Photo Musings of a Marshwiggle - Welcome to Narnia

Enter Autumn, Nature

2016-09-08T14:13:00.001-04:00

It's after Labor Day, and Autumn is coming. My beloved Ruby-Throated Hummingbird, Rudy, has left for warmer climates. I hope he will return next Spring <3

This post is just to share a few photos of other nature that has been visiting over the last few days.

There was a gorgeous female Cardinal! Isn't she beautiful?

This is her full body shot on our truck

And an adorable baby Cardinal!

A wonderful baby Bluebird!

And some adults enjoyed the bird bath:

Head dunk!

Female Bluebird jumping for joy!

Male Bluebird enjoys the bird bath too!

The White-breasted Nuthatch hadn't been around for a while - good to see him!

The Chickadee climbs IN the ant moat on the hummingbird feeder, to get a drink!

More Chickadee pics:

Hanging at the hummingbird feeder

Sitting on the hummingbird feeder, something he paid for when Rudy saw him!

They LOVE the seed ball

So does the Tufted Titmouse!

Another Tufted Titmouse

The beautiful Gray Catbird! Meow!

Carolina Wren

A Healthy male House Finch - Yay!

Juvenile male Hummingbird gets a snack from the Petunias

Yummy!

That's the real deal!

So nice to catch them away from the feeder

Juvenile male at the feeder

My Rudy, on his swing, before his departure

Another Rudy photo

Bunny!

Pretty male Cardinal on the roof

Molting Carolina Wren

Carolina Wren singing on the roof!

Male Downy Woodpecker

Young Blue Jay with a nugget

Another young'un at the snack dish

Carolina Chickadee

Brown Thrasher with a peanut!

Red-spotted Purple Butterfly

Red-spotted Purple Butterfly - (Dorsal wing)

It's been a lovely summer bird watching... especially the special experience of my adorable Rudy! I will imagine him in a lovely warm environment, plenty to eat, lots of friends, until he returns!

Rudy, your swing will await you, next April...

Until next post, be well!

HOT August Weekend Nature

2016-08-20T18:00:00.001-04:00

I got to see a variety of new nature this weekend! Insects, butterflies, birds!

Like this guy below. He is soooo tiny. The size of a small Gnat. Very difficult to photograph, but so beautiful! You can compare his size to the veins in the Hydrangea leaf!

Condylostylid Long-legged Fly

Hoverfly - looks like a bee, but is a fly! Also very tiny!

This may be a common House Fly, not sure, but was much smaller than a regular fly

Yellow Garden Spider eating a wasp caught in his web!

Eastern Tiger Swallowtail

Female Summer Tanager

Female Summer Tanager spies a bee! snack time!

And she eats it! Yummy!

She also stalked and went after the butterflies! LUNCH!

No luck with them, though

Ruby-Throated Hummingbird Juvenile male

Molting Juvenile male Cardinal

Squirrel hanging out having a snack!

Hydrangea leaves

Burned-out Hydrangea blooms

More burned-out Hydrangea blooms

And that is the weekend wildlife so far! Until next time, be well!

Hump-Day Nature Watch

2016-08-10T15:29:00.001-04:00

So, I decided to put some food back up, just not seed that would attract the finches. So I put out some peanuts, mealworms, and suet nuggets.

It wasn't long before I started to see my old friends again!

Rudy also took his place on guard duty, on his swing!

Here he is:

Rudy, the king! Male Ruby-Throated Hummingbird

Male Ruby-Throated Hummingbird

Lady Ruby-Throated Hummingbird

Female Ruby-Throated Hummingbird

And my Cardinals were happy to see some food! And the male is overcoming his baldness:

Male Northern Cardinal

Female Northern Cardinal

And my Blue Jays came for peanuts!

Blue Jay

And my Chickadees came!

Carolina Chickadee

And last, but not least, my sweet female Bluebird:

Female Eastern Bluebird - love this little girl!

So, that's it for Hump Day! Hope you enjoyed the photos! Until next time, be well!

Swinging Hummingbird!

2016-08-09T14:53:00.003-04:00

I have been waiting for a while now, for the Hummingbirds to use the Hummingbird swing I put up, and today, they finally did!

