paw..I believe the starling was raised inside the visitor center. It was out of its cage, flying around when it landed on the bear.

An unusual sight to see...a Northern Bobwhite in the hand.

This female Mallard (behind the sign) is another inside bird. Notices were on the door warning do not let the duck outside.. It would not survive..

Another odd sight was coming out of the visitor center and finding this wild turkey sitting in the corner.. It got up right away and walked over to us..

I was able to walk around it, but she seemed to block hubby's way. I think it was her way of asking for food.. Hubby finally managed to get around the turkey.

Next stop where a couple of warblers were being seen at a local park & ride near Baltimore. The warbler must not have wanted to make the long flight to Central America. If it was me knowing the cold weather coming this week, I would have flown south already..The warbler being spotted is the Cape May Warbler. I found this bird at the exact spot is was reported in a tree at a park and ride. Easy peasy, sometimes I can be lucky with my mission..Half of my mission was accomplished one bird seen out the the two I was aiming for..Neither were life birds for me, just odd to be seeing them in Maryland. Stay tuned for more birding adventures.... I hope lucky ones...

An InLinkz Link-up

Thanks to Tex Theresa aka Tex, I was able to add this link up button and thanks to  Jennifer for creating my photo badge.

<a href="http://viewingnaturewitheileen.blogspot.com/"><img src=" https://farm4.staticflickr.com/3915/15299083201_9709303697_m.jpg" width="185" height="240"></a>



Again I thank you for linking up to the critter party. I also appreciate the visits, comments and the support of my blogging friends................... Have a happy weekend!
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.  Also check out Camera Critters. Thanks to Misty for hosting this fun meme.

Around the yard_Jan 26

  I am linking up with Mosaic Monday and Our World Tuesday 

These last two weeks of January seem to be making up for the previous two mild winters we had. The temperatures have been in the single digits and the teens during the day.. With these cold temps the snow is just not melting..I am longing for spring and warmer weather. The birds seem to be adapting to these cold and snowy days.. I am keeping them all well fed.

My Cardinal tree..

A cardinal tree, female and male cardinals and two Grackles.

A pretty male Cardinal

My Redbellied woodie, more cardinals and some Starlings.

A redbellied woodie and a junco outside my window.

The birds have been a treat to watch on these snowy days when I am stuck in the house. I hope everyone is staying warm and safe during this arctic weather we are having.

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 ahead!

The Undesirables

I am linking up with Wild Bird Wednesday and Nature Notes

I have to start by saying this is just my opinion, some birders or people might actually like these bullies birds. But I describe them as my undesirable birds visiting my feeders.  I mainly get upset with them because they are like bully's at the feeders. Scaring away the smaller songbirds that I am trying to attract.

Oh yes, hard to believe my yard is not always filled with beautiful, colorful birds. So here are a few of my undesirable birds. And not everyone will agree and I am half kidding. I love all the birds and wildlife.

The Common Grackle is attractive with its shiny head and iridescent feathers. But, they are big pigs and they scare away my little birds.

Above are two of my undesireables, the Grackle and a Starling. When these two join forces, they can wipe out my feeders. Besides being pigs, they leave a big mess behind. I will not go into what kind of mess they leave behind. But, it is not pretty.

The next undesireable is the Mourning Dove. I know they are cute and sweet looking but, at times I can have 20 or more on my deck railing and feeders. They take over everything and the other poor birds do not stand a chance.  They seem to be over populating, if there is such a thing. Can there be too many Mourning Doves?

And when these large crows coming flying in all loud and crazy, all the other birds leave immediately. They eat all my suet with one large bite. I can not afford to feed these American Crows.

Another one of my undesirables is the Brown-headed Cowbirds. They may not eat as much as the piggies above but their parents skills are lacking when they lay their eggs in other birds nest. They should hang their heads in shame!  I feel sorry for my Cardinal parents that have to raise a baby cowbird along side their own baby cardinals.

Well, I hope you enjoyed my UNDESIRABLE BIRDS post. Thanks for the visit and I always appreciate your comments. Have a great day and week ahead.

To see more beautiful birds please visit Stewart's Wild Bird Wednesday and for some nature scenes visit   Michelle's  Nature Notes