foomamablumbie

where covfefe gets real

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A lot going on these days

Between spring migration and courting season, the birds have been doing a lot of showing up and showing off. Here are a few high points:

After a long absence, the heron came back to the cove.
I like a duck with a simple name. This is a redhead.
This pair of wigeons posed for a long time. I think they knew how pretty they were.
The last few days have seen a ton of cormorants at Tedderhaven. Well, at the lake in front of us. This batch, I swear, was waiting for their friends.
I am really glad that ospreys aren’t interested in eating humans because, well, look at those talons and that beak!
Another wigeon
Mockingbirds make a LOT of noise! This one had a lot to sing about.
Our most exciting bird news is that a pair of black crested titmice (I’m never sure how to pluralize this bird) has laid five or six eggs in one of our nest boxes. The parents go in and out and we’re not quite sure if the eggs have hatched yet.
When birds leave the nestbox, they go really fast because they never know when a predator is lurking close by, ready to pounce.

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Osprey

Going through old(ish) pictures, I found a set of photos showing a really cool thing. Ospreys take their fish to a branch for a leisurely meal, and on the way they turn the fish around so it’s aerodynamically efficient, head forward. They also like to fly around the cove and I pretend they are showing off for me . . .

It’s just amazing what they can do in mid-air. Here it’s getting the fish into the right arrangement.
All set now.

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Back after a long absence

The blog has been dormant but it might be waking up–let’s find out! Here are some photos from the new year.

Leeloo holds the title for most majestic being resident at Tedderhaven.
Pippa and Video are less majestic but more entertaining, generally.
There is something about playing under the car that is irresistible.
Ospreys have terrifying talons.
I now have a filter that enables photos of actual sunspots. Just in time for the part of the eleven year sunspot cycle where we have a lot more activity than usual.
The moon and the osprey are my favorite subjects.

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A few days at the lake

The osprey and the heron made themselves scarce over the summer, or maybe I just wasn’t watching for them. I’m so glad they’re back. The hummingbirds are still here, although the huge pulse of migrants left a week or more ago. We’re looking for monarchs in the next few days.

The monarchs will be passing through very soon and this is not one of them.
Great blue heron
These birds are so big, and their feet! Look at those feet.
Their wings are pretty impressive, too.
But sometimes they are a little ungainly.
The gecko is the opposite of massive. This one was only a couple of inches long.
White lined sphynx moth
I’ve let my hummingbird ID skills slip. This is definitely a hummingbird, pretty sure.
Also massive: ospreys. The end of the cove is just a little too far to get a good photo.
Another blurry photo, but those wings!