A nature photographer’s images and stories of birds, butterflies, and other creatures from her backyard near Orlando, FL
May 10, 2011 - There seem to be a bunch of active Brown Thrashers in the neighborhood right now. We have at least one, maybe more, that come to our birdbath regularly. The mulch in all my flower beds is re-arranged daily for me as they thrash it around, looking for worms. Tonight there were several down by the […]
May 9, 2011 - There is usually a Black-Necked Stilt at the pond behind Lakehurst these nights. Sometimes there are two, but more often one. I wonder if there’s a nest nearby?? I’d love to have babies close by!
May 6, 2011 - We came across two Mourning Doves on our walk tonight. One was bigger, seemed wary of us, and flew off as we approached (“look out below!!”) The other was smaller, and he sat watching as I squatted down to take his picture. I wonder if he’s a relatively young dove. He wasn’t bothered by our […]
May 5, 2011 - The backyard was alive tonight with calls of the mockingbird fledglings. It’s fun to see them come out of the hedge and learn to feed themselves. They remain quite fussy, and when this guy saw his mom fly by, he was sure was going to get a snack. He pouted when he didn’t!
May 4, 2011 - My daylilies have started to bloom, including the tiny one that Mum-mum gave me last year to nurse back to health!
May 3, 2011 - On our walk tonight, a girl showed us a tiny baby mockingbird that she had found on the ground. It had fallen from its nest. While I was happy to have an opportunity to photograph such a young bird, I wish it had been under better circumstances. The baby mockingbird in our backyard is still […]
May 1, 2011 - I spent some time in the backyard this afternoon, removing spent winter flowers and transplanting roses to prepare beds for spring. It was very sad — I shovel-pruned several rose bushes, including ‘Nancy Reagan’, ‘First Prize’, and ‘Pope John Paul II’ (which had nothing to do with his beautification today!) These roses don’t seem well […]
April 29, 2011 - We saw the baby Mallards at the pond tonight. They were all grouped together in the middle of the pond. Mama landed on the other side of the pond, causing these guys to start calling to her and swimming in her direction. I guess they are getting big enough that she’s not with them all […]
April 28, 2011 - Ian introduced us to our newest neighbor tonight. The Mourning Dove nest at Kathy and Sean’s has hatched and there is a small baby on the nest. Rich and I wonder how the mother manages to come and go from the nest to bring it food, without knocking the poor little guy out of the […]
April 27, 2011 - This weekend I spent some quality time at my favorite bird blind, my back window. I had fun watching the birds hopping around the backyard in the evening. I’ve been letting the wild grasses and weeds grow a bit in the rosebeds, because the Painted Buntings clearly enjoyed them. Apparently they also promote good bugs, […]
April 26, 2011 - Rich and I ate dinner on the porch tonight with Squirt. The backyard was very active, pairs of Northern Cardinals, Northern Mockingbirds, and Brown Thrashers hunting for worms and bugs. We watched one mockingbird in particular as he grabbed worm after worm, then carried it repeatedly to the same spot in the viburnum. Each time […]
April 25, 2011 - I promised to share a picture of our crazy neighborhood squirrels with the two little girls who live across the street. They’ve been watching my bird feeder waiting to see birds. I told them that we have a squirrel who comes and hangs upside down to reach for the food. Wouldn’t it be funny to […]
April 21, 2011 - We haven’t seen the Mallard babies at either pond for a few days now. :( But this adult obligingly flew right in front of me the other day!
