The day was so gloomy that taking photos was hard. I'm not good with low light conditions. If the autofocus doesn't know what is right, neither do I!
I think I have photos of this very same Mockingbird guarding these very same pear trees back in early fall :-) He's still there. Maybe he is guarding those buds he is sitting on, now....next year's pears. I thought he looked like he was balancing on a bunch of thorns :-)
Hiding from me
Below the pears is a stand of brambles. This area was very popular with the Mockingbirds earlier in the year......good cover, good food!
One of the pear trees had an old nest in it. Don't see too many pears left on those little branches!
Across the road is a cemetery with a chainlink fence around it. Locked....so I can't explore.
While driving over to the parking lot to check the trees for birds I noticed a lot of birds in the grass.....
...Robins! There were at least a dozen or more in the grass looking for food. I wonder why they like the cemetery?
I have to shoot through the chain link fence, since I am so short, but the Robins didn't mind me being there.
You can see the chain link crisscrosses on this one :-) I'll pretend that I did that on purpose for pattern.
A small flock of American Tree Sparrows was hanging around the edge of one lake, but it was so hard to focus on them from a distance in the bad light. If I hadn't recently seen them at home, I might not have figured out what they were.
This guy was a nice surprise! A Kingfisher hanging around a tree over an area where the water was not frozen. He looks like he has something in his bill. As soon as he saw me, he flew off.
Another sparrow visitor in one of the parking lots. Song Sparrow. I wonder how many different types of sparrows live in the grasses there? I would love to see a lot more, but they hide well and I never seem to have the time to just sit and wait.
More of a front view of the Song Sparrow.
I think I have photos of this very same Mockingbird guarding these very same pear trees back in early fall :-) He's still there. Maybe he is guarding those buds he is sitting on, now....next year's pears. I thought he looked like he was balancing on a bunch of thorns :-)
Hiding from me
Below the pears is a stand of brambles. This area was very popular with the Mockingbirds earlier in the year......good cover, good food!
One of the pear trees had an old nest in it. Don't see too many pears left on those little branches!
Across the road is a cemetery with a chainlink fence around it. Locked....so I can't explore.While driving over to the parking lot to check the trees for birds I noticed a lot of birds in the grass.....
...Robins! There were at least a dozen or more in the grass looking for food. I wonder why they like the cemetery?
I have to shoot through the chain link fence, since I am so short, but the Robins didn't mind me being there.
You can see the chain link crisscrosses on this one :-) I'll pretend that I did that on purpose for pattern.
A small flock of American Tree Sparrows was hanging around the edge of one lake, but it was so hard to focus on them from a distance in the bad light. If I hadn't recently seen them at home, I might not have figured out what they were.
This guy was a nice surprise! A Kingfisher hanging around a tree over an area where the water was not frozen. He looks like he has something in his bill. As soon as he saw me, he flew off.
Another sparrow visitor in one of the parking lots. Song Sparrow. I wonder how many different types of sparrows live in the grasses there? I would love to see a lot more, but they hide well and I never seem to have the time to just sit and wait.
More of a front view of the Song Sparrow.That's it for the birds on this trip. As soon as we get another fairly nice day, I want to go back and see what else is there at this time of year. I need some good hiking boots and spend some time walking through the grass areas. I haven't done that much, mainly sticking to the parking lots and roads. Fewer people probably made it a little easier in some cases to find the birds. There are never huge crowds of people here, but it is a fishing and wildlife area and the lakes are popular for the fishermen when the weater is nice. 600 acres of water, 28 pits. 7 boat ramps on 5 of the pits. Plenty of room for everyone and one huge grass area is set aside for waterfowl resting....no hunting allowed in that area.
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11 comments:
...this is a really nice series you have going here. I just looked it up, and there have been some very rare birds sighted there. I saw it's in Indian...a reclaimed coal mine. Where in the state is it? The fence reminds me of a joke my grandma told me years and years ago..."Why are there always fences around graveyards?" ...."because people are just dying to get in!" (groan)
I enjoyed seeing your birds this morning! Love to see the flocks of Robins.
Kelly: Blue Grass is just northeast of Evansville, Indiana. This is a good time to come to Evansville for both Blue Grass and to head across the river to Henderson for the Snow Geese.
Dorothy: Thanks...the Robins make me think spring even though I know it is too early.
Still nice photos, grey day and all.
How iconic to see a Mockingbird!
All of these birds remind me of spring.With a heavy layer of snow,that is still far away.Thanks for the peek into spring.
Blessings,Ruth
I love your love for birds! It's as if I am following you with your camera - and I guess I am :) Thanks for sharing your walks and talks with us
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I bet there are lots of sparrows in the grasses there Mary. They're a tough bird spy sometimes. Love your posts as usual...looking for some green soon tho!!
I'm still so envious of all the places and all of the wildlife you see in your area Mary. You are lucky to live in such an section of the country where you get everything all year round.
I've not had any new birds in a long time now:(
Have a great week-end.
B.
Hi Mary, We have had some Robins around this week also... Guess they think Spring is here. We've had two days of rain --and even thunderstorms tonight... BUT--I'll bet Ole Man Winter still hasn't left us totally yet...
Hugs,
Betsy
Thanks everyone! I love this area and there is always plenty I can go see within a 20 mile radius or less. We are having rain right now, so it is a good thing I took lots of photos at Blue Grass early in the week.
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