Small Flock of Wood Ducks

I was so very pleased to find a small flock of Wood Ducks last Tuesday ( August 22) in a small pond nearby.  There were 4 or 5 or perhaps more.  I believe they were all males.  I was able to crop and edit one individual from the group.  this was an exciting find as I have not seen any Wood Ducks in this setting all summer, which was unusual.

Shown above is the small flock I saw on Tuesday

Above is one of the male Wood Ducks seen in the small flock.

Then hoping to find the group again I returned to the same location on Friday and oh, so lucky I saw a small group in the water again, but before I could take their picture in the water they took off and following are a few pictures I was able to capture of them in flight! 

Their take off was in a bit of a jumble, 

however they sorted themselves out in flight as they flew away

These pictures verify my original estimate that is was a small flock of four or five.

And now that I have downloaded and posted these photos I now have a desire to return to the location and see if I can find them again today.

Have a wonderful day everyone!

Great |Blue Heron for Saturday Critters

Yesterday afternoon my husband and I had been commenting on our lack of sightings of Great Blue Herons this summer. Later that afternoon I had decided to check out a favourite pond for Wood Ducks as I had seen three there earlier this week. As I was studying the pond for signs of movement which might suggest a duck or two among the water foliage I saw a huge bird rise from the pond area and fly away. Quickly aiming my camera randomly I was able to capture a few glimpses of a departing Great Blue Heron.

I am linking today to Eileen's Saturday Critters which can be found at:

viewingnaturewitheileen.blogspot.ca,

My appreciative thanks to Eileen for her hosting of this meme.

Young Buck

I used to go out early in the morning looking for birds and geese.  Now I know when I go out I will see the sunrise around seven and most likely I will see a deer or two!  This morning I was very pleased to see a sighting that I seldom see, a Young Buck.

His sprouting antlers were so beautiful!!! I think the deer in the background might be a brother to the buck in the foreground? Perhaps I can find them both again tomorrow morning  and verify my curiosity.

Have a wonderful day everyone.  Its forecast to be a very hot, humid one here.

Common Wood Nymph Butterfly

I have not seen many butterflies in our yard this summer. Usually I can rely upon our fair sized Purple Cone Flower  patch to host a few butterflies on sunny summer days, but for some reason this summer I have not as yet seen any butterflies there!
The hero  flower patch today has been a few purple  Gayfeather blooms ( aka Liatris).
Early this afternoon while scanning our flower beds I spied movement among the purple bristles of our Liatris spikes.

Ah ha!  I got its picture and after tracking it as it settled on our lawn I was able to id the butterfly as a Common Wood-Nymph.
The two eyes on its Forward Wing are very distinctive!

Tomorrow I shall drive to an area when I have found this species other summers and perhaps I will find others of this  Satyr grouping. 

My companionable camera shall assist me in my endeavour. Until tomorrow.

Ruby-throated Hummingbird for Saturday Critters

Usually I take many Hummingbird pictures over the summer but this year the opportunity to take Hummingbird pictures has been rather elusive.  For some reason my timing has been off or these beautiful little birds have been a no show situation.  
Finally yesterday, I got a couple of photos but not taken in the best of locations.  I am standing in my dining room looking out through the slats of our venetian blinds as a female Ruby-throated was feeding at one of our feeders. The third photo is of a little hummingbird resting on our clothesline.

 I am linking today to Eileen's Saturday Critters meme which can be found at:

http:/viewingnaturewitheileen.blogspot.ca

My appreciative thanks to Eileen for her hosting of this blog. Have a wonderful weekend everyone!

Colour My World Red with Friday's Skywatch

I left my house shortly after 6 a.m this morning, hoping an early start would reveal some deer feeding around the community.  Yes, I found four deer but my most worthwhile find was a beautiful early morning sunrise.

