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







Thursday, January 16, 2014

Snow and Migration Placement~



We had an alert last week that Sandhill Cranes were roosting over night on the lake at the Kentucky State Reformatory that is within 5 miles of our home. 
I went the next morning, before sunrise. 
Guess what? 
Of course I was told that the Cranes had flown out a good 45 minutes earlier...sigh!
That did not diminish my excitement though. 
I have seen lots of Canada Geese, but NEVER had I seen over 2,000 of them before.
What a loud, welcoming treat it was too!
That evening, I decided to take a friend with me and see if possibly the Cranes would return...
Of course they did not...sigh...ha ha
I was busy chasing after what I think was a Cooper's Hawk and left my friend Sandy talking with another birder/photographer. 
After I walked back to where they were, I was told.
"Mary, this man knows you, he has followed your blog for 4 years!"  
Jim Johnson who manages the blog:
http://www.goatsass.com/
That is not what you think...it is Goat Sass Farm ;)
Jim and his wife are from the far Western part of the state and had been visiting family over in my county...
Small world. 
Not only that, yesterday, my husby had taken me into Jefferson County to do a bit of birding and who would drive up, but Jim and his wife...
Too funny~


Remember to double click on the image, to view a larger slide show of the images shared
   
 I will also be linking up with Mary at:

"Mosaic Monday" 


at: 

As well as I am linking up with Stewart at:
   Wild Bird Wednesday
(http://paying-ready-attention-gallery.blogspot.com.au/)



Along with the thousands of Canada Geese was one lone Ross's Goose. 
 You could hear it's voice rising above that of all of the Canada Geese...awe~
Below a small group of Northern Shovelers fly in...
I had never seen them before...NICE~
 


As the sunshine arose, it cast a beautiful copper colouration upon those in winged flight...breath taking beauty~
 
 


My thoughts kept being tugging toward the one Ross's Goose...
Wonder where it's family has gotten to and how long before it sees more like itself~
 


There it goes, and it seems to be sticking close by these Canada Geese, it is still with them, days later ;)
 


Funny Goose landing~
 



 
 
 
 
 
 


After the Canada Geese flew out of this area, the Northern Shovelers took over the thawed section of water~
 
 


I almost did not add in the images below...
Sandhill Cranes flying over my neighborhood as I am heading home from market...
 Of course I missed them ;)
 

I was invited to go to a different park and pond last Friday and I was introduced for the first time to Gadwell and Green-winged Teal.
This is beginning to be such fun, seeing these new species!
Below are Green-winged Teal~
 

Gadwell below~

 
 Yesterday, the husby took me into Eastern Jefferson County to a local park with a lake area. 
That was where we ran into Jim and his wife once again. 
I had seen Goldeneyes, maybe only one other time. 
They are so beautiful. 
There were 4 in this group, as a light snow fell over us.
It was a good week, a very good week~
 




 

31 comments:

  1. seeing the multitude of geese must be very neat! and the ross' sure stood out. i love gadwalls - they're so subdued in color but handsome, too. and the teals are always so beautiful. great you got to meet a blogger!

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  2. Outstanding set of collages/photos! So many nice views.

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  3. That is awesome to see so many Canada geese at once. I've never seen that here although I've seen perhaps a hundred once. Great photos. Have a nice weekend Mary.

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  4. Wonder if they get cold on that lot, I know I would

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  5. Mary -- beautiful collages as always they are works of art! Tthat is an amazing number of geese and lovely ducks. We saw a lot of geese in New Mexico where they winter once, but not that many. I would never have thought of Kentucky as being such a bird paradise, but you have taught me that it really is! A .. how neat that you met a fan of your blog ini person.

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  6. Big flocks of geese are such a great thing to see - we don't get them in Australia.

    Cheers - Stewart M - Melbourne

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  7. I've never seen that many geese at once. A few hundred is probably the most I've seen here. Very cool shots! Sorry you missed the cranes, but it was nice you got to meet Jim.

