| We will post some of our favorite, more recent pictures here first! |
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| A few more pictures from Ontario, Canada where we had a bit of an Owl fest. (See 12/30/08 for more on Canada) We counted 8 different Snowy Owls and saw numerous Rough-legged Hawks. |
| 1/31/09 found us out at Brigantine NWR, NJ for sunrise. Surprisingly, we got to watch the sunrise in a different manner: reflected in the eyes of a gorgeous Cooper's Hawk (size indicated m) that landed by our car and sat for ages. (Ok - this was probably really only 15 minutes, but ages if measured by a Cooper's normal attention span and distaste for human proximity.) Savannah Sparrows and Am. Pipits flitted by, an imm. Peregrine looked cold, Black Ducks paddled by, and a male Common Merganser was taking a bath. |
| 2/1/09 We returned to Ashland, DE to look for Crossbills, Pine Siskins, and Purple Finches again. No Crossbills, finches were distant, but the Pine Siskins came closer this time along with a White-breasted Nuthatch. A Tufted Titmouse sat out in the sun for a few minutes, then worked its way through the trees. A moment later, a Sharpie went after it and took the conflict out of sight. We caught sight of the hawk with its catch a few minutes later in the trees. A lesson for all of us mortals: we really should be grateful for what we have at the moment; we don't know what will happen later. |
| 2/7/09 We were treated to a Le Conte's Sparrow in PA and a flock of 15+ White-winged Crossbills in DE. Not a bad day at all! Will get some more pics up soon. Very cool! |
| 2/8/09 Puttered about NJ and watched a bunch of male Common Mergansers make a fuss about a little female. Whenever one caught up to her, he would kick out his legs and splash the rest! Tundra Swans were nodding to each other civilly after flying in. Back in DE, we couldn't get enough of the White-winged Crossbills - they were eating ice and seemed hardly concerned about our presence. |
to the right: imm. male
color change is seen
color change is seen