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







Friday, July 21, 2017

White-tailed Deer and Mississippi Kites With Their Young Ones~


Good Morning SUNRISE, not SUNSET this past Sunday morning, filtered by a light fog, nature's own.  I have been missing in action for two weeks, but I am alive, and well.  Just going through some down spells, nothing that time won't fix.  
We have a small herd of White-tailed Deer that live on and around our land.  Right no the first bath of new fawns have been born, with more coming very soon.  If a female Deer does not go into estrus in November, they will in January and thus we get two batches of new birth every season.  One of our local does had twins and two others have had a single birth.  Some we have seen, others we are hearing about.  It takes about 6 to 8 weeks for the adult female to bring her young into the open and sometimes, they decide for her to make their debut and appearances known.  My neighbors and myself feed the deer corn to help ease their difficult way.  This helps a bit in keeping them out of flower gardens, and veggies.  We will feed in the colder Winter months and then also June through September, giving ourselves a little break from October through mid December and then again April through June.  Other neighbors will feed them the entire year.
Since I have not been venturing out very far it has been a nice thing to be able to just snap photos of the Deer right outside my door.
Here is a hope that you will enjoy them along with the Blue Jays and Chipmunks who also partake of the cracked corn I serve up.  
I am also sharing a few images of the Mississippi Kites that have favored the St. Matthews area where I grew up and met Bill.  They have returned to Kentucky and this same street for 6 years now, very rare to these parts making it quite special.
Here is saying thank you for stopping by.  
What kinds of wildlife creatures come so close to your back door?


Remember to double click on the first image, to view a larger slideshow presentation after                                                                you have read the narratives~

I am joining in the fun with Eileen at:
Saturday's Critter

Anni at:
http://id-rather-b-birdin.blogspot.com/ 
I'd Rather Be Birdin'
 Linking to I'd Rather B Birdin'

    
Maggie's  MOSAIC MONDAY
                                              https://normandylife.blogspot.com/


Stewart for:



SUNRISE~


Sunflowers with their smiles on down the road in large fields just five miles from home~




A puzzle maze of White-tailed Deer fawns~


This one was down the road a bit, all alone, ready to seek cover in the woods beyond~


This buck is at the Bald Eagle site that I frequently visit~



And this little confused fawn belonging to one of these female does was upset it could not jump the fence and so I just stopped and waited for it to make it's way.  
The buck above may very well be it's father, for they are just a driveway apart in these captures~




The Blue Jays are loving my feeding cracked corn to the local deer~


They even rob me of the feed when I turn my back from the pail I carry it in ;)~



Well they learned the antic from this beauty~

And the little Chipmunks earned well of the opportunity they have as well~


Below is mother of our twins, before she began to lose weight~
Single fawn of the doe with her head in the pail~




Other adult does walk by and check on the little fawn, but they are not it's mother~








The fawn kept looking for it's mommy doe, as well as continued to eat cracked corn while it waited~



We have quite a bit of plant life for the deer to forage on~



Grooming one another.  In this set the doe begins to wash the face and ears of her yearling.  Then it will wash her mother's face a bit.  Very endearing time with them together~



Taken with my cell phone, a bit of a different feel to these.  Mother of a single fawn comes much like a dog when called.  
She is waiting nearly every morning for a handout while the others are still resting~


The mother of the twins has lost some weight in the care of her young~










One twin above, the other below~


Mississippi Kites in St. Matthews, have two young ones just about ready to leave the nest.  I have known of this nest for a couple of years, but could never locate it on the street where they have built for the past 6 years.  I was fortunate enough to meet with a lovely woman who lives nearby named Marge who pointed out the nest as well as where the adults like to perch.  But also a series of Emails from another lovely lady named Millie who helped me see what I had been looking for and at finally at last ;)
This is the adult female~















Same foggy morning overlooking a pond covered in Lily Pads~




Farewell for now.  I will be checking in on you as time allows this coming week.  Don't give up on me, I always arrive ;)  Take care of yourself.  Be Blessed.  
Moon going down same morning that the sunrise images were taken above. These final images were taken from the car going up the Interstate...no I was not the driver.



16 comments:

  1. You have captured your surrounding wildlife brilliantly. My favourites would always be the kites.

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  2. oh, so many lovely shots. Love your encore shot!

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  3. Hello Mary, gorgeous sunrise and sky shots. I love your deer photos. The Kite and nest is an awesome find, I would love to see one someday. Love the waterlilies. Thank you for linking up and sharing your post. Happy Saturday, enjoy your weekend.

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  4. Wow, Mary ~ So many beautiful photos ~ my favorite, of course, are the deer and those little birds in the nest ~ thanks ~ ^_^

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  5. Fantastic deer photos, Mary! I love the running and jumping ones! Some great info too. If I see a deer to photograph, they see me, so they are usually staring back at the camera going "what is she doing?" :-)

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  6. Dear Mary, So glad you are feeling better. I love the first little fawn. Those are the same sunflowers that I see growing in large fields in Italy. When they first open they have a green center. That is when I love them best.
    As always, great wildlife shots.

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  7. Hi Mary. Another glorious series of your wildlife from sunrise to sunset. Very much enjoyed seeing the views of the Kites.

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  8. Good morning Mary. Sorry to hear that you have been a little down and not getting out much. These things happen to us all from time to time but we get over them.

    However, it seems that you don’t need to travel far to see so much wildlife and enjoy the great outdoors. Feeding those deer certainly pays big dividends with the wealth of shots you have there. You and your neighbours do a great service to the deer and in keeping those gardens up to scratch.

    So pleased you found the Mississippi Kites, and what a lovely name that is by telling everyone they belong to that famous state.

    Today we start the six week summer break from school so lots of full days of grandparenting, and then at the end of it, our annual trip to Greece. So much to look forward to.
    Hope you are feeling much livelier by now. All the best.

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  9. Hi,Mary.
    Oh! I love your all images. Such pretty birds and so many beautiful white-tailed deer! They seem to be enjoying their natural woods free. Wonderful to see that you left the bucket of food for the nursing deer. Have a good day.

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  10. I can't imagine how you get anything done when you have these beauties on your doorstep to watch every day. Love all your shots and the mosaics that you have created with them, you certainly live in a beautiful place.
    Hope you're feeling less blue today.
    Maggie xo

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  11. these dear are such the sweetest things! I am thinking you see them like we would see kangaroos in paddocks here. They munch on not too worried about us unless we approach. And those skys, and the sunflowers and the lillies - all gorgeous. Hugs Mary.

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  12. Mary, You always have great photos. The sun and moon are great. The birds are always a delight especially the bluejay. There is a lot deer. Thanks for sharing. Have a great week. Sylvia D.

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  13. thanks for a beautiful post. You have so much gorgeous wildlife where you live I envy you. I have walked the places where some deer used to be but I see none this summer. I think they moved as people cut down too much trees :(

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  14. Mary - glad you are back. We all go through some down times. I was gripped by some negative thoughts for a while last week - really had to wrench myself out of it with conscious will. I hope that the wildlife around you helps -- it certainly does that for me! Around here we see deer, turkeys, ospreys, bald eagles, elk, snakes, frogs ... and last week we had the rare chance to spot a mountain lion!

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  15. Hope you're up to par soon Mary! Oh that is one bird I've yet to see in the wild! If ever I find one I am sure I'll tinkle in my britches! 😆 love the deer too.

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  16. Ps...thanks for taking time to join us at I'd rather b birdin!

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