Wordless Wednesday

Sunny Dahlias

These are pictures of my first Dahlias in my garden (containers on the patio).

Have a sunny Monday and hopefully its sunny wherever you are!

A rain made bird bath

These pictures were taken through a screen door. The door squeaks awfully when opened so I knew opening it would scatter the birds. So, I tried it through the screen and was surprised.

Glossy Ibis at Jamaica Bay

Wow, what a great day! I went to breakfast with a friend. He asked me what my day was like and since I had no plans he said let's go for a walk. He gave me directions and when we made a turn off the beltway I recognized the name of the boulevard. I asked, "Are we going to the Jamaica Bay Wildlife Refuge?" Come to find out he goes there 4 or 5 times a year to escape the city and enjoy the birds.
Funny thing was I just yesterday corresponded with Birding Dude asking him about the refuge and the safety of a woman walking the trails alone.

So, here I was walking the trail of West Pond. I saw glossy ibis (pictured), oystercatchers (LB), yellow-crowned night heron, egrets, marsh wrens, gray catbird, northern mockingbird and many others I couldn't get close enough to identify.

Once upon a time ...A Tale of House Wrens

Once upon a time there was a little bird house in a garden. A pair of House Wrens lived there with their family.
They found the tastiest bugs and worms for their brood and they dilligently brought them lots of goodies.
On a certain day in their lives there was a woman taking pictures at a respectful distance. The parents went about their business of capturing and bringing their young food until one of the family house cats showed up.




There arose such a clatter of chatter that the whole neighborhood was soon alerted.


Eventually the cat moved on to the shade of a car away from the house. The chatter ceased and the parents went back to the business of feeding their young.
The end.
Have a great rainy Tuesday.

Monk Parakeets and their nests

During the BwBTC outing last weekend in Milford, CT we came upon a Monk Parakeet nest. This one seemed to contain just one pair. The nest was enormous and it was obvious that sparrows were probably calling it home as well.

As we watched, the pair continuously carried large sticks such as the one seen here to add to their nests. These nests are more like condominiums as usually more than one pair lives in the nest, each having their own nesting chamber.

These are big nests.

In Brooklyn there are several colonies as well. There are nests on the Brooklyn College Campus as well as in Greenwood Cemetery. Fascinating birds.

BwBTC outing-Birding in CT

After two days of computer glitches, I think she's working again. I'm behind many others who have already blogged so eloquently about the Saturday 7/11 BwBTC outing. So here are a few of my pictures. I found it hard to get too many close ups, I see the need for a scope.


Egret roost in Stratford CT. Great Blue Heron

2 Great Egrets flying - Hammonasset Beach State Park, CT


Yellow-Crowned Night Heron - Looking for a good meal

Found it - a nice crab
On that note we ourselves went to lunch at Marnick's in Stratford, CT. Many of us indulged in our own shell fish meals - the lobster roll was delicious!

Aphrodite Butterfly

I had an incredible time birding and socializing with the BwBTC(Birders who Blog, Tweet and Chirp group) in CT this past Sat. I just returned from CT from visiting family tonight. So I will post some more about the outing this week. But for now this is a picture of an Aphrodite butterfly on a cone flower.

Sunset/Moonrise over Brooklyn

I usually post pictures of nature and places I visit, but today I thought I'd share a bit of my neighborhood, Carroll Gardens, Brooklyn.



This is a tower that sits on the other side of one of the most polluted bodies of water, the Gowanus Canal. I live about a block from the Gowanus. It is being considered for listing on the EPA's Superfund Site listing (the EPA says it is one of the most polluted waterways in the country) and there is great debate about whether the city's alternative plan or the EPA could do a more timely and or thorough job.

These are the spires of the local Catholic Church reaching into the sunset. I spotted this view as I was returning from walking the dog (my granddog)

Enjoy and have a great day.

Happy Fourth to everyone

Happy Fourth of July