Wolf Moon

On January 26th, we had an awesome full moon. This is the wolf moon rising over Great Neck in Ipswich, Massachusetts.

Hush

Just a little photo study of light, texture and motion today.

Purple Sandpipers

These little guys are as tough as nails. The come down from north of the Hudson Bay to winter down here on Cape Ann. You will find them on the rocky shorelines and on Dogbar Breakwater.

Visit Wild Bird Wednesday

Horseshoe Crab Casing, a study in brown

I found this horseshoe crab casing in the front yard. I thought it would make a good study in brown.

Saturday Evening Creature Feature, Black-capped Chickadee

I don’t know if we think about it, but we do have a wonderful selection of Chickadees here in North America. On my list is the Black-capped Chickadee, Carolina Chickadee, Chestnut-backed Chickadee and Mountain Chickadee. Add to that Grey-headed Chickadees and Boreal Chickadee and the Mexican Chickadee.

These tits are tough as nails. I’ve seen Black-capped chickadees and Mountain Chickadees survive sub-zero weather…-20F.

When you consider that they weigh about the same as a bill from the IRS, that is something to ponder.

One behavior that I observed this year that I’ve never seen before is this Black-capped Chickadee foraging on this fungus. I saw it twice on two different occasions.

Forgotten Photo Friday, Little Mako

Okay, don’t send me to the home just yet, but I totally forgot I took this picture.

Fire ‘n’ Ice

It’s been witch-tit cold here in the Atlantic North East. This morning it was 1^oF when I got up. The furnace was running all night long. Not that I’m complaining. I can remember when I was a kid walking to school in Vermont, it would be so cold that the hair inside my nose would freeze. Yes, 1^oF really isn’t much to write about. Anyone reading this from Central Canada or Minnesota is probably thinking, “Beach weather”.

The sun was still up when I left work and by the time I got to Ipswich, the show was just starting. Above was the scene when I arrived home.

The light changes fast, so I headed out into the salt marsh to see what I could do with the light. (Hmmm, The Doors, Light My Fire just came up on my player.)

Sometimes I don’t know what direction to point the camera.

I guess when you’re surrounded by fire and ice, it doesn’t really matter.

The tide’s out.

Happy Friday! Stay warm, if your in a cold place. For those of you in the southern hemisphere, I hope you have some shade.

The Thinker

I think that Rodin would approve.

The Lone Cypress, again

Just because it is a pretty cool place to see.

Townsend’s Warbler

On our recent trip to the left coast, I had a few target species in mind. One of them was the Townsend’s Warbler. They are very plentiful this year in the Monterey area. It was a fun time shooting these little wood warblers. The taxonomic name for this bird is Dendroica townsendi. Debdrioca derived from the Greek for tree (dendron) dweller (oicos for inhabit). While that is where you normally find them, in the trees, they will forage around on the ground for tasty bits which makes it a whole lot easer to get the image.

Visit Wild Bird Wednesday

Eine Kleine Nachtpost, Brewer’s Blackbird

Now ain’t she sweet, giving a wonderful pose in a Monterey Cypress?

Purple Sandpipers

Saturday Evening Creature Feature, California Sea Lions

It was a quiet day in the California Sea Lion colony. The sun was shining through broken clouds. It was time to bask in the sun.

I dug up this video that we put together a few years ago of me working in Monterey.

Forgotten Photo Friday, Least Terns

Today, I did an archive dive to find some photos from long ago. These photos were taken in May 2009. Least terns just make me happy.

New rhythms

With the new location, we have new rhythms in our life. The tide still comes and goes. The sun still rises and sets. This is our new front yard. I could see that the colors were starting to develop.

So I took a walk out on the marsh. This is looking towards the back yard.

Another shot of the front yard.

I could get used to this.