Meet Rudy, the dominant male Hummingbird, who sits on the swing, and guards HIS feeders from unauthorized Hummingbirds! haha

Rudy, Ruby-Throated Hummingbird, King of Felder Feeders

Rudy, I think he is yawning!

Rudy, Ruby-Throated Hummingbird, King of Felder Feeders

Ruby pauses guard duty to get some nectar

He looks like an angel!

Happy dance!

Hovering

Zeroing in!

So adorable

Hanging out!

And there are other wildlife sightings to share:

Silver-Spotted Skipper Butterfly

Taking off! Love his curled proboscis!

Sadly, over a month has passed since the Bluebirds laid their eggs... so I think this brood is a no-go... I feel sorry for this couple. They have been so dedicated to that nest.

Female Eastern Bluebird

Male Eastern Bluebird

And last but not least, a juvenile Robin

Hope you enjoyed these photos. Until next time, be well!

Weekend Wildlife Extravaganza

2016-08-06T16:58:00.001-04:00

Since the bird feeders are down because of the sick Finches, I have been making an effort to find wildlife to photograph away from the feeders.

To my surprise, I founds LOTS, including a new bird, the Northern Flicker:

Northern Flicker

And a few different kinds of Butterflies:

Northern Broken-Dash Skipper

Great Spangled Fritillary

Silver-Spotted Skipper

And Dragonflies:

Blue Dasher Dragonfly

Then, a morning visit to Solomon's Island this morning was very exciting:

Osprey with a Gar-fish

Beautiful Osprey!

Osprey with a regular fish

Osprey with a fish - this guy circled and squawked with this fish, as if he was saying "I GOT A FISH!"

Osprey with a fish

Ring-Billed Gull

Bald Eagle

Bald Eagle - has a fish in his feet

Bald Eagle with a fish in his feet

This is the church on the Island, I like the sky against the steeples

And back at my house:

Male Ruby-Throated Hummingbird

Baby Bunny!

Male Northern Cardinal - heard in a whiny voice: "PLEEEEAASE Put the feeders back up!"

So that is a lot of nature considering the feeders are down! Hope you enjoyed the photos. Until next time, be well!

HUMMINGBIRDS!!!

2016-08-04T14:05:00.001-04:00

You may be bored from looking at my Hummingbird photos already, by now. But since I had to take down my bird (seed) feeders for a while, and since Hummingbird season will be over in a couple months, I am enjoying watching these little angels.

Hopefully, I can put my regular feeders back up soon. In the meantime, I am working on perfecting my photography skills, capturing these fast, and adorable little creatures :)

Ruby-Throated Hummingbird, male (with the tip of his tongue out!)

Ruby-Throated Hummingbird, female

Ruby-Throated Hummingbird, male

Ruby-Throated Hummingbird, female with her tongue out

Ruby-Throated Hummingbird, male

Ruby-Throated Hummingbird, female - close-up

Ruby-Throated Hummingbird, male

Ruby-Throated Hummingbird, female

Ruby-Throated Hummingbird, male

Ruby-Throated Hummingbird, female

Ruby-Throated Hummingbird, male

Ruby-Throated Hummingbird, female

Ruby-Throated Hummingbird, male

Ruby-Throated Hummingbird, female

Hope you enjoyed the photos! Until next time, be well!

Weekend Nature

2016-07-31T16:05:00.000-04:00

Unfortunately I seem to have lost the war on House Finch Eye Disease :( I did manage to get 5 Finches to rescue for treatment. But the disease was spreading so quickly that I had to take the feeders down for a while to let the Finches disperse.

It is so sad, the birds are all wondering where their food is, and they are grazing the ground to get seed that had fallen. I hate this disease and am so sad.

I did manage to get some photos of the Hummingbirds and other friends in the yard. And I am praying for the Finches not to suffer.

Ruby-Throated Hummingbird male - These guys always cheer me up!

Ruby-Throated Hummingbird female - It has been so humid here that my lens keeps fogging up!

Ruby-Throated Hummingbird male - He is such a beautiful little guy!

My Male Cardinal is slowly overcoming his balding molt

Now, it's the female Cardinal's turn for a bad hair day!

Cardinal Youngster

Tufted Titmouse - another humidity fogged photo!

