For the Birds

Sorry, folks - still no Posts of the Week as I'm still away. I hope it won't be too long after my return before I can catch up and present a few.

I've used most of these quotes for bird photos before. They make me laugh so I'm using them again with some new pics in this scheduled post.

“When birds burp, it must taste like bugs.” ~ Bill Watterson

A robin showing off how the early bird catches the worm.

“I don't like small birds. They hop around so merrily outside my window, looking so innocent. but I know that secretly, they're watching my every move and plotting to beat me over the head with a large steel pipe and take my shoe.” ~ Jack Handy

A Catbird - I hear them all the time but they're elusive and I find them difficult to see. Frank spotted this one.

“Did St. Francis preach to the birds? Whatever for? If he really liked birds he would have done better to preach to the cats.”
~ Rebecca West

A young Grackle

"What is it about a beautiful sunny afternoon, with the birds singing and the wind rustling through the leaves, that makes you want to get drunk?" ~ Jack Handy

I liked the diagonal line created by the angle of the fence. A male Red-winged blackbird poses nicely.

“The bird thinks it a favor to give the fish a lift in the air” ~ Rabindranath Tagore

That wonderful fishing bird, the Great Blue Heron with a catch. I'm not sure what - perhaps a frog or a crayfish.

"If I could come back as anything - I'd be a bird, first, but definitely the command key is my second choice." (Control key for you non-Mac users) ~ Nikki Giovanni

Here's Mr. Blue again, trying to regain his balance after stepping in a little too deep.

"Growing up, my Mom always claimed to feel bad when a bird would slam head-first into our living room window. If she really felt bad, though, she'd have moved the bird feeder outside." ~ Rich Johnson

A lovely young male Cardinal sits on the dock's railing. Isn't that a handsome crest on his head?

I'm still away from home, enjoying my time up at the cottage. This, along with the previous posts, was scheduled before I left home. This is the last one. Hopefully, I'll be back to catch up in real time before too long.

Petals & Wings

Just a few more images of flowers and birds which I've taken over the past few days.

Flowers for Mother's Day from my younger son, Alex. This along with a hanging basket will help brighten up my front yard. His card to me read "To the most metal Mom out there. Love, Alex" If you're familiar with my boy, you'd know that that was the best compliment he could ever give me. Totally inaccurate, but high praise nonetheless. Thanks, Alex!



The lilacs in my back yard are coming along very slowly, so I wandered over to another location to snap this shot. Lilac is one of my all-time favourite smells.



Dandelions, on the other hand, are growing just fine in my back yard.



Gee, any guesses as to why? Click to enlarge for detail.



Having some fun with my macro setting. Make a wish!



Wandering around my local park, I came upon this wary robin which had just caught a small worm (click to enlarge). A second later it was gone, along with its dinner.



Moving along, I found these three geese standing in line at the top of the dam, at a nearby pond.

Later in the week, I noticed this bird perched upon one of the concrete structures which appeared behind the geese. It was flapping its wings in place, and resting occasionally, but always with its wings outstretched. After checking a few sources, I eventually learned that it was a Double-crested Cormorant - a bird that is quite familiar to many, it seems, but one that I've never seen before.

I learned that its wings will not repel water as with other water birds. Water absorption allows the Cormorant to dive and remain submerged, in order to hunt for fish. It then needs to dry its wings, and does so by flapping and holding them open.



I stood there for so long that the bird eventually turned around and took notice. Please remember to click the photos to enlarge.



A different day, our friend the Great Blue Heron made a return visit. It landed by the shore, but soon waded into the water when it knew I was hoping to get closer. It returns most days around five p.m. so I hope to get more chances to photograph this beautiful bird.