The beautiful red of the spreading light coloured the sky around it a beautiful colour

I am linking this morning to skywatch Friday which can be found at:
http://skyley.blogspot.ca/

E is for egg for ABC Wednesday

 One day in 2011 My husband and I visited a garden shop, The  garden shop worker told us that a Robin had built a nest and had laid one egg in it. I told her that I would love to see the nest?. She took me outside and moved some potted plants on the shelf that were placed there for keeping the nest hidden for the safety of the bird and the nest.The beautiful blue egg looked cold  and I could see some water drops on the egg. Perhaps it was a young inexperienced Robin that had laid it. I wonder if it will be back to sit on the egg? I somehow think, not likely. Perhaps the fact that there was only one egg might be an indication that the bird had changed its mind about nesting at that location. It is wonderful how the staff of the garden center are looking after the nest location and protecting it and the egg. I shall have to return next weekend and ask about its development. Isn't the egg a most beautiful colour?!!" We  returned and had checked back later to learn that the Robin had never returned and that the egg had not developed and hatched.

Flash forward one year and we returned again to the same garden shop:

The next year  we returned to the garden center ( where we had seen a robin" egg the previous year)  to buy some pansies for our garden, and as soon as we arrived we saw this sign shown below!

Ah ha.. a staff now experienced with finding  a Robin's nest with eggs laid in it! had made and posted a signto alert the public to the presence of the eggs.   Ah ha!  Its seems that last year's events have been repeated.  Last week, a Robin built a nest

there among the pots of flowers.  I have drawn a circle on the picture to show where the nest was. Look carefully and you can see the eggs in the nest,

These three beautiful abandoned eggs shown above were never hatched. Their potential was never realized.  This was a very bad  location choice by an inexperienced Robin.

End of story as we  had returned to the same garden center the next year and asked if there had been  any nest building or egg laying the next year. Hopefully the egg laying Robin hah found an excellent location, having learned from her previous bad choices and has raised a successful brood of beautiful young birds.

Yes, I know, its a long story but I chose to relate it instead of just showing the egg pictures.

I am linking today to ABC Wednesday Round #21 hosted by Melody. Thank you Melody. The link can be found here:

 https://abcwednesday.com/

Two does and Two fawn for Saturday Critters

People have been mentioning seeing twin fawns around the neighbourhood, however, yesterday morning I saw two fawns and two does. Twins? Perhaps not, however their

status does not take anything away from their beauty. Below is a picture showing two fawn and just one doe

I went out early this morning to look for this white tailed group but did not fond them. It is an overcast cool morning and perhaps they are nit stirring yet.  I do hope to see them another day as any deer sighting gives an uplifting start to any day.

I am linking today with Eileen at viewingnaturewitheileen .blogspot.ca

A nice day is wished for everyone.

morning sunrise for Skywatch Friday

Early this morning at about 7 a.m., he sun was shining brightly announcing a lovely new summer's day with sun and heat, just about right.  A few dark clouds in the sky brought reminders of thunderstorm watches the previous evening but there is

no precipitation forecast for today.
I am linking today to Skywatch Friday which can be found at:
http://skyley.blogspot.ca/

Early Morning along the River for Our World Tuesday

I went out at 6 a.m. this morning, hoping to see a few deer.  However no deer so I headed to an observation post along the river  and  I was able to capture the sunrise .

and some early morning fog lifting from the river.

I also watched an eagle fly upriver to land and perch in a tree.

Also a distant sandpiper wandering around on some rocks in the river, it was  too distant for an exact id, but it was probably a spotted sandpiper.

And lastly a prize sighting for the morning as I love to see Kingfishers.

Yes, one landed on a rock in the river before travelling further upstream.  Its going to be a lovely day, not too hot, just right if I can trust the weather forecast to be accurate and it usually is.  Hopefully I will see some butterflies today, and |I suspect we have a Red-bellied Sapsucker around our yard and maybe I will get to see it today!
For the first time , I have decided to link with Our World Tuesday which can be found at:http://ourworldtuesdaymeme.blogspot.ca/