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  8. Wow, aren't there are hundreds of Geese, and there were Goldeneyes, oh, that is wonderful Mary.

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  9. Fun week watching the geese and ducks. Neat to run in to you also. Be sure to contact us if you come to western kentucky.

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  11. Super pictures! Warm Greetings from the cold Warsaw. Have a look at the new photo album.
    http://marciento.wordpress.com/2014/01/07/virtual-exhibition-of-photography/

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  12. Fantastic photos!!! Admire you going out into the cold to get these wonderful pictures!!! Cathy

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  13. What fabulous photos and I know you're glad you went. It's funny to see a few different birds mixed in...we see that a lot here, too. And we see an odd bird every once in awhile like a plover we saw this week. Enjoy your afternoon my friend!

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  14. Mary, sorry you missed the cranes but seeing the large flock of geese was cool too. Great shots and wonderful mosaics! Enjoy your week ahead!

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  15. I liked seeing the Green-winded Teal - so pretty and so unusual.

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  16. Always a treat to visit. Like the stark landscapes and plethora of birds! Have a great week :)

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  17. Amazing mosaics, Mary! I cannot get over that ONE white bird among all the others!! I had to look twice! Such beauty and motion and atmosphere. How intriguing that you should meet one of your followers in your parts and twice, to boot! I love stories like this.

    Poppy

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  18. Sorry you missed the cranes but it looks like you had a wonderful birding experience with the geese. Love the morning light in some of these!

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  19. I am surprised they are migrating so early. They are going to find it very cold up here and hard to find food. I hope the weather breaks so they are able to survive once they get to their destination. It is overwhelming to witness migration. If you really love watching the Sandhills you should go to Kearney, Nabraska in February and March. They have the Great Sandhill Migration with thousands of Snow Geese and some Whooping Cranes mixed in all stopping to feed and rest on the Platte River. It is the most spectacular sight I can ever remember witnessing. Loved the pictues and the groupings. Stirred my memories and pointed me in the direction of Spring ... coming soon, I hope.

    Andrea @ From The Sol

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  20. A fantastic set of pics , of both Geese and ducks, but please keep the ice.
    All the best Gordon.

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  21. Just LOOK at all the geese! I haven't seen that many in one outing since 20 years or more when we lived in Colorado!! Beautiful images/collages as always Mary.

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  22. ....it is incredible to see the scale of bird-life!

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  23. Beautiful mosaics and they are all very great to see!

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  24. Canada Geese are fun to watch. That's quite a flock that landed!

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  25. it must be amazing to see these great flocks of birds flying over. It looks so cold in the snow for them - not wonder they take off and fly away to a warmer climate. We get birds from the northern hemisphere in Australia.
    Your post reminds me of a movie I saw once - Fly Away Home - a beautiful movie about a child and a Canadian goose.
    Lovely post Mary - I always love to visit - and especially to see your cooling snowy pics in our hot weather.
    Take care and have a lovely week. And thank you for stopping by my blog this week. Always lovely to hear from you.

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  26. Wonderful collages with amazing flocks of birds. Great captured!

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  27. A great "migration" series of images! What a wonderful noise those geese must have provided! Love the shots with the falling snow - something we won't be including in our local photographs!

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  28. What an exciting event!!! I love being surrounded by cool birds:) Beautiful scenery to boot!

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  29. Greeting frrom Lanzarote Mary. Boy it looks so cold for you at the moment and you certainly get full marks for perseverance in the face of adversity.The numbers and vareity of wildfowl in your pictures is spectacular and at this time of year the colours are equally wonderful .I' m loving those Shovelers and Green winged Teal, the latter something of a rarity in the UK. Stay warm as you can.

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  30. Wow, Mary, that must have been quite an experience! Wish I could have been there. I love the birds in flight wearing the colors of the morning.

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  31. How special to get to see so many birds at once. Beautiful series.

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