One second with Nature-light and fire

                                                        Timeless Fire

I took this image last fall, I love the way the light paints the top leaf in a rainbow of  fire shades.

Enjoy,
Susan
 

A sign that spring isn't far away

Field and forest across from the new development

I don't often see Coyotes. When I, do it is usually closer to spring, when the males are on the move in search of females, but I typically see only a brief, flash of a glimpse of this beautiful creature.  So I was delighted to get this lone coyote in the sights of my camera unexpectedly as I was sitting in a vehicle, in a new development at the edge of the city.

While I detest the thought that more land is being swallowed up by the ever expanding city, new developments sometimes provide me with the opportunity of a new location to explore nature.  I was contemplating on visiting the field and the intact forest across it as a possible new birding site and idly taking photos of the area, when the Coyote just appeared before my lens, seemingly out of nowhere.  

Coyote 

At first I thought it was a dog, because all I saw was a head on view.  But then he turned sideways.  My day was suddenly complete.

Cautious Coyote

He must have come up and over the mound of dirt left behind by construction and seemed uncertain and cautious.

Moving along the side of the road

Coyote just before he disappeared

I only had a couple of minutes to take these photos, as he moved along and then disappeared into a hollow in the field that offered the shelter of some trees.  I can't wait to explore the area.  Who knows what else nature will show me there.

Enjoy,
Susan

Charismatic and athletic

Flock of Bohemian Waxwings

The birds have been rather uncooperative in the last little while. They are either perched at the tree tops, or doing a quick flyby, although sometimes in large flocks.  The squirrels on the other hand, are highly visible lately and much more active now that the weather is a bit warmer.

I love watching the antics of squirrels.  Squirrels are so very athletic.  They have to be, at the breakneck speeds they often manage.  They are also charismatic and fun.  If you want a real chuckle, just watch two squirrels chase each other around, and up and down the trunk of a tree for what seems like forever.  I have yet to capture that on camera, but I'm hoping I will some day soon.

Below are some photos of a squirrel running down the trunk of a 50 foot pine at break neck speed.  If you look closely at the first photo, you will see that the squirrel has only one limb in touch with the trunk. In the second photo he is leaping from one broken branch down to the next, like a trapeze artist.  When I looked at this series of photos I immediately got an uneasy sensation in the pit of my stomach.  Good grief, this tiny creature was completely defying gravity with what seemed like total ease.

one limp in contact with tree

A short hop down?

Let's just fly

I don't know why this one was racing down the tree, nor why he immediately jumped to another tree about five feet from the first.  It's possible he saw a hawk or falcon, or maybe an intruder in his territory.  Although squirrels can be aggressive and territorial, they also seem to enjoy just racing up and down a tree, just for fun.

If I walk real slow, I can often surprise these little guys when they finally take a break from their frantic racing around.  Each squirrel seems to react differently when I do.

I think I badly startled the one directly below.

Startled

Uncertain

 The squirrel above is uncertain, his tail is raised in alarm but he still isn't sure if I'm a threat.

I'm outa here

 This squirrel isn't going to hang around to see if I'm a threat, he is going up. While the squirrel below, seems to have decided it has teeth, that I'm in his territory and he'll defend it.

Aggressive

Curious but cautious

Poser

Of the last two squirrels, one was simply curious and watched me watch it, and the last just posed real pretty for several photos before he decided to leave.

Enjoy,
Guni



 

The Beauty of winter

Downy Woodpecker

Although winter is not my favorite season, and most of the birds are gone, I have come to enjoy some of the beauty of winter.  There is so much color and contrast if you just look, and I do so love color and contrast.  I thought before the season leaves us entirely this year, it would be fun to share just some of the amazing colors of winter I have noticed this year.

Green, bronze and burgondy

Spotted bronze

Orange, green and gold

Silver tears

Bright red

A display of contrast

Gold

peach and tan

bright green, gray and brown

a mix of shades

The forest alight

Nature is grand, no matter the season.  Don't you agree?
Enjoy,
Susan

The first hint of spring

Robin amongst the House Finches

I was sitting talking to my daughter on Wednesday this week, when I saw some birds landing in the tree out back, in the neighbors yard.  I immediately grabbed my camera because there haven't been very many birds in that tree all winter.  There are no bird feeders out back you see, although just down the lane there are some wild apple trees.  The first thing I noticed was that the birds were mostly house finches.  But one or two was twice as big as they are, although all I caught by way of sight was a flash of black. 

Bright red breast

I nearly danced a jig when I finally got a good look through the tangle of branches and my camera's lens, and recognized the birds as Robins.  Here in the city when the Robins arrive it signals the beginning of spring.  Next to arrive should be the Crows, followed by Ducks, Geese, Black birds and Hawks.

A Robin in Profile

Robin at the top

Other signs of spring are rising temps and melting snow, and nesting Magpies.  Although, I haven't seen any Robins since, I can't wait to hear  them sing every morning as the sun rises in the sky.  Seeing them also has me dreaming of what possible new bird species I might see this spring and remembering the joys of discovery from migrations in the past.   Anticipation really is sweet.


Enjoy,
Susan
 

Fascinating Fungi

I love watching birds and wildlife, but I also like to explore nature.  It was one of my main pastimes as a child, one I rediscovered a few years ago.  Nature never disappoints, there is always something new and delightful to discover.  Take the many different species of fungi for example, they can be found no matter the season it seems.

Before I go on with photos and descriptions, here is a definition of the word fungi:   Fungi (fŭn'jī), kingdom of heterotrophic single-celled, multinucleated, or multicellular organisms, including yeasts, molds, and mushrooms

A floral cluster

 Mostly they grow on the ground, beneath weeds and trees, or hidden by tall grasses.

Little red caps

Some bloom on fallen logs, these come in various colors and shapes.  The one in the above photo looks like a little red cap.  The one below looks more like coral from beneath the ocean.

mimicking coral

Some looks like foam, that seems to bubble up from beneath the surface of the wood.

Beneath the snow

I have seen fungi growing on the branches of live trees, or on the trunk in a cascade of growth.  I have seen it at the top of a tree stump in a sheet of white, much like a blanket of snow, only to run off the side where it formed small, fragile white shelves.

There are of course the regular mushroom shapes as well as puffballs, and many others I'm sure.  Some fungi are edible, some are poisonous and some are even medicinal in nature.  Many more are nature's recycling agents.

Faery steps

My very favorite fungi is shown above, the ones that I call faery steps, and grow shelf like along the trunk of both live and dead standing trees.


Enjoy,
Susan
 

One second with Nature times two

In late spring last year I took these two photos.  I am eagerly awaiting spring, so I couldn't decide which photo to post.

Moon just after dawn

The photo below is one of my favorites and the new leaves are glowing gently in the morning light.

A world of green

Enjoy,
Susan