Sunday, April 29, 2012

More Arrivals At The Vermilon River. A Post to MWT and WBW.

The post is long today, even longer than usual, as there is a lot going on. The scenes are from the east track wetland, which is divided in two by the portion of the active track that ultimately becomes a trail. If we continued along the track, we would reach the beaver pond I showed in a previous post. The sun rising is from Boom's early morning walk. CLICK ON ANY PHOTO TO ENLARGE AND WATCH THE SLIDE SHOW.
North Side Of  the Wetland.


South Side showing active Track

South Side of Wetland.

Sun Rising through trees.

 I haven't seen any geese for a while, as the weather, rain, snow and high winds precluded our hiking some of the trails. They, the Geese, leave the River when it goes into flood  heading for the wetlands. This pair came out of the wetlands and settled on the fringe area, forcing us to pass them. I hate doing that as they can be quite contrary.


 You'll see all sorts of weather  in the photos. In fact, its hard to believe that all the photos were taken in the last five days. But the male Purple Finch looks good in the snow, if not too happy. In my experience there are usually some females around with a male. And there were.
Male Purple Finch.


 I think the female Purple Finch is equally resplendent, especially with those eye markings.
Female Purple Finch.


 Of course trying to pick her out is sometimes difficult as these shots of the Pine Sisken that has similar markings show.
Pine Sisken

Pine Sisken 

The Sparrow migration is coming along well. As time moves on these Dark-eyed Junco's will leave and head further north.
 Junco's belong to the Sparrow family.
I put all the Sparrows in the same area. This is a Song Sparrow.
Song Sparrow.

The White-throated Sparrows have really moved in. They're among the smallest and have that yellow patch on their heads. It really show in the next photos.
White-throated Sparrow.


 A lot of photos, but they're favorites of mine.



Robin

Robin

 I grouped  the Raven along with his relative the crow. The crow is Huegy, of course, and he is not too happy with the rain. Boom & I looked about the same when we came in out of the rain.
A Very Wet Crow.

Northern Crow.

The Red-winged Blackbirds are really active in the wetlands.
All these shots are of male Red-winged Blackbirds.



 This shot struck me as funny. They're tree swallows just fooling around.
Tree Swallow

Tree Swallow.





 The next two are Alder or Least Flycatchers. Least, I think as there is a touch of yellow under the tail area.

 The Northern Flickers are back. They're a ground Woodpecker that feeds on ants. This is a male as the mustache indicates.
Male Northern Flicker

Northern Flicker.

These guys are illusive, but its a male Yellow- bellied Sapsucker. The red bib shows he's a male.
Sap Sucker in Flight.

Red Squirrel

A post to MWT @ http://ourworldtuesdaymeme.blogspot.com/ and WBW @ http://pineriverreview.blogspot.com/

68 comments:

  1. Dang Gary, I am jealous of your many sightings!
    Great post!!!

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  2. nice job, gary. the purple finch is so pretty. the white-throats are lovely. squirrels so dang cute. but today's star has to be that wet crow. incredibly handsome shots!

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  3. Wonderful series once again. I love your images. What a beautiful area!

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  4. So nice to see the purple finches. It has been a couple years since I had one stop here. I love that last squirrel shot :-) I would love to have that cute red squirrel here. Some wonderful bird shots here!

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  5. You always have such great series Gary! Love the little Tree Swallow!

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  6. · Nice collection of birds and squirrels. Beautiful landscapes.
    Thanks for your visit

    · regards

    CR ··· & ··· LMA
    ________________________________
    ·

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  7. Another great series! Love that flicker and those finches!

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  8. I agree that the weather has been variable this past week or so. Still, it has been good to be out, and seing all the changes that spring brings!!
    I saw the first ducklings this morning, although she took them out in the water, so we could not get too close.

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  9. Quite the variety of weather there! Terrific shots Gary. That tree swallow is so cute.

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  10. So, Spring is arriving, up where you are. Your shots are beautiful, as always. Loved the sparrows.

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  11. A great group of photos. Never saw a flicker, nor a red squirrel. Thank you for continuing to post fabulous photos. I love everyone of them.

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  12. Always love to see your feathered friends and today I particularly like the purple finch and, of course, the squirrels! You do indeed have a wonderful world, Gary!! Enjoy your week!

    Sylvia

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  13. Awesome captures of the birds and animals!!! I wish I could photograph birds....but I don´t like my 400mm lens...

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  14. I love it that so many birds are back now. It's wonderful to hear them sing early in the morning, a great time of day.

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  15. Such beautiful bird shots! I always enjoy seeing your feathered friends. :)

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    Replies
    1. You have seen a lot on your hikes! Thanks for sharing ! Have a great week, Gary!

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  16. excellent shots!!!
    well done!!!


    My photoblog: www.photographyforpassion.blogspot.it

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  17. Yes Garry! that female purple finch is every bit as colourful as the male finch. They are all beautiful against the snow clad trees.

