Valerean

Last month we came home after running some errands to find this guy sitting on our fence. I shot all these photographs while still in the car, but I was less than three feet away from him. I saw him once before in our front yard, possibly hunting squirrels. It explained why all of the songbirds who hang out at our feeder haven't visited for a few days. I'm pretty sure he's a broad-winged hawk. He's a little bigger than a peregrine falcon, and this is the time of year they migrate through our area. Whatever he is, it was such a thrill to see him up close and be able to snap some pics.

We see this bird very often down by the lake where we walk, usually perched on a rock or branching while sunning itself. I did some research online to learn more about it, and turns out it's an Anhinga. They're underwater hunters that feed mostly on fish, hence the sharp bill and webbed feet. The species is not considered rare or endangered. I like knowing what something is, even if it's a common creature like this that is evidently in no need of official protection. Being aware of the living things that share the world with me makes me think about my impact on the environment, and how I can improve that. Buying a set of reusable straws and cutting my own thread bobbins out of recycled cardboard are two things I've done this month to weed more plastic out of my life. It would be nice if I could get to zero plastic waste someday, so that these guys can go on sunning themselves by the lake long after I've moved on to the next place.

Last night my guy asked me if I wanted to take a walk down by the lake. I refused at first, but then I changed my mind. I'm not getting enough exercise, and I knew we could both use a break outdoors. So we went, and I had the most amazing time, starting with meeting these two young men and their pets on our way to the lakefront park. I have never seen anyone walking a leashed lizard, but he was a friendly guy. The littler one was so cute, too. :) Then the sun began to set, and lit up the horizon in tangerine and gold fire. I was able to get a shot of a seaplane coming in for a landing and a boat against the sunset, too. Most of the time we were watching we had this lovely creature right beside us, too, and we all enjoyed the moment. Best afternoon I've had in a long time.

After it rained all afternoon we took a walk down by the big lake to just get some fresh air: Spotted what looked like a prank -- two bike frames someone waded out to balance on the old pier posts: Also a new-to-us bird -- some sort of little blue heron, I think:

Earlier today I saw a bunch of white ibises in our front neighbor's horse pasture, where they were wading in her seasonal lake (think really big rain puddle.) At the time I didn't have my camera with me, and cursed my bad luck, because they're very cool birds, and we don't see them too often. I think they're also psychic, because when I went out to walk the dogs after dinner, guess who was in my backyard? The brown/spotty ones are the juveniles. Some unhappy trivia about white ibises: they are becoming more prevalent in urban areas due to loss of habitat. Up to a third of these birds are infected with salmonella, which they pick up while foraging, and pass along to humans via their feces. Yet another reason to stop feeding wild birds and otherwise encouraging them to hang with humans. They posed long enough for me to take a few shots, and then flew off: Never a dull moment in the back yard. :)

Ten of My Favorite Bird Pics (All taken by yours truly)

Kat moved her pets home today; the rest of her stuff will be here on Monday. I couldn't get a good shot of her rats (Butter and Toast) but as always the birds were happy to pose. Brings back many happy memories . :)

Today, a little chuckle: Found it in the phone pics Katherine sent to me. :)

Latest pics from the sandhill crane nest:

Our resident pair of sandhill cranes are expecting; Mama just built herself a nest in our neighbor's horse pasture. This species of bird has been around on the planet for about 2.5 million years, according to the fossil record. I shot these pics on zoom from the car; one does not mess with sandhill cranes, as even when they're not nesting they can be very aggressive. This is probably the third or forth brood this pair hatches; we've seen them before with youngsters a couple of times over the years. Fortunately this pasture is fenced off to keep any gawkers from getting too close to Mama. Her mate is also standing guard 24/7. Hopefully in a few weeks I'll get some pics of the babies. Final bit of trivia: sandhill crane babies are called colts, like horses. :)

I have to say goodbye to this little guy today; he's going back to college to live with my daughter. Such a sweetheart -- the friendliest bird I've ever known.