Two Pigeons, a White and a Grey for Saturday Critters

Yesterday on my way home from grocery shopping we stopped by the roadside when I had seen a white pigeon on a roof last week. Looking again for the white bird my husband spied it beside the chimney. I had the wrong camera settings on my Canon ti3 and the pictures were very overexposed, however seen below is one of my photo captures after photo editing.

There are two pigeons beside the chimney. The one on the left is white and the one to the lower right of the white pigeon is grey, although a light grey, and you can compare their colouring with the other pigeons there.

I also had my Canon D20 with me and I had my 400mm lens on it but I had difficulty focusing on the pigeon at first. When first seeing the white pigeon I hadn't seen the white grey one at its side, and I was surprised to see it when downloading.I wasn't sure the grey pigeon was real as it was smaller than the white and somehow it appeared one dimensional to me, like a cutout , but no, I guess it was another pigeon..  But how fascinating to see another almost white pigeon.  I shall check them out again  later today to see what I can find. Perhaps there are more lighter pigeons in this flock!
Today I am linking to Eileen's Saturday Critters at:
http://viewingnaturewitheileen.blogspot.ca/

First day of Spring

This is not the first day of spring that I had anticipated! I am very disappointed and feel very let down.
Although it is a beautiful day I do hope that this is the last snowy day of spring!!

                             A spring view along my street!

  Spring in my backyard on this, the first day of spring! Humbug!!!

Star;lingsToday!

Tomorrow is the first day of spring!!!
The thought of it makes my heart sing!!

Heavy snowfall warning you say?!
That doesn't ruin my day
The sun is getting so strong
That snow won't last long!!!!

And my spring song is strong!!!

                             The Starling above is an adult breeing bird showing a yellow bill.

Another indication of an adult breeding Staring are the wings edged or trimmed with brown.

Full Wolf Moon

I guess being an early riser has its benefits, at least it did this morning when I saw this beautiful full moon in the south west sky.

Many names of full moons originated with the north American Indians.  The Full Wolf Moon derived its name from the observance of hungry Wolves howling at this full moon signaling the coming of spring.  This full moon is also known as the Full Sap Moon and that is self explanatory for those living here in Eastern Canada.  This is the time of year when Maple trees are tapped and their sap is collected and boiled down and made into maple syrup and maple sugar. 

Another name for this moon is the Full Crust Moon as it is at this time of year when a hard crust is frozen on the top of the snow  which has melted and softened during the sunny daytime hours, onlyto then be then frozen over again during the colder, dark nighttime.

The Full Worm Moon derives its name from worm activity at this time of year surfacing through the snow.  The Full Worm Moon is often a time of returning Robins looking for worms to feed on.
Whatever name you chose to identify this moon by, We probably will not all agree on the name of this full moon name, however I think we will all agree on its beauty in the night and early morning sky!

Thinking Green today

Presently our yard is full of snow , but we hope that Bird Alley will soon look as invitational and inviting as it has looked in the past.What can be lovelier on this St. Patrick.s Day than to recall green memories of a beautiful green Bird Alley. Have a great day everyone!

A Special Find, a White Pigeon

Yesterday while driving home I saw a group of Pigeons or rock doves all lined up in a row on the redgeline of an old barn: And to my delight at the end of the line I saw a white pigeon.

So today I decided to see if I could find the white bird and I did!!!!

This photo was taken with a 300mm zoom lens.  Tomorrow I plan on returning to the location and taking my 400 mm lens with me.  I am quite sure the Pigeon will still be there with others in its Pigeon flock.  This Pigeon is almost pure white except for a slight beige or brown colouring under the underside of its tail feathers.  And you might wonder how  I am sure its a Pigeon.. Well relying upon the old adage"Birds of a feather flock together" , the picture below shows the white bird with all of its other feathered buddies (Pigeons)

Black-capped Chickadees

 We had a lot of chickadees in Bird Alley yesterday feeding before the onset of our current snowstorm.
These birds are very fast and light on their feet.  These pictures shows a Chickadee with a not so tight grasp on its perch.  Was it beginning to fall or just in 'take off '

mode as my camera caught its falling appearance?

