Cherish is my favorite word, and I cherish the ability of turning the routine into a beautiful moment.
Nature creates in me, a spiritual and meditative time to bring peace, harmony and balance, into an otherwise ordinary day~
Mary Howell Cromer







Sunday, March 24, 2013

Winter Weather Lingers Into Spring~



We have not had very much snow this past Winter, just little bursts every now and then, enough to make lovely images, and make the roads a little slick.  
It is Spring and a Winter storm is approaching us, which may give us more snow this evening and tomorrow.  
It is all fine with me...I like the beauty, not the cold and so I stay inside as much as possible.
Above and below are the Winter visitors, the White-throated Sparrows. 

 I am linking up with Mary for:

"Mosaic Monday"


at:
http://dearlittleredhouse.blogspot.com


Happy Monday, Happy Week, Happy Mosaic Monday~
 


 Silly Gray Squirrel, thinking he is going to rob my bird feeder.  
This one, like the others that I have are Squirrel proof.  
Yep, right they are. 
This Squirrel will have his fill as soon as he figures out, once again that once the outside lid goes down, he can lift the center one and that will be that!


We are always as cautious as possible when we see deer crossing signs, or otherwise and as soon as we slow down, allow the deer to safely cross, they always give us a look, like how dare you...ha ha


Blue Jays  hang out all year long and are quite vocal, often times mocking the voice of the Red-Shouldered Hawks...I love them!
Besides the birdseed and suet cakes, I also offer the wildlife, left over hotcakes, stale breads, popcorn, and fruit and veggie rinds and caps and they devour it all~
 


 The Tufted Titmouse likes to tuck seeds in the grooves and crevices of our cedar home, much to the chagrin of the husby~
 


 Soon these sweet little charmers shall once again fly off in different directions.  
Dark-eyed Juncos are such a fave around here, and I certainly miss them, once they leave along with the White-throated Sparrows~
 


 I rarely get to view the Golden-crowned Kinglet.  
They are around the grove all year round, but they move quite swiftly, flitting from tree to tree searching out a quick nip of nutrition~
 


The wee Carolina Wrens are just such sweet little birds and the one below was taking a few minutes to preen itself.  
They have already set up a nest in a nest box inside our garage.  
There is a little opening above the garage where they can enter, and leave at will.  
The only bad thing with this setup is when the little ones have fledged, they always end up stressed and stuck in weird places and I have to help catch them every season to get them free and out with the adults...
 
 
 


The American Robins actually stay around in large numbers during the Winter months.  There is usually enough warmer weather when they can catch Earthworms, as well as enough fruits left from Autumn to get them through~


 A female Eastern Towhee/Rufous sided Towhee waits her turn at seed on the ground.  
I always worry over the little ground eaters, since the neighbors next door, and behind us have outdoor cats that are constantly slinking around our bushes and trees...grrr!
 
 

27 comments:

  1. great bird shots, again! great job catching that tiny kinglet! they're so quick and small! i like the blue jays when they call like a hawk, too. smart buggers. :)

    ReplyDelete
  2. Wow, I throughly enjoyed your photography in this post. Such beautiful shots of nature’s scenery and wildlife. I love the photo of the Blue Jay and the deer walking on the moss covered hill. Stunning! Thanks for sharing winter’s scenes.

    ~Emily
    The French Hutch

    ReplyDelete
  3. Wow, I throughly enjoyed your photography in this post. Such beautiful shots of nature’s scenery and wildlife. I love the photo of the Blue Jay and the deer walking on the moss covered hill. Stunning! Thanks for sharing winter’s scenes.

    ~Emily
    The French Hutch

    ReplyDelete
  4. The squirrel made me laugh! I have one durable feeder they can get access to and they leave the others alone. Love your Junco and Towhee photos! We don't have either one at our feeders. You guys will probably get more snow than we will. It's raining quite hard right now and we have some thunder, too.

    ReplyDelete
  5. These pictures are amazing! We don't have any of those birds here in Australia (I don't think!) and we certainly don't have squirrels! I've loved this post-it was like travelling to whole different world!

