Fall Colors and Critters

My contribution to TexWiscGirl's Good Fences #137.

I'm late with my posts this week, so this one is also for:

Eileeninmd's Saturday's Critters #151

Anni's I'd Rather B Birdin'

and Carmi's Thematic Photographic 387 - Where I Shop

This hotel is next to Berkeley Springs State Park.

These minnows live in Warm Springs Run, the creek under that bridge.

George Washington's bath tub:

I don't shop in many stores in Berkeley Springs, but this is one I visit often.

How about a bird and a fence? This is one of 'our' porch birds, a Downy Woodpecker.

A White-breasted Nuthatch:

Race for the seeds:

Fall colors from Cacapon Mountain and Lake Siri:



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Ashburn Horses and Black Rat Snake

My contribution to Eileeninmd's Saturday's Critters #123. I stopped to take a picture of these horses...

And then I noticed Mr. (or Mrs.) Black Rat Snake heading across the horse trail toward the bike trail.

This snake is getting ready to shed its skin, else it wouldn't have stuck around. As it was, the bike trail is very busy (I much prefer to walk on the horse trail) and a pretty bad destination for a snake. So I stomped my feet to try to get it turned around.

Mr. Rat Snake was all, "You're not the boss of me!" And proceeded across the trail.

So I picked him up by the tail and put him back in the grass on the other side. (There was some disgruntlement, as you can see.)

And that was the end of that.

P.S. I plan to contribute to Anni's I'd Rather B Birdin', too, but I have to head back to D.C. first. P.P.S. Here are a couple more shots of the Red-bellied Woodpecker visit to the porch in W.V. early in April.


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David Bowie Bird

My contribution to Eileeninmd's Saturday's Critters #121. And I"m also linking to Annii's I'd-Rather-B-Birdin. This Red-bellied Woodpecker flew in for a visit on the porch last week on Cacapon Mountain, and the light was just right.




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Birdie Bush Update

Carmi's Thematic Photographic 365 is Lens. Here is a picture of my Canon G15 lens (along with the rest of it, the remote shutter, and my tripod).

Mr. and Mrs. Downy Woodpecker on the deck table, Thursday, January 21, 2016, 10:24:29 AM:

I'm also contributing to Michelle's Nature Notes (#348). We had no seed here in D.C., so I put out some whole wheat bread for the birds in the birdie bush.

I guessed the sparrows would like it the more, but I think the cardinals actually ate most of it. I put a slice on a branch, but they pecked it onto the ground and seemed more comfortable getting it there. I also put out some Granny Smith apple cores. They liked those, too.

Yesterday, I was able to get some birdseed:


I'm sticking with the birdie bush for TexWiscGirl's Good Fences 97. The bush is as full of birds as I've ever seen it. (By the way, this is my current guess at its identification.)

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Fire on the Mountain and Geese on Lake Siri

Carmi's Thematic Photographic 356 is Electricity.
I saw this when walking up one of the mountain roads on Sunday.

I also heard lots of sirens. Tuesday, I took a look at the source of that smoke. I heard an electrical problem is a suspect.

I'm also linking to Michelle's Nature Notes (#339).
These Blacknose Dace live in Warm Spring Run along with the guppies. (I tried to get a better picture of them, but they are quite wary.)

I was wondering how close the geese by Lake Siri would let me get...



Update: I'm also linking to Stewart's Wild Bird Wednesday 174. Here's Mrs. Downy Woodpecker at the suet feeder, and a Carolina Wren through the basement sliding doors.


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Unipegasus

My contribution to Eileeninmd's Saturday's Critters #70.

These pictures of a Chickadee and Downy Woodpecker at the feeder in W.V. are from January. The downies usually keep the titmice and nuthatches away while on the suet, but the cheeky chickadees figure they're small enough to fit somewhere.



In other beesness:


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Going out like a lamb

Eileeninmd is hosting Saturday Critters 67. I have no lamb pics so these will have to do. (March did come in like a lion, but things are copacetic now!)

I've still got plenty of W.V. feeder pics from January. Can you guess these two birds?

I probably couldn't, if I hadn't taken pics right before and after.


A little while later, Mrs. Downy Woodpecker arrived.

And then it was time for a walk down to the lake. (Link to Skywatch Friday)

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Red-bellied Woodpecker and Eastern Box Turtle

Happy Mother's Day!

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