Sunday, December 9, 2012

Fine Feathered Friends

“In order to see birds it is necessary to become a part of the silence.” 
~ Robert Lynd

Whether on the wing or at rest, birds are lovely to watch and fun to photograph. Since I've been doing just that the past several weeks, I'd like to share a few of those images below.

cardinal with spindleberries
A while back, when I posted some pictures of spindle berries, my fine bloggie pal Suldog asked me if they were edible. I have to admit to not knowing that for sure at the time, though I suspected they were not, as the "berry" part is really more like a seed. I looked it up when responding to him and learned that they are edible for birds but rather poisonous for humans. Being one of the feathered variety, this Cardinal was checking them out a few days later.




geese in a row
Canada geese - relaxing, preening and doing a fair bit of pooping atop the dam of our local pond.




mockingbird on tree
One of my favourite feathered friends is the Northern Mockingbird. He he is perched at the top of a dead tree by the pond. I'm also quite fond of that tree, and have posted images of it frequently.




mockingbird
Here's a closer look at this sweetie. It's not the best exposure or even his best side but I'm always happy to see and share him.





Ms Mallard
Ms. Mallard is showing off her lovely colours in the late day sunshine.





downy landing
This little Downy Woodpecker was flitting about while I was out walking. It's not a great shot but after several attempts, I finally managed to capture it flying between the branches of this pine tree.




hawk through windshield
Much to my surprise, I snapped the photo of this hawk through the car windshield while Frank was driving.




ducks landing
Two ducks and a gull - the subjects of this photo are in shadow, but I still loved the colours in the trees and the reflection in the creek.




young gull
Over that same creek, you can see gulls flying around at most any time of day. This is a young one, who hasn't acquired his bright, white plumage yet.




sparrow cutie2
This sweet, little sparrow almost faded into the similar colouring of the foliage. If you look closely, you can see a bit of red on his beak from nibbling hawthorn berries.




young heron4 takeoff
Last, but never least, the Great Blue Heron, after he had had enough of my incessant picture snapping. Sorry bud!

More photos in a few days.

44 comments:

Bob Bushell said...

Lovely, all the birds seem pleasantly carrying on doing with what they do, eating and reproduction. Love 'em.

Brian Miller said...

nice...actually i really like the action shot of the little downy woodpecker....ha on all the duck poop as well...that does happen...hope you are having a great weekend hilary....

Anonymous said...

Great shot of the hawk from the car! Usually car photos don't come out near that well. It's pretty much perfect!

Dan said...

It's kinda of neat to think we see these birds on our own or through other bloggers photos and yet we never get tired of seeing them.

Great selection of feathers to share.

TexWisGirl said...

love all of your feathered friends and foliage. the canadian geese lined up are great. :)

Frank Baron said...

Fine shots of our feathered buddies. :)

Tabor said...

Great and sharp action shots of birds. What lens are you using these days?

Kerry said...

Every one of these is so special. And I love the opening quote.

Nadezda said...

Hillary, I love the picture of Canadian geese, they remind me the schoolchildren in uniform waiting before class.

OmaLindasOldeBaggsandStuftShirts said...

I love wild birds. And you photos of the varieties that you have in your area of the world are wonderful to behold. Thanks very much for sharing, especially the cardinals....we don't have them at all in NM. Happy Sunday, Oma Linda

Maggie May said...

I especially love the photo of the Mocking bird on the old tree stump and the cardinal. We don't have either of these birds in England. Mores the pity.
Maggie x

Nuts in May

Russell said...

Lots of very nice images - as always.

I really like the photo of the sparrow. The Northern Mockingbird picture is especially good, too (keep in mind that is a relative statement - all the pictures are good).

Of course my favorite is the first one of the cardinal. We had some snow here in Iowa this morning and I saw a beautiful red cardinal on a branch covered with snow. Where was my camera??! Heh!

Take care.

lime said...

oh i love that cardinal. so bright and cheery. the sparrow is lovely too. your bird shots always impress me.

Linda at To Behold The Beauty said...

I have to admit that I had a little concern when I read that the picture of the hawk flying over the tree had been taken through the windshield. It appears that Frank was driving straight toward that tree. That could be bad. :)

All the pictures are wonderful, of course. The sparrow won my heart, but the cardinal and the downy woodpecker were both pretty spectacular, too.