    Best wishes,
    Natasha in Oz

    ReplyDelete
  6. Mary, you have a wonderful collection of birds and photos. Most of them I see here,except the Towhee is not seen often. I think it is funny to see the bluejays imitating the hawk sounds. Great post, enjoy your snow. Have a happy week ahead.

    ReplyDelete
  7. Wow! Fantastic photography of nature's gems ~ you have a treasure right in your own back yard ~ Beautiful ~ Be safe, warm and cozy ~ Enjoy ^_^

    ReplyDelete
  8. Those blue jays are such pretty birds in spite of their cheeky behaviour. How lovely are your photos.

    Have a good week, Mary.

    ReplyDelete
  9. Beautiful images. It must have taken you some time to capture all of these fine birds looking so good. The robin is my favorite.

    ReplyDelete
  10. You have many lovely birds to watch in your garden. I have not seen my first robin yet. We are expecting another bit of snow tonight. Valerie

    ReplyDelete
  11. Hi Mary, I feel the same way about nature. It relaxes and refreshes me...and your photos have definitely relaxed and refreshed me. Beautiful!

    ReplyDelete
  12. All I can say is "Kudos to you." What an awesome collections of pictures of the birds of your area. Your mosaics are wonderful. we have many of them here at our pace in VA, and today they have been gobbling u the food as quickly as we put it out. The snow is here...we have had the first round and the second is due tonight. I wonder what will be awaiting me in the morning. genie

    ReplyDelete
  13. Hello Mary
    We've had robins stay over winter in the past, but not this winter. I too wish the juncos would stay year round as they clean up much seed on the ground under the feeders.
    A couple of shepherd hooks I use for bird feeders I've greased with petroleum jelly to keep the squirrels and chipmunks from climbing them and it works well.
    Judith

    ReplyDelete
  14. Little by little, the signs of winter disappear. I love the flashes of colour that Jays bring to the winter landscape. I saw several last week - bits of summer, flying low!

    ReplyDelete
  15. Your birds show up so beautiful against the snowy background. I miss seeing some of these birds but we have had hundreds of the brightest yellow goldfinches this week. We are filling the feeders every day! Enjoy your week!

    ReplyDelete
  16. Great pictures / collages you have made. Wish you a happy Easter :) Hanne Bente

    ReplyDelete
  17. The ability of these birds to find those little burst of nutrient all winter long is remarkable really!

    Nice set of pictures

    Cheers - Stewart M - Melbourne

    ReplyDelete
  18. What a wonderful variety of birds you have in your garden - I think the little Tufted Titmouse has to be one of my favourites - that little splash of peachy orange is gorgeous with the grey!

    ReplyDelete
  19. Wonderful bird photos! You do such a nice job with your photography. It's always a pleasure to visit your blog!! I wish the Blue Jays would visit me again. I'm still getting a pair of Gray-crowned Rosy-Finches and two Crossbills at my feeders.

    ReplyDelete
  20. Brilliant post I have seen, all those birds, cheers Mary.

    ReplyDelete
  21. gorgeous bird images. Such lovely little fellows and such wonderful detail in your images. I am wondering what size lens you are using? I am in the process of updating my camera.
    Have a wonderful week Mary. I always look forward to your posts.

    ReplyDelete
  22. Hello Mary, I love your mosaics today. So wonderful! I've been enjoying a lot of these birds in my garden too, and of course the squirrels too! They are such clowns. :)

    ReplyDelete
  23. So beautiful, Mary! Your capture of the Kinglet taking off is priceless! How's the puppy?

    ReplyDelete
  24. Mary you have the most beautiful collection of birds where you live.
    Those Blue Jays are a sight to behold!
    Your photography is outstanding and love your mosaics - inspiring again Mary!
    Shane ♥

    ReplyDelete
  25. My wife and I have wintered nearby in Crestwood. Helping care for out new granddaughter. Always enjoy my visits here. Your photos a pleasure. It seems we have the same eyes for the outdoors.

    ReplyDelete
  26. End of winter where I am too, I can't wait for spring...........

    ReplyDelete

I enjoy each visitor to "Red Shouldered Hawks of Tingsgrove and Beyond" I truly appreciate those who have become followers to my blog and really am encouraged by the wonderful comments.
FYI if you leave ANONYMOUS comments, they will never get published, so please don't waste your time.

Thanking you~