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Friday, May 24, 2013

A Few Birds and an Azalea

Recently, Doug and I and our friend, Pat, spent an afternoon at a nearby state park, just enjoying the spring weather and some good books. Pat had eaten an apple and tossed the core to the water's edge. Immediately, from across the lake, two Canada geese headed our way. Apparently, they had seen the apple core hit the water and they were coming to investigate.

The first goose on the scene plucked the apple core from the water.

The arrival of the second goose

On another day, as I was walking at the reservoir, I captured a short (and shaky) video of a meadowlark. The quality isn't good because I had to zoom pretty far, but it was the best I could do.


Then, on another trip to the state park this week, a beautiful bluebird landed on a nearby tree and posed for us.




And, finally, here are a couple of pictures of the azalea bush in our front yard.






18 comments:

  1. Very nice pics, Linda. Would love to see a bluebird from that range. Well done. :)

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  2. love that bluebird fellow! sweet meadowlark song, too.

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  3. Oh wow! These are such wonderful pictures. I don't know which I like better,the birds or the flowers.I love Bluebirds so these shots are amazing.

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  4. Beautiful bluebird. I didn't know they had bright colors other than blue.

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  5. Frank - I'd love to see the pictures you would have gotten from that range, too. :)

    Theresa - Isn't the bluebird pretty? It's a fairly rare treat to see one.

    Ruth - Thanks kindly. I'm with you on the bluebird.

    Stephen - This is an Eastern Bluebird. I don't think the Mountain Bluebirds have the orange breast.

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  6. Wow,you found a lot of beauty. I used to try and imitate the meadowlark as a kid, but don't come close now.i think my voice changed.LOL

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    1. Thanks, Steve. I imagine your voice change did affect your Meadowlark imitation. :)

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  7. Hi Linda, Great photos... I especially love the Bluebird photos.. I got a picture tonight of Daddy Bluebird feeding one of his babies... SO cute.

    Your Azaleas are gorgeous. Love the colors... Our Azaleas are mostly gone now.

    Hope you have a great weekend. Happy Memorial Day --and don't forget to thank God for our service men and women who do/did so much for us to keep us safe.

    Hugs,
    Betsy

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  8. It looks as if Spring has arrived in Indiana. Your azaleas are beautiful, as are the pictures of the bluebird. I think you did a good job with the video.

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  9. Thanks, Betsy. I actually thought of you while photographing that little sweetie. :)

    George - Yes, we've had spring and summer...all in about a week. :) Thanks for the kind words about the video. I was shooting into the sun at extreme magnification...and breathing hard from my walk. :)

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  10. The meadowlark is the Nebraska state bird, where I'm from! Great pictures.

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  11. Those geese are used to handouts if they were on top of that core so quickly. They waste no time! :) The bluebird.. just gorgeous. I've never seen one. And the meadowlark has a lovely song. I think there was a red-winged blackbird answering the call. Azaleas.. so beautiful.

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    1. Hilary - We were shocked at how quickly those geese headed in our direction. It's not a big lake, but they were clear on the other side of it. Afterward, about a dozen of them gathered in a semi-circle around our chairs and stayed there as long as we did. They didn't pester us, but they were ready to pounce if anything else was thrown.

      I don't doubt that you heard a redwing blackbird in the video clip. There are lots of them at the reservoir. I've never been able to get a good picture, though. They're not patient posers. :)

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  12. Linda, your azaleas look beautiful. I have one with yellow flowers in the garden, when it is fully grown it should represent quite an impressive bush, and one with red flowers which has come into bloom abundantly this year.

    The bluebird is nice and I enjoyed the singing meadowlark. What an adventure with the geese! :)

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    1. Petra - It's really just one azalea. I think the slight difference in color between the photos was due to the lighting. But we love that bush. It almost stops traffic on our road when it's in full bloom. I'm sure you'll enjoy yours as they mature.

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  13. Linda, you got some beautiful shots of one of my favorite birds: the eastern bluebird. He posed so prettily for you on that limb. Great shot of the goose with the apple core. They sure are opportunists, aren't they? Lovely azaleas as well. :)

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    1. Gail - I was thrilled to see the eastern bluebird. He sat on that limb for a good minute or so, giving us ample opportunity to enjoy and photograph him.

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