Unspoken said...

I want to see red birds in the trees in winter! Magnificent!

DJan said...

What fabulous bird pictures, Hilary. I especially love the pretty cardinal and the geese all in a row... but they are ALL wonderful! :-)

Kerri Farley said...

LOVE your birdies!

Red said...

An awesome lot of excellent bird photos. Really like the shots of birds flying.

Cloudia said...

LOL, was so inspired by your opening quote that I went and crafted a WHOLE post [Tuesday] based on it (and my new zoomier point-and-shoot).

You have all gems here, each worthy of contemplation on the wall for many years. thank Gd for Pinterest!

Wising YOU
an Aloha-filled week, from Waikiki
Comfort Spiral

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ellen abbott said...

mockingbirds are one of my favorites. I love when they get on a high perch and sing.

Leave It To Davis said...

With each turn of the wheel on my mouse, I gasped. Each picture more beautiful than the last! How do you do it? I bow before you! And I turn green with envy!!!! LOVE EVERY SINGLE ONE OF THESE!!!!!

Dave said...

Lovely bird shots Hilary. I specially liked the bird (small bird shot) on the old tree stump - Dave

Aritha V. said...

What an amazing world we live in! beautiful photo's. Thanks I may see them!

Anvilcloud said...

Birds are great. I sure enjoyed my encounter with them this past week.

Rosemary Aubut said...

Awesome images! Breathtaking!

Leah J. Utas said...

Excellent photos. I love the birds on the wing, especially the woodpecker, and the cardinal is always a treat.

Suldog said...

I wonder how many people downstream of that dam think "Ah! Nice fresh clean natural water!" and take a long drink? Ugh.

Anonymous said...

What lovely shots - I do adore that cardinal!

Anonymous said...

These are wonderful, and I'm really impressed with that one of the hawk through the window! Our birds must all be up there with you - there are hardly any in the Hollow right now, so I'm very grateful to you for sharing these!

Daryl said...

what an amazing collection of birds

photowannabe said...

Oh my Hilary, spectacular photos.
I am always fascinated with cardinals since we don't have these lovely creatures here in Northern California.
They always make me think of Christmas cards.
Terrific capture of the hawk and I especially like the composition of the mockingbird on the stump. The curves are so visually pleasing.

Anita said...

There is a blue heron that frequents the wetlands behind my house. I can stare at it for as long as it will let me. A friend and I see it about once a week during a walk through the neighborhood. I "must" do as you do and take the camera. I love all your bird shots. What is it about birds that most of us like? :)

Karen (formerly kcinnova) said...

You do indeed have some fine feathered friends, Hilary. It's hard to pick a favorite... the very first makes me miss the songbirds of Virginia and the bright red cardinals that frequented our yard, and the views of the creek make me miss the gentle kayaking sessions on the river north of town here.

photowannabe said...

Sorry about the Small World tune. (:0)
It does have a way of repeating over and over and over and over.......

Lynne with an e said...

Sometimes, Hilary, your blog posts really are for the birds: most delightfully so! (You know I'm not flipping you the bird here.)

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/world/where-did-the-term-flipping-the-bird-come-from/article544057/

Reb said...

Just lovely! The hawk from the car window is a great capture and I love the cardinal. Canada Geese and their poop - can't have one without the other. :)

SandyCarlson said...

Your birds are absolutely gorgeous. I love being in your zone.

Glo said...

Lovely to see your eastern birds ~ The cardinal is indeed a beauty! I also love the first quote :)

Stewart M said...

What a great set of images - I don't really know which one I like the most - I actually like the hawk image.

Cheers

Stewart M - Melbourne

Bossy Betty said...

Ahhhhh! You made my heart take wing!

Reena said...

Love the geese line-up. Have a great weekend Hilary!

Unknown said...

Hi Hilary: Hope you are enjoying the season! I love these photos and always try to decide which one is my favorite. They're all great! :)

Brian Miller said...

hey dropped back a post to ask you a question....

can i use a couple of your macro shots to get my online poets group to write to? i am doing an article on detail this weekend and thought they would work great...

i will make sure correct attribution is given....

please?

smiles.

Betty Manousos said...

sheer gorgeousness!!
love all of these photos..it's really hard to pick a favourite.

big hugs