Nest

Great Ideas Need Landing Gear As Well As Wings.

February 9, 2023 — 8 Comments

F/9.0, 1/250, ISO 320.

Great Blue Heron

Why did the chicken disappoint his mother.

He wasn’t what he was cracked up to be!

Interesting Fact: Great Blue Herons eat nearly anything within striking distance, including fish, amphibians, reptiles, small mammals, insects, and other birds. They grab smaller prey in their strong mandibles or use their dagger-like bills to impale larger fish, often shaking them to break or relax the sharp spines before gulping them down. ( https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Great_Blue_Heron/lifehistory )

Empty Nest? Celebrate it! You Are Now Free As A Bird!

February 4, 2023 — 18 Comments

F/8.0, 1/250, ISO 320.

Great Blue Heron

Why did the policeman smell bad?

He was on duty.

Interesting Fact: Great Blue Herons nest mainly in trees, but will also nest on the ground, on bushes, in mangroves, and on structures such as duck blinds, channel markers, or artificial nest platforms. Males arrive at the colony and settle on nest sites; from there, they court passing females. Colonies can consist of 500 or more individual nests, with multiple nests per tree built 100 or more feet off the ground. ( https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Great_Blue_Heron/lifehistory )

Looks Like Someone Has A Case Of The Mondays

May 17, 2021 — 17 Comments

F/7.1, 1/200, ISO 250.

Great Horned Owl

What do you call a magic owl?

HOODINI

Interesting Fact: Great Horned Owls are fierce predators that can take large prey, including raptors such as Ospreys, Peregrine Falcons, Prairie Falcons, and other owls. They also eat much smaller items such as rodents, frogs, and scorpions. ( https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Great_Horned_Owl/lifehistory )

Simon Says, Pause!

March 16, 2021 — 5 Comments

F/5.3, 1/160, IOS 800.

Great Blue Heron 

What do you call when Batman skips out on church?

Christian Bale.

Interesting Fact: Great Blue Herons have specialized feathers on their chest that continually grow and fray. The herons comb this “powder down” with a fringed claw on their middle toes, using the down like a washcloth to remove fish slime and other oils from their feathers as they preen. Applying the powder to their underparts protects their feathers against the slime and oils of swamps. ( Great Blue Heron Overview, All About Birds, Cornell Lab of Ornithology )

 

 

 

Yes I Walked Away Mid-Conversation. You Were Boring Me To Death And My Survival Instincts Kicked In.

May 23, 2020 — 8 Comments

F/11.0, 1/500, ISO 400.

Great Blue Heron 

What happened when the lion ate the comedian?

He felt funny!

Interesting Fact: Great Blue Herons can hunt day and night thanks to a high percentage of rod-type photoreceptors in their eyes that improve their night vision. ( https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Great_Blue_Heron )

 

I May Look Calm, But In My Head I’ve Killed You 3 Times.

May 4, 2020 — 30 Comments

F/10.0, 1/400, ISO 200.

Osprey

What do lawyers wear to court?

Lawsuits!

Interesting Fact: The Osprey readily builds its nest on manmade structures, such as telephone poles, channel markers, duck blinds, and nest platforms designed especially for it. Such platforms have become an important tool in reestablishing Ospreys in areas where they had disappeared. In some areas nests are placed almost exclusively on artificial structures. ( https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Osprey/lifehistory )

When In Doubt Chill Out!

May 2, 2020 — 6 Comments

F/8.0, 1/250, ISO 250.

Great Blue Heron

Why was strawberry sad?

Because her mom was in a jam.

Interesting Fact: Great Blue Herons nest mainly in trees, but will also nest on the ground, on bushes, in mangroves, and on structures such as duck blinds, channel markers, or artificial nest platforms. Males arrive at the colony and settle on nest sites; from there, they court passing females. Colonies can consist of 500 or more individual nests, with multiple nests per tree built 100 or more feet off the ground. ( https://throughopenlens.com/tag/great-blue-heron/ )

Be OWLsome!

April 21, 2020 — 8 Comments

F/8.0, 1/200, ISO 250.

Great Horned Owl 

What do you call an owl that can perform magic tricks

Hoo-dini

Interesting Fact: If you hear an agitated group of cawing American Crows, they may be mobbing a Great Horned Owl. Crows may gather from near and far and harass the owl for hours. The crows have good reason, because the Great Horned Owl is their most dangerous predator. ( https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Great_Horned_Owl/ )

OWL We Need Is Love!

March 16, 2020 — 36 Comments

F/8.0, 1/200, ISO 320.

Great Horned Owlets

 Why did the owl, owl?

Because the woodpecker would peck ‘er!

Interesting Fact: Great Horned Owls typically nest in trees such as cottonwood, juniper, beech, pine, and others. They usually adopt a nest that was built by another species, but they also use cavities in live trees, dead snags, deserted buildings, cliff ledges, and human-made platforms. In the Yukon they nest in white spruces with “witches’ brooms,” which are clumps of dense foliage caused by a fungus. They occasionally nest on the ground. Pairs may roost together near the future nest site for several months before laying eggs.  ( https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Great_Horned_Owl/lifehistory )

Two Peckers One Hole

November 11, 2019 — 28 Comments

F/8.0, 1/250, ISO 320.

Hispaniolan Woodpeckers

How do crazy people get through the forest?

They take the psycho path.

Interesting Fact: The Hispaniolan Woodpecker is sufficiently abundant to be considered an agricultural pest in some areas, on account of it feeding in fruit orchards, although it also regularly consumes insects and tree sap. It nests in tree-cavities and breeds in loose colonies of up to 20 pairs. ( https://neotropical.birds.cornell.edu/Species-Account/nb/species/hiswoo1/overview )