Female Eastern Bluebird - peeking out of her house - I need to check to see if her eggs have hatched yet!

Female Red-Winged Blackbird on the lamppost

Female Red-Winged Blackbird - looking for seed in the grass

Squirrel eating seeds from the ground

My Petunias! I have seen the Hummingbirds in there getting nectar! Hope to get a photo!

That's it for the weekend. Until next time, be well!

Wildlife Rescue - another day

2016-07-26T17:04:00.000-04:00

Just a short post, as I went to the Wildlife Rescue again to take another sick Finch, and these guys peeked out to say hi as I was leaving.

The Raccoon pulled the dish towards him and looked at me as if to say "This is MINE!"

Raccoon eating Cat Food

Here he is with his little friend Mr. Skunk (upper right). I did not want to get closer to get a better shot, for obvious reasons!

Raccoon and Skunk - Skunk has his face in a Cat Food can!

I wish I had my camera, but took these with my iPhone.

Until next time, be well!

Wildlife Rescue

2016-07-25T14:43:00.000-04:00

I have posted previously about the issue I am having with House Finches infected with Eye Disease at my feeders. It is highly contagious, and has killed 2 so far, 3 if you count the little Goldfinch from last year. I have taken 4 House Finches to Orphaned Wildlife Rescue Center, nearby, for treatment. The good news is that they are doing well so far, and one is almost ready to be released. The bad news is, there are still Finches afflicted with this horrible disease that I am still trying to catch. I caught one this morning that I believe hit our window because she couldn't see. She died in my hand. So sad. I took another in this morning that I caught last night, and kept in a cage until I could take her in. So sweet, and she seemed perkier this morning, so I am hopeful for her!

Here she is:

Female House Finch

I have decided to start volunteering at the Rescue Center. I love animals, and they need the help. I hope I can make a positive impact in the lives of these sweet creatures.

As I was leaving the Rescue Center, this little guy scurried through the front shrubs of the center and watched me leave from hiding (or so he thought!):

Raccoon (these photos taken with my iPhone)

Another time leaving the Rescue Center, this guy was wandering around out front:

Black Vulture

I expect to be in contact with some awesome animals, and hope to get a few photos, so stay tuned!

I also had some lovely visits from the Bluebirds and Hummingbirds.

Female Eastern Bluebird

Female Ruby-Throated Hummingbird

That's all for today. Until next time, be well!

Opossum, and other friends!

2016-07-23T12:34:00.000-04:00

A couple days ago, early in the morning, I sent to take Magoo out to the back yard to go to the bathroom and frozen, staring at me, was this cute little guy!

Opossum

Opossum - smiling at me?

Opossum - Such a cutie!

I also found a great article about these cuties. It is a fun and interesting read and can be found here.

Also, the young Blue Jays came to get peanuts:

Young Blue Jay

And of course, I love watching the Hummingbirds:

Male Ruby-Throated Hummingbird

It has been soooo hot in this area this week, and today will be over 100 degrees, but the bird feeders are full, the bird baths have fresh water, and the Hummingbirds have fresh nectar... as for me, I will be sitting in the air conditioning. Until next time, be well!

Bald Cardinals, Eye Disease, etc.

2016-07-19T10:21:00.000-04:00

I read an article on the molting patterns of Cardinals and Blue Jays. I had seen people discussing whether these sad looking birds had mites or disease, that caused them to lose all their head feathers. The article/blog entry is about 12 years old, but I think it is very accurate and extremely interesting. It discusses molting, and this phenomenon, affecting Cardinals, Blue Jays, Grackles, etc. every summer. If you would like to read it in it's entirety, the link is here. Fascinating read.

Here is one of my male Cardinals experiencing this molting pattern. I have at least one, every summer that looks like this:

Male Cardinal - "Don't hate me cuz I'm beautiful!"

I have also been noticing a terrible increase in the number of Finches affected with House Finch Conjunctivitis Eye Disease. Terrible disease, that blinds the bird and then it dies because it hits something while flying, or starves because it cannot see to find food.

I have a few House Finches at my feeders affected by this, and found one dead under the feeders. I managed to catch one yesterday and take it to Orphaned Wildlife Rescue in Lusby. But, I am still very upset that there are more infected and concerned they will spread it as this is extremely contagious and the House Finches are very social and are always congregated and "at" each other.

