Thursday, November 26, 2015

Late Pansy blossom in November.

A check in my flower bed this morning revealed this beautiful Pansy blossom in bloom! Yesterday morning it had been rimmed with frost! I had bought cold resistant Pansy seeds in the spring and started them indoors as bedding plants sometime in March or April and then transplanted them as seedlings into my flower bed sometime in May; hoping that I might have some late fall blooms and I am rewarded for this project with this beautiful late Pansy blossom on this cold day of November 26th, 2015.

Friday, November 06, 2015

Red-breasted Nuthatch

Its that time of year again, late fall and Bird Alley is welcoming its usual fall visitors.  Yesterday I got out my bird list journal and started recording the different species visiting.  I only recorded 8 species yesterday  and my numbers are down.  I usually have about 9 species on a daily average at this time of year.  Juncos are missing and I didn't see our treasured Cardinal.  And although I saw a Red-breasted Nuthatch it has been a long time since a White-breasted Nuthatch has appeared.  Surprisingly yesterday we had a male Red-winged Blackbird visiting, and our first very welcome bird visitor was a Red-breasted Nuthatch. Other bird species visiting were Bluejays, Chickadees, a Downy Woodpecker, one female Goldfinch, one Mourning Dove  and several Crows. 







   A sunflower seed seems to be the seed  of choice in both pictures.  We still have a few leaves remaining in Bird Alley and in the top picture a bokeh effect creates a blurred yellow background.  I love this effect created with a low f-stop on an aperture setting.
I'm waiting for daylight and the arrival of the early birds in Bird Alley.  I wonder what or who today will bring?
Happy Birding everyone. Have a great day!!