A Spring Reappearance; Purple Finch

Although we are waiting in anticipation and apprehension for a big winter storm which is headed our way to hit, I still remain aware that spring is near and very close by. Instead of snowflakes swirling in the air outdoors I shall pretend they are returning birds. The appearance of birds that haven't been present at our feeders all winter long is one such indication of an approaching seasonal change. This handsome male Purple Finch , shown above,made its seasonal reappearance at our feeders on Monday.
 He was a lovely sighting!  I haven't seen him since but after this coming storm is over and the official start of spring arrives next week I assume we will be welcoming many more of this species at our feeders!  Isn't the anticipation of spring great!

Words and Letters with alphabet photography, a personal challenge

I am posting this photo to Donna's monthly photo challenge, where each month Donna hosts a theme.  This month's theme is "words and letters. I am excited by my own personal challenge of being able to find the entire letters of the alphabet in nature.  It will become a spring and summer photo challenge for me.  Within the picture of the Ladybug I have found three letters from the alphabet.  The letter W  on the forehead of the ladybug is very obvious to see, and there is an uppercase T on the end of each front leg of the Ladybug.  Also the division line on the back of the shell separates the shell into two distinct uppercase D's. The title for today's picture is

.                                                  "W is for words"
If you would like to contribute to Donna's challenge or view the entries of other bloggers you may find Donna's challenging blog by clicking on the link  shown below: or you may click on the icon for this blog found on the top of of the column on the right hand side of this page.  Have a great day everyone.
 http://apersonalphotochallenge.blogspot.ca/

Early Morning Visitors: Deer

I am an early riser, not necessarily by choice but I often wake early, and so today at 4:30 am, while making  coffee and looking out my pantry window I saw movement at the end of my neighbour's driveway. I could see a deer silhouette in the darkness and so I went to get my camera and crossing my fingers I checked to see that my camera was on an auto,  with a no flash setting and  viola I was able to get two pictures of the deer group .  I have a lot of faith in my Nikon D3100, its a great reliable camera!  The photos are not all that great but you can definitely id that these four legged creatures are deer. There were three of them.

 

Pictures taken at 4:36 a.m.AST this morning.

One Bohemian Waxwing

for the past three days now, we have had one Bohemian Waxwing visiting daily feeding on rose hips on rose vines in our bower.   

This location is a fair distance from our house and I have been taking the pictures from standing in my dining room with my 400mm lens on my old Canon 20D.  It seems that there is just the one Waxwing, it is the only waxwing that we have seen all winter long.

On top of our bower we have a replica of a Chinese Fu dog guardian. I love it when a bird perches on the fudog and that is where the Waxwing stopped for a rest one day earlier this week.

editing note: I had previously mistakenly identified this waxwing as a Cedar Waxwing.  I was wrong about that id.  The waxwing in these photos is definitely a Bohemian Waxwing as (1) its undertail coverts are rufus,(2) it has a rufus tinged face and (3) it has white tips on its wing feathers.One day this week thewaxwing did venture closer to our house and fed on Virginia Creeper berries on vines on top of our pergola and I got to view this magnificent bird a bit closer.

Another sure sign of Spring Approaching: a Ladybug!

Yesterday morning I found a Ladybug on a window in my house which has a southwest exposure.  I slid a piece of paper under the bug to remove it from the window so that I could take a picture of it with my macro lens, thus  the reason for the printed words under the ladybug in the pictures.

A Ladybug is a rather delightful looking creature I think. I find the patterns of nature fascinating!!!
Last year I had found my first  sign of spring ladybug on March 5th, 2013; you can read about it here: http://naturetales.blogspot.ca/2013/03/some-red-in-nature-for-ruby-tuesday-2.html

Yesterday, A Day Full of Surprises!

I love these days leading up to the return of spring as often my optimism is rewarded. Yesterday I was hoping I might find ducks, but the river area I sought out was still frozen, but then I thought perhaps I could find robins, but the wild apple tree where I had found them last year at this time was denuded of apples.  So, I drove on and when I came to a road entrance where previous year I had found Snowbirds( Snow buntings), I decided to check it out.  And much to my delight I found a few Snowbirds along the roadside there.  