April 20, 2011 - Mum-mum had a Ruby-Throated Hummingbird migrant in her yard a few weeks ago. We haven’t had any interesting migrants. We have the hummingbird feeders out, just in case! This bottlebrush shot would have been even better if there had been a nice hummer nectaring on it. :-p
April 18, 2011 - We found a new family of ducks by the pond tonight. At least, I think they are another family. The babies seem smaller than the ones that I found last week. These guys launched into the water and followed Mama off into the sunset… There were two Loggerhead Shrikes in the usual weeping willow tree. […]
April 16, 2011 - The windy weather forecast kept me at home this morning. So Rich and the cats and I had a lazy morning. It can be nice to stay at home and enjoy your backyard birds, too! I’m pretty sure there is a Brown Thrasher nest in the backyard. I’ve been seeing Brown Thrashers in the yard […]
April 15, 2011 - We continue to play host to a little group of Painted Buntings in the backyard. They’ve been here since December, and it’s going to be sad when they leave! We haven’t seen a male in a few nights, but we usually see between three and six “greenies” in the evenings. “Bunting hour” tends to be […]
April 14, 2011 - We came across a Killdeer on our walk this evening. We hear them around the neighborhood every day, but this guy was unusual because he was pretty close to the sidewalk. He didn’t mind much when I got closer, either. I’ve missed seeing these guys at the Circle B Bar Reserve in the recent weeks. […]
April 13, 2011 - I enjoyed having my zoom lens along on our walk this evening. The light of the sunset reflected on the water of the Pebble Ridge pond, creating awesome ripples of color. Then Rich pointed out the Wood Stork about to fly in just over the pond! Score! The sunset was beautiful. I zoomed all the […]
April 12, 2011 - There was an adult Bald Eagle down by Black Lake a few nights ago when we walked. We walked right past him, then I pulled Rich back and said “look!” Some neighbors were a little suspicious of my camera and wondered what in the world I was up to. They hadn’t seen the eagle either, […]
April 11, 2011 - There have been around 10 Wood Storks hanging around Stoneybrook West for the past week or so. I’ve photographed them in varying lights, which will illustrate the “Goldilocks” photography principle (posted today in honor of Goldy’s 9th birthday!) The first time I saw the storks, it was the middle of the afternoon. The light was […]
April 9, 2011 - I was feeling tired this morning, so I slept in instead of heading to Fort DeSoto to watch for migrant birds. As much as I wanted to photograph Indigo Buntings, I wasn’t too sorry that I stayed home. Rich and I were driving down Stoneybrook West Parkway when I noticed an adult Bald Eagle and […]
April 8, 2011 - We were walking by the Pebble Ridge pond last night when we came across a nice surprise: a cute little family of Mallards! The protective parents watched over the flock of energetic little babies. So tonight I went back with The Beast. The little family was right up in the grass near the sidewalk (how […]
April 7, 2011 - The male Painted Bunting has been coming to our backyard regularly for the past few days. We see him around 6:00 each evening — his clock is almost as regular as Goldy’s!! I’ve tried to go out and get better pictures of him, but he’s very skittish. He tolerates me standing on the back stoop, […]
April 6, 2011 - I’m getting way behind in posting backyard spring pictures! So here’s a nice collection of the birdie goings-on around Stoneybrook West… We have a pair of Brown Thrashers who have been making an appearance each afternoon in my back rose bed. They are quite regular. I wonder if they may have a nest in our […]
April 5, 2011 - I love how the days are longer and I can take my camera with me on our evening walks! Tonight we heard high-pitched calls, then looked up to see our first small flock of Cedar Waxwings. Normally we’ve seen dozens of these birds by this point in the season. This year, for some reason, we […]
April 4, 2011 - The Painted Buntings held a little party in the backyard tonight. Previously I’ve only seen four little green birds together. Tonight there were five, joined by the first male bird we’ve seen in about a month! It was such fun to watch them hopping around the yard, sampling millet at the feeder and enjoying the […]
March 31, 2011 - Goldy and Squirt spent the day cowering together under their favorite “safe chair”. Wow were those thunderstorms strong!! I got home expecting to see most of my rose blooms blown to the ground, but they looked ok. This was taken before the storms…
March 30, 2011 - My backyard roses are starting to bloom! I love how they all bloom at about the same time in the spring, about six weeks after I prune them almost back to the ground. It’s amazing how fast these bushes grow.
March 29, 2011 - Rich spotted our neighborhood Sandhill Cranes by the Lakehurst pond — with a baby! He’s a pretty big baby already, almost half as tall as his parents already. He’s starting to get his flight feathers, although he still has some of that adorable baby fuzz to him.
March 28, 2011 - We had a Brown Thrasher in our backyard this afternoon. I think it may be the first time I’ve seen one in our yard. I got a few quick shots before he flew off.
