Sum-a-dis-n-sum-a-dat!

I am soooo bored! I can't find anything to photograph, as I am sure most of you feel the same. It's that time of year where everything is hiding among the overgrown everything.

Anyway, here are a few things that are at least something that triggered my shutter.



I happened to catch mom nurturing her young one. My lens was a bit too close, but who's complaining?








A curious Doe backlit in the evening sun.









Infestation!








A painted Prairie








The squirrel who keeps stealing the heads off of my sunflowers and eating them on top of my selfmade Owlbox. The quality of the box has been compromised by the squirrel over the years, and has never contained an owl. I wonder why, as I mumble grumble at that freekin squirrel...

Golden Buck

As Autumn approaches, the blazing bright colors of Goldenrod are in bloom. It is this time of year that my focus turns to Whitetail Bucks. They have completed their velvet shed and are in pre-rut, which causes them to stir a bit and are a tad more visual as they move within their territory more. The best time to find them right now is at dusk, as they come out to feed. Not the best conditions for us photographers, as this shot was at 1200 ISO just to shutter a mere 1/200 second per frame, but hey...At least I finally have something to post about!



10 point Buck in Goldenrod. Notice his neck is starting to swell as his hormones are kicking in for the rut season.

More Hummer Shots

I finally took some action shots of the Ruby-throated Hummingbirds at my feeder over the weekend under the bright and sunny sky. All of the shots are of juvenile males. You can tell by the faintly dotted throats, that will soon become their namesake.

This first one is my favorite, only because it is feeding from mother nature instead of me. I prefer natural shots...






This one is a favorite because he looks quite animated.






And I like this last one because of the detail. Click to enlarge and see!

Blond Squirrels

At first glance, you might not think that the coloring of this squirrel is all that unusual.



You might even determine that the lighting enhanced it's lighter tones, but keep looking...




A town not far from where I live is not-so-famous for their "white squirrels". I wouldn't call them white, but they are definately a paler version of your average fox squirrel. The park for which they are "not-famous" holds at least 2 of them, and a few years back, there were a few more.



They seem to act just like your every day squirrel, and seem to be just as sizeable, but the tails seem less furry. A bit scraggly/skinny...





Anyway, I take some time to visit them when other wildlife is hard to find, but researching them on the web has come up dry. They are not albino, just tinted quite a bit lighter. Are they in a class by themselves? I don't know, but I love that I have the opportunity to see them in a town close by.

Finally...A Hummer!

In any given year, I usually have plenty of hummers. This year is the exception. Until this week, I have had none. I bought additional feeders early in the season, but it didn't help. I grew some hummingbird attractant flowers (Black and Blue Salvia), still...none. But this week must be the kick off to prepare for migration, as the activity has finally come. I have them fighting all over the place, and I couldn't be happier. This photo was taken in poor light, but I just had to get some shots. I'm sure over the long weekend, I will find some time to get some shots where the lighting is right!



And since I was out shooting hummers, my puppy Emmi had to help, so I took her photo too!




Happy Labor Day!

The Perfect Storm Every Afternoon in Florida

It's not always perfect in paradise! It stormed every afternoon, but it wouldn't last long. We planned for it each day, and coordinated our schedule around them.



We watched this storm roll in, parked at a beach and saw these pelicans ride it out. You can see the palm trees in the background blow in the forceful winds.



I guess it is always dinnertime for pelicans...



...and terns.

A Few More of My Favorite Waders

Here are the next to last photos saved from the Ding Darling trip. I hope everyone enjoyed the photos, and will put Ding Darling on their list to visit. You won't regret the up close and personal encounters almost guaranteed every morning!

White Ibis



Tri-colored Heron preening



Roseate Spoonbill flipping food back to swallow.



Reddish Egret portrait



Reddish Egret preening.



Tomorrow: A storm rolls in...

Little Blue Heron Continued...

Here are some more photos of the very cooperative Little Blue Heron.

This photo happened as I shot from the back of the car. After this shot, I had to change to a smaller lens to catch the action.