Confession!

O.K. so I am alittle embarrassed! I know that everybody makes mistakes and I am no exception but...I feel stupid! There have been times in the past where I think I have seen that rare species and get uber-excited, just to find out that the newly discovered Tiger Heron I found, is only a weird leaf growing out of a sunken log. I drag my friend over to see the thing, then laugh about it later. Or... That same friend of mine just KNEW that a Screech Owl was hiding in a tree cavity and using her truck bed to get the height we needed to see in, and it ended up being nothing more than an empty hole that had a weird shadow in it that looked like a face. There have been plenty of false positives over the years, but this time...

Cuttidad and I are driving along, when all of a sudden I see something in a field a couple of hundred feet away that looked like a coyote. I get alittle closer and change my mind on the identity of this creature. I can hardly gasp out the words...BOBCAT! Bobcats are not around these parts. You would have to go many counties southward to even hear a rumor of one. Anyway, here it is stalking something in the field, and here I am preparing to photograph the grandest of prized wildlife (in my own mind) this state has to offer! I creep in closer with my car and am perplexed by the sight. Is it? Or isn't it? Cutti looks through the bino's and says matter-of-factly: "It's just a kitty." I shoot anyway just to be sure, and then look through the bino's. Hmmm...It does look like a kitty, but the wide furry cheeked face...Trying to will this feline into a bobcat, I continue to question it's I.D. I focus with the camera now, take a few more snapshots, then concede to it's true identity.









Yeah, dammit, it's just a kitty....My bad! Oh well...Some day I will get my Bobcat...But for now, Cutti gets her laugh!

Sharing Resources

Spending time in another direction at a different state park than normal, looking for newcomers, a Red-belly and then a Cedar Waxwing eating berries high up in a tree was about all I could find.

Weekend Roundup

Playing outside with my new Boxer puppy Emmi, some shadows flew over the yard, so looking up, I see American White Pelicans circling just above my treetops. I couldn't believe they were so low. I ran into the house to grab the camera and caught these images. A cooling lake is less than a mile down the road which attracts 100's of them every migration.






And one of the many reasons that are keeping me from blogging is this little girl. I got a new puppy on Wednesday, just a month after losing my first baby Maggie after 12 and a half years. The house felt so empty without Mag, that filling that void was inevitable. Alas, I found the perfect puppy! Meet Emmi!







And this was my old girl Maggie, who was an amazing girl in every way, every single day of her short life.

A Few Miscellaneous Scenics

I have no time for blogging! I hate that! We can hopefully return to your regularly scheduled program next week? In the meantime, I have these to share:

I Ain't Fraid a No Snakes!

Walking through the woods in an attempt to sneak up on some wood ducks, not even gentle gliding footsteps could mask the crunch of the pathway, flushing the woodies pretty quickly. Checking my surroundings, spying a place to hide and wait for their return, I find a place to suit my needs. With the ground saturated, I had to be higher than I wanted and sat on the moist ground atop of leaves and waited behind some trees. There wasn't much to see but swamp, so checking my images and manipulating my settings kept me busy. Passing the time focusing on adjustments, my ears perk to a slight rustling sound nearby. I scan the immediate area looking for a squirrel or a bird, find nothing and go back to my adjustments. Then, it occurs to me: I didn't check for snakes. Scanning again, I find the source of the disturbance. It was coming directly at me from about 4 feet away. I quickly displayed plenty of my own movement to prevent him from coming any closer. He freezes and tests the air with his tongue. Cool! I try to focus on him but he is too close for my telephoto. He decides I am bigger than him and yields to my territory, heading straight for the water. He picks a spot at the waters edge about 10 feet from me. Time passes without wood ducks returning, so I decide I need a close up of the snake, since I have nothing better to do. I want a head on shot so I have to get up and move. As I do this, I almost step on another larger snake. Jeez, these guys are really testing my fear/no fear. I don't know exactly how long I was vulnerable to these guys, but the not knowing, then knowing can really freak you out. Next time, I am bringing a chair!

It's Getting Alittle Exciting Out There!

I'm seeing new migrants every day now:



Red-breasted Nuthatch!










American White Pelicans!









Tree Swallow!









And even Painted turtles!

Sorry for the short post, sometimes work gets in the way of fun!

Killdeer Couple

Finally getting close enough shots of killdeer, I was happy to shoot a pair on the roadside. They protected eachother from me by trying to distract me from the other. Aww! How sweet! I found this an interesting shot, for comparison purposes. I don't know if these are different sexes (I would think so), as books say the sexes are similar.



I tried for a good reflection shot, but the plovers were uncooperative. I settled for this one.