March 25, 2011 - We saw several Purple Martins near Black Lake on our walk tonight! It’s the first time I’ve seen Purple Martins around our neighborhood. I had fun trying to take flight shots, although the light was fading and my results aren’t great. But they are proof that we have martins around! It’s tempting to set up […]
March 24, 2011 - Rich likes to tease me about the JSW, the “Jess Standard Walk,” which always includes a walk past the Pebble Ridge pond. A Tricolored Heron has been hanging out there a lot in the last few weeks. We also see him by the pond at the back of Spinnaker Cove. Rich caught a glimpse of […]
March 23, 2011 - It’s that time of year again! Everywhere we go in Stoneybrook West, we see mockingbirds hopping around. It’s fun to watch the mating rituals — it’s like birdie hokey-pokey. One hops to the left, the other hops to the right, they have this great little dance. Now do the hokey pokey and let the nesting […]
March 22, 2011 - We were walking near the back side of Pebble Ridge tonight when we came across Mrs. Beaky attacking the passenger side mirror on a car. My camera attracted the attention of several neighbors, who all came out to laugh at this silly bird. I wish I could explain to her that the mirror image is […]
March 21, 2011 - The Internet can be such a cool way to share and learn about nature. For today’s post, instead of putting up my own pictures, I want to talk about two awesome websites. They feature live webcams on two bird nests. The first webcam is for Phoebe the hummingbird. She’s an Allen’s Hummingbird living in California. […]
March 19, 2011 - Mum-mum says that her warblers haven’t been around much in the last few weeks. Ours are still quite active, hopping around and chipping to each other in the treetops, especially in the late afternoons. I love how I can take my camera on our evening walks again! Yay for Daylight Savings Time!
March 18, 2011 - We saw Mrs. C. in the backyard today, and it looked as if she was starting to build a nest in the grapefruit tree! I watched her take several twigs up to the same place in the tree. She then went over to the flowerbed and started picking up other nesting material. I got the […]
March 17, 2011 - Here’s a green bird for St. Patrick’s Day! We have at least four green Painted Buntings that continue in our yard! I still can’t tell if they are females or juveniles. But I keep having to refill the bunting feeder! They love the viburnum hedges. You can see them flitting in and out of the […]
March 16, 2011 - I found a Bald Eagle’s nest near our house. It’s in the pine trees near the Walgreens at the Stoneybrook West / Marsh Road intersection. But when I went over with The Beast, I didn’t see anybody at home. It’s marked as an active nest for 2011 on Eagle Nest Finder…
March 15, 2011 - Daylight Savings Time is finally here! I love how I can now see the sunshine in the afternoon after work. I can start taking my camera on our walks again. Woo hoo!
March 10, 2011 - The yard has been full of the smell of citrus blossoms this week. It’s the first spring that our grapefruit tree is big enough to have lots of blossoms.
March 9, 2011 - The goldfinches this weekend weren’t thrilled with this Turkey Vulture flying overhead. Every time the vulture swooped down, the goldfinches spooked and flew off.
March 8, 2011 - I spent some time this weekend at my favorite blind — my guest room! I sit at the open window and aim the camera at the goldfinch feeder below. Since there are usual more hungry goldfinches than available ports, they line up to wait in the crape myrtle, giving me nice opportunities to photograph them. […]
March 7, 2011 - I know Spring has arrived to stay when I see my ‘Yangtze’ daylily in bloom. It’s an early bloomer and the bright yellow adds some welcome color to the yard.
March 6, 2011 - If you think the answer is six, then you might not understand the complexity of goldfinch feeding activity… :) Hey, Rich, I think we need more niger seed!
March 5, 2011 - The weather kept me at home this morning, so I went outside to do some springtime gardening and sprinkler repairs. Being outside with our Painted Buntings was a lot of fun. I watched them diving into the viburnum hedge and the grapefruit tree, then hopping out onto the feeder to eat. The House Finches also […]
March 2, 2011 - We had a very tired Brown-Headed Cowbird hanging out under the feeders this afternoon. He just sat there snoozing as the other birds vied for the bird feeder ports above him. Goldy enjoyed watching!