In this case I think it has to be the sixth time that was a charm. I have spent a whole lot of time sitting in the doorway to the lanai with my camera, all in the hopes of getting some photos of a hummingbird. Even today I missed one when it showed up the first time, then it zoomed in again for just a second and left. So I felt like there was no chance that it would be back again, but I got ready anyhow. Not only did he return and I got some pictures, but when I looked at my photos in the computer I saw that the Mrs was with him. Somehow we hadn’t noticed two of them.
I had never seen a male ruby-throated hummingbird in the yard before.Instead of zooming in and then zooming out he stayed and visited the flowers on the firebush.This isn’t the best picture but it really shows up that ruby throat.And here we have the female, which had been the only one we’ve seen so far.
If I applaud myself for my perseverance it sounds a lot better than just admitting that I’m stubborn. I’m so happy to have gotten a chance to get some photos, I hope they come back again.
Do you see it? The egret chick tucked into the foliage at the rookery? I’m not sure that I saw it when I took the picture, seeing it required zooming in. But some movement must have caught my eye and made me concentrate on that spot down low in the shrubbery. Because it was difficult to see I kept looking around for a different nest, an easier to see chick on Easter Saturday.
I wandered the length of the rookery looking for more potential little bobble-heads deep in the nests where adult egrets and wood storks stood watch. But nothing caught my eye except a couple of tricolor herons that popped out of the shrubbery and chased each other around for a bit.When I looked at my photos I wondered why I had taken so many of this Woodstork high in the trees, but then I remembered the dragonflies that were everywhere and I had assumed they’d show up in my photos. Not that you could tell what they are unless I gave you a clue.Finding a spot where the dragonflies were landing wasn’t easy, but I stuck with it because I love them.I eventually gave up my search for another more accessible nest and returned to see the only chicks that I could see.As I took my pictures I wondered if I’d be able to get rid of some of the shrubbery in front of his face using AI. Someone else might do a good job of that but I think it’s beyond me.I spy another little eye! There will be competition at meal time soon enough.
I’ve been fighting off a cold and felt better yesterday so we went out shooting, and I was glad we did. We’ll be stopping by often since the fun is just beginning.
In the meantime Happy Easter to all. I miss the family celebrations of years past, but grateful for the blessings my life holds now. Hoping you also feel blessed this Easter Sunday.
Every so often a new little brown bird shows up out back. Except they really aren’t new, once I look them up I remember that we’ve seen them before. In this case the little brown bird that caught my eye yesterday was a Carolina Wren. I thought the color was so rich, and there is so much detail in the wings. There were a couple of them out there, one of them is the one in the feature photo.
This is the other one, and as you can see in the photo his beak is deformed. After paying attention to birds for a while, and seeing posts from other photographers, you being to realize that something does go wrong in nature now and then. But this bird seems to be doing well, I’m happy to say.See, he snagged a seed no sweat!I so appreciate it when the birds land in my little birdie feeder, which I bought in hopes of it being a photo prop. And this little bird is color coordinated also.Sweet little birdie.
Here’s hoping that this little bird sticks around for a while so we can see how it’s doing.
Last week’s meeting of the photo group not only gave us a heads-up about the Raptor Fest that was taking place on Saturday, but it was also suggested that if you’d gone to St. Pete for that then you might want to stop at a unique local restaurant called The Chattaway. It was a good thing that I took a picture of the front of the building as we drove by because that busy intersection wouldn’t have lent itself to stopping traffic for a better view.
Somehow you just knew that this place was going to have a personality all its own.Walking over the bridge you enter the outdoor seating area and seat yourself at one of the many picnic tables provided. I loved the tubs that bordered the property all the way around.“If you’re drinking to forget, pay in advance”We sat at the bar to be out of the sun, but this was a view of the outdoor area.
Jillian, the 90-something British owner of this family run restaurant, had to help me with the ATM when I saw that it is a cash only restaurant. I blame my lack of readers at that moment. In reading more about the place I saw that they will serve high tea by reservation with 48 hours notice. Cucumber sandwiches and crumpets on the menu for that. We stuck with The Chattaway burgers, which were very good. What a fun place that we probably wouldn’t have found on our own, in sunny St. Pete.
My daughter once asked me if I realized that someone dies in all my books. And yes, I did realize that once she said it. But I thought of myself as a mystery lover, just not necessarily a murder mystery lover. This mystery is a bit tamer than that, and I expect it will never be solved. It involves the cylinder holder that we’ve been using to hold a cranberry/seed cylinder, as seen in the feature photo. The bottom stem part fits into a slot in the top umbrella part, but the seed cylinders are exactly the same length as the stem and it’s hard to see if you have the two parts connected properly. I’ve found the bottom part plus whatever seed is left on the ground once or twice. But last week I saw the top part hanging in place, with no bottom part attached, or anywhere, and it had had a good sized cylinder on it at the time. And so it has remained a mystery as to what happened to it. The metal stem part was T shaped and had a couple of perches for the birds to use to eat, but the tray part was flimsy plastic. Still and all I’d expect to see it under the perch, devoid of seeds maybe, but still there.
Suspect #1, climbs the poles and thinks about how he can get to the feeders.Suspect #2, has in fact managed to conquer the first baffle, but the addition of a second baffle has kept him at bay.Suspect #3, contents himself with eating what the birds scatter under the feeders.For the moment I have retired this cylinder holder. The access from the top and sides has caused it to be devoured in a matter of days. And who is eating all this seed? Not necessarily the cute little birds like this Downey woodpecker, but the vast hordes of red-winged blackbirds that descent like a cloud and take over all the feeders.
And there you have the new set up, for now at least. A new cylinder holder, ka-ching, with a much easier and secure assembly, and a larger ‘roof’ to keep so many birds from accessing it at the same time. And the new little bird feeder that the larger birds seem to have a problem landing on. I’m am hoping that the blackbirds will move on to greener pastures, though they don’t actually migrate. This has been a learning experience for me, and as they all seem to be, an expensive one. But I’m still hopeful that soon the clouds and rain and cooler temperatures will give way to the kind of winter weather that caused us to move to Florida. And we’ll be sitting and enjoying our happy hour with our feathered friends.
A certain photographer I know might not choose to get his camera out when a sunset doesn’t live up to his expectations of what he would like a sunset photo to be. I, on the other hand, take what I get because it’s the sunset I’ve got in front of me and who am I to argue with Mother Nature? And if a pirate ship chooses to sail under a bridge while I’m shooting I’m not going to complain.
The sunrise wasn’t quite as spectacular yesterday either. But I must confess that the iPhone picks up the color beautifully.And even though I had my camera also, and I took HDR images of this same scene, I liked this one from the iPhone best of the bunch.
The colors of the sunrise and sunset were so similar, yet one was from my neighborhood and the other was from Clearwater. So I guess I shouldn’t lament that if I lived closer to the water I’d get better photo ops. Even though it’s probably true…
A Snowbird's Life Through the Lens 