:-)
Wednesday, June 26, 2013
Giddy Groundhog
The other night I put out a carrot for the groundhog who's a 'regular' in my garden about the same time every evening. He/she was a very happy camper!!
:-)
:-)
Saturday, June 22, 2013
Spectacular Sunset
We've had some beautiful sunsets lately, and especially one evening after a thunderstorm rumbled through. It really poured, but just before dusk it was over and gorgeous clouds and a fantastic sunset was our reward. Apologies for the photos with the phones lines - the price of technology ruining a perfectly wonderful sky.
“And yet day and night meet fleetingly at twilight and dawn," he said, lowering his voice again and narrowing his eyes and moving his head a quarter of an inch closer to hers. "And their merging sometimes affords the beholder the most enchanted moments of all the twenty-four hours. A sunrise or sunset can be ablaze with brilliance and arouse all the passion, all the yearning, in the soul of the beholder.”
― Mary Balogh, A Summer to Remember
“And yet day and night meet fleetingly at twilight and dawn," he said, lowering his voice again and narrowing his eyes and moving his head a quarter of an inch closer to hers. "And their merging sometimes affords the beholder the most enchanted moments of all the twenty-four hours. A sunrise or sunset can be ablaze with brilliance and arouse all the passion, all the yearning, in the soul of the beholder.”
― Mary Balogh, A Summer to Remember
Monday, June 17, 2013
Pint-sized Pademelons
There are kangaroos and wallabies, but have you heard of pademelons? They are the even smaller sized version of a kangaroo with a shorter, bushier tail. Looking more like a cross between a squirrel and a rabbit, pademelons are marsupials like kangaroos and females carry their young, also called joeys, in a pouch.
The Tasmanian pademelon is nocturnal and hides in thick forest vegetation during the day and comes out in more open areas to feed on plants, herbs, grasses, and flowers at night. Native to Tasmania, males are much larger than females and except for breeding and taking care of their young, pademelons are solitary creatures. Other species of pademelons are also found in Australia, New Guinea and Papua New Guinea.
Tasmanian pademelon
The Tasmanian pademelon is nocturnal and hides in thick forest vegetation during the day and comes out in more open areas to feed on plants, herbs, grasses, and flowers at night. Native to Tasmania, males are much larger than females and except for breeding and taking care of their young, pademelons are solitary creatures. Other species of pademelons are also found in Australia, New Guinea and Papua New Guinea.
Red-necked pademelon
Click here for a short video.
Tuesday, June 11, 2013
Guilty Groundhog
I planted some lupine in my garden this year. Actually just one plant. The tag claimed it was red, but when it actually bloomed, it looked more dark pink which was maybe a good thing since I had planted it near some other pink flowers. I only got one because I could only find one 'red' one and I kept looking for more red but could never find any. Probably a good thing since once my lupine bloomed, I remembered that I had planted some a few years ago and it never came back and why. Woodchucks! They really like lupine! I had one gorgeous bloom that was almost a foot tall. Here is what lupine is supposed to look like.
The blossoms really are impressive. Mine one 'plume' of flowers was gorgeous until one morning I was looking out the kitchen window and noticed it was gone! Just an empty stem standing where a beautiful stalk of flowers used to be. There was another bloom coming along but hadn't come out yet so I was hopeful until a couple of days later I noticed that it was gone too along with quite a few leaves. Here's what my lupine looks like now.
Poor baby! That's what happens when you have a groundhog living close by.
Yes, you!! Guilty as charged.
The blossoms really are impressive. Mine one 'plume' of flowers was gorgeous until one morning I was looking out the kitchen window and noticed it was gone! Just an empty stem standing where a beautiful stalk of flowers used to be. There was another bloom coming along but hadn't come out yet so I was hopeful until a couple of days later I noticed that it was gone too along with quite a few leaves. Here's what my lupine looks like now.
Poor baby! That's what happens when you have a groundhog living close by.
Who, me???
Yes, you!! Guilty as charged.
Friday, June 7, 2013
Rainy Reflections
It's been raining nearly all day today. At times my patio under my awning was flooded. After I took this picture I had a hard time telling which way was up. I'm still not totally sure if this is correct or not.
There were two bright spots in the day though. I was looking out of the kitchen window while doing the breakfast dishes and I saw my first hummingbird of the season. The hummingbirds love my coral bells and they are in full bloom.
Naturally by the time I got my camera it was gone, so I had to cheat and find a photo of a hummingbird and the coral bells on the Birds and Blooms website!
I'm sure the hummingbirds have been around for a while, but they usually don't come in MY yard until the coral bells and the butterfly bushes are blooming. I pruned the butterfly bushes somewhat late this spring. They are on their way, but no blossoms yet.