Poor little House Finch with this eye disease

My heart aches for these little sweeties, and I will continue to try to help get them treatment.

Onward to a lighter note. Lots of young birds at the feeders, and I have peeked in the Bluebird nest and the eggs still haven't hatched yet... any day now!

Young Blue Jay giving me the eye as he prepares to grab a peanut!

Young Cardinal

Interesting creature in my house. I said to my husband "why is there a dead leaf on our wall?". He laughed... that is his camouflage. I googled "Moth that looks like a dead leaf" and voila!

Curved-Toothed Geometer Moth

And of course the Hummingbirds are a constant source of joy and entertainment!

Male Ruby-Throated Hummingbird

Female Ruby-Throated Hummingbird

So, that's my post for today, hope you enjoyed! Until next time, be well!

Happy Weekend - Hummingbirds!

2016-07-16T19:18:00.000-04:00

The Hummingbirds are finally used to the new feeder, so I got some shots of them today!

Male Ruby-Throated Hummingbird at the new feeder

Female Ruby-Throated Hummingbird

Female Ruby-Throated Hummingbird in flight to feeder

Happy Weekend everyone! Until next time, be well!

Hot Summer Friday Nature

2016-07-15T17:19:00.000-04:00

Living in Maryland, I love that we get the change of seasons... a healthy dose of all 4, including snow. But as I get older, the heat is getting much harder to stand! Blistering hot here today.

I set up a new Hummingbird feeder because of the wasps. The good news is, the wasps seem less interested, the bad news is, so are the Hummingbirds. I guess they just need to get used to the change. They are visiting the other feeder, thankfully... but I hope they get used to the new one.

Her are today's photos:

Male Ruby-Throated Hummingbird before I removed the old feeder

Male Ruby-Throated Hummingbird at the other feeder

Female Ruby-Throated Hummingbird at old feeder

Female Ruby-Throated Hummingbird flying to feeder

Female Ruby-Throated Hummingbird

Blue Jay in a tall tree

Juvenile Red-Bellied Woodpecker

Male Eastern Bluebird hanging out at the feeder

Male Eastern Bluebird snacking

So those are my photos for this HOT Friday. Hope you all have a nice weekend! Until next time, be well!

Mid-week nature friends

2016-07-13T17:44:00.000-04:00

It has been really hot here, so the birds are all enjoying the bird bath for occasional dips!

The Brown Thrasher LOVES to swim!

Brown Thrasher

The American Robin also enjoys his dips in the bath!

American Robin

The Grackles like to get in, too!

Common Grackle

Common Grackle - Love the rainbows in their feathers and those gorgeous eyes

A young Blue Jay came to grab peanuts

Eastern Bluebird, female is a regular visitor

Female Eastern Bluebird

Male Ruby-Throated Hummingbird

Female Ruby-Throated Hummingbird

The Hummingbirds will be getting a new feeder soon, that will hopefully keep the Yellowjackets and Wasps away. I read somewhere that they will sting Hummingbirds and I do not want that to happen!

That's my photos for mid-week! Until next time, be well!

Weekend Nature

2016-07-10T15:25:00.000-04:00

Lots of friends visited yesterday and today. They ate, used the bird bath both to drink, and to cool off!

Female House Finch fluffing after a bath

Female House Finch

Carolina Wren

Carolina Wren raiding the nuggets

Tufted Titmouse likes nuggets too - this is a young one

Female Eastern Bluebird tending to her nest, but keeps an eye out for trouble

She does take a break now and then for a snack

And here's Mr. Bluebird!

Brown Thrasher

Mourning Dove

The Doves have been active - male chasing female everywhere!

Baby male Cardinal

Carolina Chickadee

Female House Sparrow

Pretty male Goldfinch

White-Breasted Nuthatch on the roof

Male Ruby-Throated Hummingbird

The Hummingbird is not phased by the Yellowjacket, I would be!

Female Ruby-Throated Hummingbird

So that's my weekend visitors! Until next time, be well everyone!

Friday Friends

2016-07-08T18:05:00.001-04:00

Went outside early this morning to refill the bird feeders. The birds always know when food is coming. Had lots of visitors!

