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Birding / nature / photography ~ Older Asexuals for light walking and hiking nature adventures ~


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Beautiful drive through the Blue Ridge Mountains.

Drove into several valleys with homesteads and cabins, nestled on hills leading up to the mountain bases.

One had a gorgeous lake, of which I had stunning views, as I spiraled down the mountain.

Saw cows, deer, chickens and one wild turkey.

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I've seen three sparrowhawks and a kestrel today whilst driving around, easily an all time record

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Waow. That's pretty good !

There's a building more or less opposite my flat (it's a few blocks down, but all the stuff inbetween is shorter, so an unbroken view) which has a big colony of nesting swifts in the summer. Now that it's so much warmer and the trees are shaking out their bright new leaves, I'm watching out every day for the first ones to return...

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I saw a pair of band tailed pigeons today. It's the first time I've seen them that I know of. They are pigeons that are native to the west coast of North America. They look enough like common feral pigeons (aka rock doves) that they could be mistaken for them. But they are just enough bigger that you can tell the difference, and the male has a sort of thin white crescent-like ring on the back of his neck, just above an iridescent green patch of feathers. I could see them clearly from my office window, which is on the third floor. I also get good glimpses of egrets, hummingbirds and other birds, from that vantage point. The other day I walked out into this courtyard area at work, early in the morning before many people were at work, and nearly walked right into a pair of mallard ducks. I noticed before I was too close, and they stayed put.

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Butterflies are emerging at last. I saw an Orange Tip on Wednesday, which is the first of spring

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My home in the Uinta Mountains opened up (the snow all melted) about ten days ago. Last night was the first of the season that I stayed here. On my drive up here, I saw two solitary moose and a herd of 19 elk. Yep - I stopped and counted them because that many large wild animals in one place is an amazing sight. I also saw two mule deer and this morning I saw a lone moose grazing on the hillside from my window. The dog barked a couple of times during the night, I assume at the animals passing by my trailer. Today I will fill up the humming bird feeders and do some work in the greenhouse.

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Loving all these signs of spring. :) Today I walked past a bush that zizzed madly for a while and then a great tit flew out of it and everything went quiet again. I deduce feeding time !

I've never lived anywhere that got house martins or swallows in springtime, or indeed moose. I'd quite like to meet a moose. :wub:

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Qutenkuddly

Loving all these signs of spring. :) Today I walked past a bush that zizzed madly for a while and then a great tit flew out of it and everything went quiet again. I deduce feeding time !

I've never lived anywhere that got house martins or swallows in springtime, or indeed moose. I'd quite like to meet a moose. :wub:

Moose are dangerous!

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  • 2 weeks later...
Blackthorn

I am really happy to have discovered this thread :) Love the bluebell pic.

I live in a fairly built up area, but have tried to make my garden as wildlife friendly as possible. Getting a lot of sparrows and blue-tits visiting at the moment. Also two hedgehogs are dropping by every night for their evening meal - cranberry crunch.

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Skycaptain

Blackthorn, welcome to AVEN 🎂 🎂. We're delighted to see you here, and somewhat jealous of the wildlife you're seeing

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Blackthorn

Hi Skycaptain, thanks for the welcome :)

Saw swifts this morning - first time this year. They were flying over the local park - I see them every year so they must have a regular nest nearby. Have not seen any swallows yet - will have to keep my eyes peeled..

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Blackthorn

Saw the Heron today from work - our office is by a river. He looked magnificent - perched on a rock waiting for his dinner to swim by...

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Autumn Sunrise

We seem to have a great many birds around here at the moment. The air is full of bird sounds (is this an autumn phenomenon?), and I wish I could identify all of them. I saw a willy wagtail on my clothes line yesterday - the first in ages :D A few days ago, near sunset, a large flock of sulphur-crested cockatoos flew over, screaming, and settled in one of the tall eucalypts next door. They're handsome birds, but I don't really like having them around - they're very aggressive and destructive. I've seen them take fruit from the orchard, and discard each fruit after taking one bite :twisted:

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Blackthorn

I love your signatures Autumn Sunrise :)

Caught the bus to Holmfirth yesterday (Last of the Summer Wine Country if anyone has seen that programme) and walked up into the hills. Saw my first swallows of the summer - lovely to see them swooping over the fields.

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Baby magpies in my garden at the moment, bathing in the bird bath and managing to look cute.

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The hummingbirds have returned. Yesterday I was attacked several times because I was wearing a shirt with a bright colored logo. I don't mean viciously attacked, but buzzed close by. There are very few flowers available now as it is still early spring at my elevation (8200 feet). They are buzzing the areas where the feeders usually hang. I will cook up a big pot of nectar for them and get the feeders filled today.

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Qutenkuddly

They're out already in my neck of the woods, too.

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Skycaptain

Much jelly, they don't exist in Europe

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They are pretty much year round where I live. I have flowers in my front yard that they like to visit. And I sometimes see them right outside my office window at work. (I have also seen snowy egrets, native pigeons, and various songbirds from that vantage point).

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While driving in to town tonight, I saw a group of mule deer and a group of very large upright birds (herrons or cranes?) hanging out together in the sagebrush.

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Blackthorn

A flock of starlings has just invaded my garden - there must be about twenty altogether - adults and juveniles. I will have to go and replenish the feeding station after these visitors :) It is great to see them as they are counted as a species of concern by the rspb due to falling numbers. Resident sparrows are looking on with disapproval :lol:

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Had a lovely family of rabbits in my yard, lunching on the wild strawberries.

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Starlings are an introduced nuisance species here (although I haven't seen around where I live). At some point there was concern about them driving out native blackbirds and also taking over nesting sites that other native birds would normally use. Still, they should exist in their native habitats.

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Skycaptain

That's grey squirrels here

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Blackthorn

Hi Skycaptain, yes grey squirrels are the introduced nuisance here. Although we only have greys around here and I don't mind them. The RSPB says that starlings are one of the most threatened species of birds in Britain - their numbers have fallen by 75% in the past thirty years. Maybe due to loss of pasture and changing farming methods?

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Qutenkuddly

I took a photo of some sand pipers today!

20160523_145238_zpsbqvrtsnu.jpg

:p

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