When they saw me, they flew up to the overhead wires  and posed for my camera! Next time I shall take my 400 mm lens with me, but these picture will  have to do for now

 .I continued on  my quest for finding some sign of spring and I found it!!!!!  Oh Happy Day, Pussy Willows with their beautiful white fluffy catkins in full view!

 

 Upon returning home I was so very happy with my morning, but the wonders of nature continued as around mid to late afternoon my husband spied bird activity around our bower in our backyard.

  This time I had my 400mm lens and although distant we were able to id the pictures as those of Bohemian Waxwings feeding on rose-hips in our backyard garden area.

  What a grand day it had turned out to be!  Hmmmmm What will today bring? I will keep you posted on today's developments and sightings.

Northern Shrike

It used to be every winter a highlight of Bird Alley was to  see a Northern Shrike fly in and perch among the branches, however we had not seen a Northern Shrike in Bird Alley since 2010, that is until yesterday afternoon!  I was sitting at my bay window that looks out onto Bird Alley watching the Team Canada/U.S.. hockey game and it was intermission time between the first and second period and I looked up and

 

 I saw a light grey colored bird on a branch and I said out loud, " Oh, a female  Evening Grosbeak", as that is what its size and coloring suggested to me.   My husband entering the room looked out and said , "No, and at that moment I realized I was looking at a Northern Shrike!   Luckily

there were no other birds around as the Shrike is a predator bird, carrying from its reputation the nickname of "The Butcher Bird".  It didn't stay long and I did not get many pictures.  Regardless of its disastrous reputation, the shrike is a handsome bird! 

                                                       

Black-capped Chickadees

                      Share your love and food on this stormy Valentine's Day with the birds.  Please feed the birds!!

 A Happy Valentines Day to all.  Sharing my love of Chickadees with you on this day!

Downy Woodpecker

The focus of today's post is this little acrobatic  male Downy

Woodpecker.  This little bird is a frequent visitor and the peanut feeder is his favourite choice to feed at.  As the feeder is low in peanuts and needs refilling this little bird is focusing his feeding at the bottom of the feeder this morning, showing off his versatility at feeding postures.  He is a handsome little bird with his attractive red patch at the back of his head, announcing to the world that he is a male woodpecker.
                     
Other birds at our feeders are Chickadees, Tree Sparrows, one lone Blue Jay and a little Red-breasted Nuthatch.  Its really cold out there this morning and we are awaiting a big snow storm which should roll in by this afternoon.

a Solitary Song Sparrow

So far today, all that I have seen at our feeders is this solitary overwintering little hardy Song Sparrow.  It is very cold outside today at a -26 degrees Celsius reading at our outdoor thermometer.  As my husband described it as he returned to the house after taking the garbage to the curb:" Its a face freezing day out there!"  Oh! oh! and my feeders need refilling, so for sure it is a lined blue jean day from my wardrobe for me.

I know that these three photos

all look alike but they are really three different photos.  I guess they show that this little sparrow isn't very active today.  The only part of it moving is its mouth

another street scene

Actually this street scene below may be a little deceiving as it is not a real street scene.  It is a sculpture found at Market Square at Saint John, New Brunswick.  There is actually a real person in this picture and he ( gender is a clue), just walked away from the group as soon as the photo was taken.
I am shaing this post with Donna's monthly photo challenge which is found at:
a personal photo challenge.blogspot.ca

Winter street scene for challenge

We had more snow on the weekend and this shovel was used extensively this time rather than the snow blower as the snow was so light.  As can be seen in the photo the sidewalk has already been cleared.  I used the handle of the shovel to frame the walker on the sidewalk.

I am posting this photo to Donna's monthly photo challenge, when each month Donna hosts a theme.  This month's theme is "street scene".  My entry is rather empty but it does reflect the appearance of the streets in my town often during this long, cold, snowy wintery season.  I prefer viewing this scene from my windows inside my home.  I am not a winter person.  
If you would like to contribute to Donna's challenge or view the entries of other bloggers you may find Donna's challenging blog by clicking on the link  shown below: or you may click on the icon for this blog found on the top of of the column on the right hand side of this page.  Have a great day everyone.

a personal photo challenge. blogspot.ca

A Nuisance Grey Squirrel!