Lady House Finch

Mr. Carolina Chickadee

Mr. Goldfinch

Young Red-Bellied Woodpecker

Mrs. Brown-Headed Cowbird

Mr. Brown-Headed Cowbird

Mr. Brown-Headed Cowbird was ruffling his feathers

Mr. Bluebird was also ruffling his feathers

Eastern Bluebird male also grabbed a snack

Mrs. Bluebird also grabbed a snack!

White-Breasted Nuthatch also came

White-Breasted Nuthatch also rubbed himself against a tree for about 5 minutes!

Male Ruby-Throated Hummingbird at one of the feeders

Female Ruby-Throated Hummingbird at the other feeder.

That was my friends for Friday. Hope everyone has a great weekend! Until next time, be well!

Thursday Nature in Lusby

2016-07-07T19:27:00.000-04:00

Today the Hummingbirds were evasive. Not sure if it was me or the yellowjackets swarming their feeder! Still I got a few shots.

Ruby-Throated Hummingbirds, females:

And Male:

And the Blue Jay came in a mad dash to steal a peanut:

And a pretty little House Sparrow sat with her mouth open for the longest time:

The Red-Winged Blackbird male came:

Also my Carolina Wren friend was here:

The Carolina Chickadee was trying to drink from the Hummingbird feeder, ant moat!

Hey Chickadee, there are 2 clean bird baths!

Sadly I spotted a female house Finch with Eye Disease. :( I will try to catch her, but I don't hold out a lot of hope. I won't post her photo... I will post this healthy female House Finch:

I also had a visit from the Bluebirds who are faithfully guarding their house and eggs! Hope to see baby Bluebirds soon! Here is the female Bluebird:

And the Grackle cools off at the bird bath every day now:

And an adorable baby male Cardinal visited:

So that was my guest list for today. Hope you enjoyed the photos! Until next time, be well!

Point Lookout State Park

2016-07-05T18:28:00.001-04:00

By the way, before I start this post, if you would like to be notified of any of my new posts, put your email address in the "follow by email" field over to the right of this post, and you will receive notifications when I post new stuff!

So, Ben and I went to Point Lookout State Park this morning. It is about a 40 minute drive, and is a beautiful spot for nature watching. Wished we had gotten there a little earlier, since the more people there, the less nature.. but I did manage to get some great photos!
Photo below is the entrance sign to the park

The Chesapeake Bay

Great Blue Heron

Great Blue Heron taking off

Great Blue Heron in flight

Wetlands where Eagles, Heron, Cormorants, etc., were fishing

Bald Eagle

Two Double-Crested Cormorants

CUTENESS ALERT! Osprey with her adorable baby!

Osprey and baby

Osprey: "GET AWAY FROM MY BABY!"

Turkey Vulture

Barn Swallows

Brown Pelican

Brown Pelicans, Pete and Repeat :)

Brown Pelican in compact mode

Brown Pelican exposing his pouch

Brown Pelican

Clouded Sulphur Butterfly

Slaty Skimmer Dragonfly

If you want to view any of the photos full sized, clicking on the photo should open it up. If it doesn't please leave feedback to let me know.

Hope you enjoyed my trip to Point Lookout! Until next time.... be well!

Happy Independence Day!

2016-07-04T19:14:00.000-04:00

So, it's the Fourth of July, Independence Day, but also my independence from Facebook.

It was easy to keep in touch over Facebook, but I have often wondered how many people would make the effort if the ease was removed. I guess I will find out.

I also will not miss the political discussions where people post opinions as though they are facts, and anyone who doesn't agree is a moron, or worse. Then, there are the passive-aggressive people who use Facebook to post vague statements to let people know they are upset or angry, to punish someone.

It's a little unnerving to give up something that has been so easy for so long. But it is also something that I need to do.

Stay tuned for posts and photos! I hope those who love me will visit often, and interact, and I wish everyone a very Happy Independence Day!

New Visitors to Bird Feeder

2015-09-15T12:47:00.001-04:00

This is my first official blog post, which serves as a test post.
Today, I had a new bird visitor to my yard. It is a lovely Brown Thrasher, seen below

Getting a drink at the bird bath
(If you click on the image, a window will open with a full size image)
Here are a couple more of this lovely creature:

Standing on the suet block