The second bright spot came at the end the day with a photo op of Romeo and Tang. Nothing like a snuggle with a friend on a rainy day in a chair that helps keep you warm and your toes dry...
and another late day visit by a raccoon to end a rather dull day.
Hope you stayed dry wherever you happen to be.
There were two bright spots in the day though. I was looking out of the kitchen window while doing the breakfast dishes and I saw my first hummingbird of the season. The hummingbirds love my coral bells and they are in full bloom.
Naturally by the time I got my camera it was gone, so I had to cheat and find a photo of a hummingbird and the coral bells on the Birds and Blooms website!
I'm sure the hummingbirds have been around for a while, but they usually don't come in MY yard until the coral bells and the butterfly bushes are blooming. I pruned the butterfly bushes somewhat late this spring. They are on their way, but no blossoms yet.
and another late day visit by a raccoon to end a rather dull day.
Hope you stayed dry wherever you happen to be.
Friday, May 31, 2013
Raccoon Rendezvous
My first raccoon encounter of the season was Tuesday morning. I thought I was going to work and was all dressed up for the office when I went out to feed the stray cats. Normally I feed the outside cats before I feed my own inside cats. I had been out earlier and took out some dry food and fresh water, but Van Gogh was the only cat out there. So I fed my cats first and then went out to see if Romeo had shown up so I could take out the canned food. I saw Romeo and Spot coming up the sidewalk but they were a little hesitant. I looked over where the dry food was to see if there was a strange cat eating. And in fact there was a VERY strange cat eating - one with a ringed tail and a mask over its eyes! The first time I had seen the raccoon this spring. My next door neighbor came out and we both talked to it. At first the raccoon was a little hesitant too and started to walk away but then got more comfortable with us there and came back and had a little more cat food. My next door neighbor said that she had seen five babies earlier that morning. I checked up in my tree but they had gone by then. I got a couple of pictures before momma raccoon decided it was time to leave. Momma raccoon came back that evening too so these photos are a combination of the photos I took in the morning and late afternoon on the same day..
My first raccoon encounter last year was almost exactly a year ago to the day! When mama raccoon finally left and went to the tree she actually lives in when it was starting to get dark, I could see a couple of babies huddled in the crook of the trunk, but they were too high up to take photos. Can't wait to see them up close and personal!
My first raccoon encounter last year was almost exactly a year ago to the day! When mama raccoon finally left and went to the tree she actually lives in when it was starting to get dark, I could see a couple of babies huddled in the crook of the trunk, but they were too high up to take photos. Can't wait to see them up close and personal!
Tuesday, May 28, 2013
Elegant Eagles
There are more than 60 species of eagles, and in all known species, females are larger than the males! You're familiar, of course, with our national symbol, the Bald Eagle...
and you may know about the only other eagle species found in the United States, the Golden Eagle.
The Bald Eagle may be the most recognized, but in fact, the Golden Eagle is the slightly larger bird. There are two subspecies of Bald Eagles and while this raptor is the only one endemic to North America and can be found throughout the U.S., the birds living in Alaska, upper U.S.and Canada are larger than the ones living in the southern U.S. and Baja California. The majority of Bald Eagles live in the north and migrate south for the winter when coastal waters and rivers freeze as their diet is mainly fish.. Besides North America, the Golden Eagle is also found in Eurasia and parts of Africa. There are six subspecies of Golden Eagles, the largest living in southwest China, northern Pakistan and southern Kazakhstan. The largest female Golden Eagles can have a wingspan of just over 9 feet and weigh up to 27 pounds, while the largest Bald Eagles can weigh up to 17 pounds and a wingspan of up to 8 feet across. However, a Bald Eagle holds the record of the largest verified load carried in flight of a 15-pound mule deer fawn. Larger eagles will kill prey that weigh much more than they do, but will eat on the ground and then carry off pieces of its kill.
The width of wingspan depends on the environment in which the eagles live. Those that prefer a forest home have smaller wingspans so they can navigate through the trees more effectively. Eagles that live in open country have larger wingspans. Eagles are known for riding the thermal air currents rather than actually flapping their wings. Eagles have much better eyesight than humans allowing them to see prey from long distances. Not only do eagles' eyes have retinas more densely coated with light-detecting cells called cones than human retinas, but they have a much deeper fovea than humans. A fovea is a cone-rich structure in the backs of the eyes that detects light from the center of the visual field. Some investigators think this deeper fovea allows their eyes to act like a telephoto lens, giving them extra magnification in the center of their field of vision. They also see colors more vividly,can discriminate between more shades, and are able to see ultraviolet light — an ability that evolved to help them detect the UV-reflecting urine trails of small prey.
