Come Along, Take a Ride With Me~

A little over a week ago, I went on a country ride further down the country lanes to visit my daughter and her husby who were in town visiting from Florida.  Once there we sat in the back yard of her father-in-laws home and enjoyed the late afternoon together.  

The barns above and below are on the ride there.  

A Great Blue Heron made it's way across the cow pasture with a fresh catch and when I left to return home, snapped a photo of it down at the other end of the field on a platform in the water.  I almost mistook it for a statue, it was so still.  

Behind it on the ground near the water's edge was a Green Heron~

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:

http://viewingnaturewitheileen.blogspot.com/

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:

http://paying-ready-attention-gallery.blogspot.com.au/

Wild Bird Wednesday

Next week will be dedicated to my 8th year of blogging anniversary and I will be posting updates on the Red-Shouldered Hawks that this blog is named after as well as the Bald Eagles that I have been visiting for going on 4 years.  

At that same acreage were this adult Brown Thrush and two young ones. The Cotton Tail Rabbit,White-tailed Deer (bucks) with fresh velvet covered antlers, Wild Turkeys and a Yellow-Shafted Flicker.  

I LOVE this land and would so enjoy visiting it every day, if I could.  

Huge sigh, it is a 17 mile ride one way and just too far to take a leap there every day and back~

Last Saturday I could hear the American Crows a good 7 acres from home. There were at least a dozen, or more of them along with a pair of Red-Shouldered Hawks and other birds yelling at the visitor to their territory. The woods is heavy this time of year, often times the canopy goes dark even in the sun with vines connecting treetops. Thus said, I was quite delighted after making my way to the area when this Red-tailed Hawk, the element of the onslaught flew into a tree right above where I stood...it was meant to be~

Below an American Kestrel went hunting in the field behind it and brought up to the fence row what looked like a little rodent.  Then a Mourning Dove seemed to slightly hesitate momentarily before landing on the same fence row a little further down.  The Dove seemed little concerned about the Kestrel and began to preen~

Yikes the wee Carolina Wrens grew up so fast this past week and now I can't even locate them in the bushes and trees on the land we own.  I hear them, but no visual. I am claiming that all 7 are still doing very well~

A juvie on left and the adult female to the right~

Red-Bellied Woodpecker and then a Pileated Woodpecker below it~

I am thinking that the beauty below is an Eastern Phoebe, but would appreciate any corrections, if I am wrong~

Doesn't my husby's nest platform look inviting now with the newer starter branches looking all natural.  So where are all of the takers, after all I offer free rent and all of the photos that any wonderful bird would ever hope to have ;)

A Whole Lot of New Life and Loss~

Sunrise in Oldham County, KY

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:

http://viewingnaturewitheileen.blogspot.com/

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:

http://paying-ready-attention-gallery.blogspot.com.au/

Wild Bird Wednesday

I have always enjoyed Raptors since I was about 12 years of age. That is a known, but I never really looked at other birds very closely until I saw my first wee Carolina Wren hopping across the top of the patio step in 1981. I was totally captivated! 

 They made a nest in my front door wreath one year shortly after when the Oldham County Home Tour had selected our home as one of those interesting enough to have on the tour. The babies hatched out the weekend of the event and so I had to tie a pink and blue ribbon across the entryway of the front door, so that guests would not enter from there...after all we had a nursery working 

 Every Winter since 1981, the Carolina Wrens have had two to three adults Winter over in the nest box at the front door. They come and go all day, but in the evening they are in there all nice and cozy as well as one that Bill placed up high in the garage. They have a little opening where they can get in and out if the garage door is closed. 

 One year Dad was out and when evening set in, he was lingering at the front door a little longer than usual when two of the Wrens flew out of the box and into our home. They flew all the way up to the third floor rail and Bill opened a couple of the windows and a few minutes passed until they flew out. Within a couple of minutes they had returned back to their nest box as if nothing had happened ♥

The sweet little chaps also have their clutches in the Spring, one in the garage and one at the front door. This season both clutches were done in the garage, one in their nest box and another in a box on a shelf. Yesterday when I took these photos, there were 7 for sure and a possible 8th that fledged. They have already had to take a dive from both their parents action, as well as my being at the right place at the right time from a sneaky Red Fox earlier today. Later in his afternoon a loud warning began from both adults for the young to take cover, along with the alarms of other local birds. This time a Cooper's Hawk was on the hunt. 

For now the adults have successfully moved the young ones to a large pile of mixed tree branches where they should be safe for a while as they grow stronger in the yard right behind our home~

Above an adult takes a quick bath before calling out the troops.  The parents called for a couple of hours and one by one, out they came.  I wish that I could have gotten photos of one of the young ones that went from the security of the nest to the top of my husband's car.  He had recently waxed it and it was slick.  The little one slid down the top, and down the windshield, with one foot up and wings flapping, too cute~

Above a Mourning Dove stopped by to introduce itself to all of the new feathered friends on the block~

These two stayed close to one another for a long time~

Out in the yard, everything must have looked so SCARY~

In less then 48 hours these young ones traveled from our garage, to the far back of our 2 1/2 acre property, survived the Red Fox coming through, a very close fly over and stop for a Cooper's Hawk...yes I clapped my hands...I couldn't help myself!!! Friday evening they stayed in my neighbors debris pile and yesterday they have made their way back toward our home, and now just about to cross the country lane that I live on. There they will find wonderful brush coverage. It is Sunday as I try and get this all finished to be published and the 7 young ones were all outside my front door this morning and it was a precious sight to see, all doing so well, so far~

Magnolia Blossom done 4 ways~

We had these three baby Raccoons stop by one evening and one was all covered in spider webbing.  They had been under our deck according to the webs and also our three dogs let us know that something was alive under there~

Some of my assorted garden flowers~

We have at least a pair, and possibly two pairs of Red Foxes working our neighborhood and using my paths of my own walking to go from one place to another.  Several have seen the kits, but I have not yet.  They are taking much of our favorites as well as wildlife to feed their young and themselves.  The Groundhog count has gone from 6 to 4, and fawns are dropping daily and the does are running much more frantic than usual, people are missing chickens, rabbits, and then of course the usual suspects living in the woods are going missing along with pet cats...these images were taken in my yard and a yard two yards down this past week~

The quiet of lying does before they give birth last week.  Now they have all given birth and we are anxious to see how many of the fawns have survived, once they begin to bring them out of the woods~

My neighbor and I have been feeding the Groundhogs for several weeks now and we began with 6 and are down to 4.  Hoping that a couple of them can learn to climb and get away in time from the Red Foxes as they come through several times a day~

These two got braver quicker than the others and decided to cruise a little further from cover, not certain of their fate~

These are getting wiser and yet have so much still to learn from their mother who is also in hiding much of her days lately~

Tufted Titmouse babies were plentiful, not sure how many yet also born near my house~

~Rest in Peace Austin~
  

A young man who was a friend of my grandson Thomas has passed away all too soon. They would have great Summer fun times doing mud runs like boys his age.  They didn't travel in the same circles, but knew each other from these mud run events and Thomas has lost a chum~