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  18. That cute squirrel in your last photo really seems to have a grip on things! :)

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  19. It is wild how varied the weather is. The landscape shots are great and I love seeing all your birds and squirrels. I'm envious of the flicker shots because I have been trying to get a decent shot of the flicker in my trees but it has been moving too fast for me.

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  20. Nice series, Gary. I have a pair of tree swallows in my bird box right now and red wings are nesting down in the wetlands but most of these birds are not found in my area.

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  21. Beautiful photos are excellent catches, the star of the story today is the Purple Finch. Greetings.

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  22. Wonderful collection as usual Gary. I especially like the Geese and those marvellous purple Finches! Extraordinary. Thanks for sharing and visiting.

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  23. Really like the reflections in the wetlands. So many feathered friends ... the purple finch --my favorite!

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  24. Great shots, and quite the variety of wildlife. Now I want to see a train photo - I've got some I need to post soon.

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  25. Your wetlands are beautiful! I love the purple finch photos. I see many sparrows here..they are such chipper birds.

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  26. Such gorgeous shots! And such typical April weather with snow and sun...

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  27. I love the bird photos and your information about them. The squirrel picture is great too, really shows the character of the squirrel. Have a good day!

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  28. These are beautiful! You have managed to get some incredible bird shots! :)

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  29. This is such a treat with these beautiful photos of birds and also wetland landscape. Thanks for this.

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  30. Hi there - nice post - I think the number of birds you manage to catch is remarkable.

    Stewart M

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  31. Such wonderful bird photos! Another great serie from you!

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  32. I didn't mind the post being long, Gary,I really enjoyed reading it through. First time I read of a ground woodpecker, many thanks for the wonderful post,photos and facts alike!

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  33. I really enjoyed this post. We have a few things in common: love of birds, enjoyment walking/hiking with our dogs, and also many of the same bird species. However, some were different, and I was particularly thrilled to see the Yellowbellied Sapsucker. i picked up some knowledge of identification features from your post. Thank you!

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  34. You are really something with all those birds and photos of them :)
    It is pure joy to see your post, thank you!

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  35. Great post with some excellent pictures!!!
    Regards,

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  36. Hi Gary

    I loved the blue of the water in your landscape shots and the feather patterns on the head of a very wet Huegy were quite cool. I thought the third photo of the purple finch was exquisite. As always you convey such a sense of place I feel like I have been there.

    All the best to Boomer.
    Guy

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  37. Beautiful post! Such great variety of birds! :)

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  38. no bird post is complete without a couple of squirrels. these are all wonderful images of our beautiful feathered friends. the red winged black birds are a favorite of mine!!

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  39. A great series of photos again. It's nice to think that your days are getting brighter and you are seeing more birds again. It rather makes up for the ones I am missing because they have left for the far north.

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  40. Great series, my favorite are the Purple Finches and I love the Sapsucker. Thanks for sharing!

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  41. Awesome post, great birdphotos!
    Have a nice evening!

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  42. eachh delightful images Gary, but I think it's the male purple finch which has stolen my heart today

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  43. loved that little sparrow in the snow.

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  44. Fantastic shots, Gary! You have some amazing wildlife in your part of the world and you always do such a remarkable job of capturing it with your camera.

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  45. j'adore les photos des oiseaux sous la neige, j'ai froid pour eux, magnifique


    Publicity ;o) Every Friday (and the Weekend), The Challenge "Walk In The Street Photography"

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  46. A great selection Gary! Love those flycatchers!

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  47. Enjoyed going through your sequence of shots. The sapsucker is indeed a lovely bird...love the capture in flight!

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  48. Great post!
    Love your fantastic shots.
    Thanks for sharing.
    Mette

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  49. Fascinating post!

    Nice to be introduced with the Purple Finch. The female is so cute too.
    Lovely sparrows.
    Beautiful and pure nature.
    Thanks for sharing

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  50. Gary, you really are great at capturing little birds in the wild. A really great collection and I love your sodden crow.

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  51. I am learning so much from you and all the people who post to WBW! Thanks for the great photos and the wonderful information you have shared. Truly beautiful shots!

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  52. Great shots of the birds. Every time I visit here, I always enjoyed your beautiful bird photos.

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  53. Nice series - I like how it goes from winter to spring :-)

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  54. Beautiful scenic shots and a nice group of birds. The Purple Finches do look pretty in the snow. WE enjoyed watching the Juncos all winter and now have to wait until they return late next fall. I love the picture of a wet Huegy.

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  55. The purple finch is just amazing -- great shots all around, Gary. Beautiful!

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  56. I love birds and purple finch catches my attention I haven't seen this bird here in MI.

    Kim,USA

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  57. Spectacular Gary! The shot of the wet crow is beyond great...
    Cheers Sir!

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  58. These are tremendous pictures. That Purple Finch is one I haven't seen before, so especially nice to see.

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  59. great variety...lots of activity in your "neck of the woods"

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  60. WOW! So many beautiful little birds, Gary! I love the huge variety you have in your part of the world. Thanks for sharing.

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  61. Excellent post, Gary! Lovely collection of birds. The landscapes are all gorgeous!!

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