Based on median measurements, the largest eagle by weight is the Stellar's Sea Eagle which lives along coastal northeast Asia...
the largest by body length is the critically endangered Philippine Eagle...
and by wingspan, the White-Tailed Eagle from Eurasia, which is also known as the Sea Eagle and a close cousin to the Bald Eagle.
Other large species include the Wedge-tailed Eagle from Australia and southern New Guinea...
and the Harpy Eagle from Central and South America.
However, it is the Wedge-tailed Eagle that has the longest wingspan ever recorded of 9 feet, 4 inches.
Among the smallest eagles are the Booted Eagle from Europe, southern Africa and Asia weighing only a couple of pounds and a wingspan of under 50 inches...
and the Great Nicobar Serpent Eagle.
Some of the more unusual looking members of the eagle family are the Changeable Hawk-Eagle, also known as the Crested Hawk-Eagle from India and Sri Lanka...
from Africa, the Long-crested Eagle...
the flashy Bateleur from Africa and southwest Arabia...
and from Asia Blyth's Hawk-eagle
The larger eagles are considered apex predators in the areas where they live. Besides fish, prey of various eagle species includes monkeys, sloths, foxes, and small deer and goats, snakes and lizards, rabbits and hare, other birds, and carrion.
By the way, I recently passed 160,000 views on my blog. Thanks everybody for your interest in my nature musings.
and you may know about the only other eagle species found in the United States, the Golden Eagle.
The Bald Eagle may be the most recognized, but in fact, the Golden Eagle is the slightly larger bird. There are two subspecies of Bald Eagles and while this raptor is the only one endemic to North America and can be found throughout the U.S., the birds living in Alaska, upper U.S.and Canada are larger than the ones living in the southern U.S. and Baja California. The majority of Bald Eagles live in the north and migrate south for the winter when coastal waters and rivers freeze as their diet is mainly fish.. Besides North America, the Golden Eagle is also found in Eurasia and parts of Africa. There are six subspecies of Golden Eagles, the largest living in southwest China, northern Pakistan and southern Kazakhstan. The largest female Golden Eagles can have a wingspan of just over 9 feet and weigh up to 27 pounds, while the largest Bald Eagles can weigh up to 17 pounds and a wingspan of up to 8 feet across. However, a Bald Eagle holds the record of the largest verified load carried in flight of a 15-pound mule deer fawn. Larger eagles will kill prey that weigh much more than they do, but will eat on the ground and then carry off pieces of its kill.
The width of wingspan depends on the environment in which the eagles live. Those that prefer a forest home have smaller wingspans so they can navigate through the trees more effectively. Eagles that live in open country have larger wingspans. Eagles are known for riding the thermal air currents rather than actually flapping their wings. Eagles have much better eyesight than humans allowing them to see prey from long distances. Not only do eagles' eyes have retinas more densely coated with light-detecting cells called cones than human retinas, but they have a much deeper fovea than humans. A fovea is a cone-rich structure in the backs of the eyes that detects light from the center of the visual field. Some investigators think this deeper fovea allows their eyes to act like a telephoto lens, giving them extra magnification in the center of their field of vision. They also see colors more vividly,can discriminate between more shades, and are able to see ultraviolet light — an ability that evolved to help them detect the UV-reflecting urine trails of small prey.
Based on median measurements, the largest eagle by weight is the Stellar's Sea Eagle which lives along coastal northeast Asia...
the largest by body length is the critically endangered Philippine Eagle...
and by wingspan, the White-Tailed Eagle from Eurasia, which is also known as the Sea Eagle and a close cousin to the Bald Eagle.
Other large species include the Wedge-tailed Eagle from Australia and southern New Guinea...
and the Harpy Eagle from Central and South America.
However, it is the Wedge-tailed Eagle that has the longest wingspan ever recorded of 9 feet, 4 inches.
Among the smallest eagles are the Booted Eagle from Europe, southern Africa and Asia weighing only a couple of pounds and a wingspan of under 50 inches...
and the Great Nicobar Serpent Eagle.
Photo by A P Zaibin Source: Oriental Bird Club
Some of the more unusual looking members of the eagle family are the Changeable Hawk-Eagle, also known as the Crested Hawk-Eagle from India and Sri Lanka...
from Africa, the Long-crested Eagle...
the flashy Bateleur from Africa and southwest Arabia...
and from Asia Blyth's Hawk-eagle
The larger eagles are considered apex predators in the areas where they live. Besides fish, prey of various eagle species includes monkeys, sloths, foxes, and small deer and goats, snakes and lizards, rabbits and hare, other birds, and carrion.
By the way, I recently passed 160,000 views on my blog. Thanks everybody for your interest in my nature musings.
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