Feed them and they will come

I have been feeding the birds on the private land for a couple of weeks and the feeders are now starting to get busy, I put up a branch for the woodpeckers and after nearly 3 weeks they have finally found it, I have drilled a few holes in the branch with a paddle bit and have filled the holes with a fat/seed mix, I have managed some decent hairy woodpecker images and he has visited for the last 3 days-very important now to keep it up, I had 4 Northern Flickers feeding on the ground right in front of my hide the other day, they are like the Euro Green woodpecker in that they eat ants and bugs so i am looking for a decent sized log with a large knot or branch hole that i can fill with mealworms and hope that i can get some decent shots of these beautiful birds before too long, The cardinals,Tufted Titmouse,Mockingbirds and wrens have been regulars and i have had a Jay or 2 arrive and grab a nut before departing, The Jays are very shy and the slightest movement of the lens and they are off, A beautiful bird and i hope to get them at the feeders on a regular basis, They are very vocal and they never seem to be far away, I have now removed the bramble that i was using as a perch and will be replacing it with different branches with fall/autumn colour leaves to add a splash of colour, The deer are still arriving although normally after the sun has disappeared from the area, I am in a dip, i have taken a few head shots but not really bothered with them as the birds are my main interest unless a decent buck arrives of course,

Male Cardinal with raised Crest

Female Cardinal

This years White Tail

Tufted Titmouse

Hairy Woodpecker

Hairy Woodpecker at food hole

Same image with hole cloned out

New perch with Carolina Wren

All images taken with the New Nikon D7000 and 600 with and without 1.4x

Dave

Florida diaries 2

We have now left the birds at St Augustine behind and am now at the Crystal river for the manatees, Now they did see some yesterday, a female with young and showed me the video, Nice and close but in very green mirky water so i am in no illusions that photography at this time will be crap to non existent but i am look forward to the experience, 20 years ago i went to the Epcot centre in Orlando where there are manatees in a glass tank, I walked past the tank and a manatee followed me as i walked, I stopped and walked back and it followed and somebody mentioned it as the crowd watched, I went to the glass and it came up and we just watched each other, it was an amazing experience and i have always wanted another manatee experience, Its taken 20 years for it to happen and today could be the day,either way i have discussed a return in the winter for a week or so's diving to get 'the' images that i dream about,He did mention that a croc joined them the other day which was a little un-nerving, We have the boat to ourselves tomorrow so we can do and go where we like, Going back to St Augustine i have to say was a great way to start the trip and in another 2-3 weeks it will be on fire as there will be lots of young around, there was just the 1 when i was there but i got some great shots-coming soon on a blog near you,Everybody was amazed at the amount of rosette spoonbills there,normally just 1 or 2 but about 30 or so at the moment and it looks like they may nest there for the first time ever,my first encounter with these beautiful birds, If you are looking to go i recommend the sleep inn as its not expensive and close to gatorland and if you get a photographers pass at gatorland before you get to the inn they will discount your rooms-win win.I or should i say Marian treated me to s decent goggles and snorkel so i have been practising in the pool all afternoon-its a dreadful life-honest
I have only gotten around to downloading and backing up as i have just not have the time to process so for now you will get the odd image and i will do some galleries when i return,Here is one from Gatorland that i really liked, I would like to add that Gatorland is a zoo type place but the rookery is purely wild birds, It seems that birds like to nest where the gators are so that the nest isnt raided by raccoons,snakes etc

Dave

Local Area-Raleigh

Well like Martin i have been giving some rooms a touch up with the paint brush as we have the outlaws arriving next month so i haven't been too far afield, But then i haven't really needed to, I live in suburbia and have been pleasantly surprised just how much wildlife comes into my very small garden, Siding onto a farm obviously helps as that where the deer,possum and raccoon appear from but every tree and bush has some form of bird,butterfly or bug in it, I have a small low water container in the garden which helps attract things into garden in the hot weather from squirrels to hawks all have a drink an a bath in it, The hummingbirds are now constant visitors to the nectar feeder and woodpeckers and crows at the fat feeder, The usual suspects of cardinals and goldfinch eat at the seed table and now i have 2 buddlia (butterfly bush) there are swallowtails and skippers constantly in and around the garden,I have been trying various things to attract more and varied species into the garden, I cut a small orange in half and after a day there were all sorts of bugs and flies on it, The Black Widow unfortunately has been killed off but i did enjoy spending some time with her and i am sure if i look hard enough i will find another, There is a very small stream just down the road and the other day i popped down to have a look to see what was around it and came across a Water Snake,which was laying on a rock catching some rays, A first for me, I only managed to shoot it from distance and it bolted off when i moved-it was 92 degrees after all and the snake was plenty warm enough,I didnt really mind not getting too close to it as it made me think about the composition and by having it low in the frame shows some habitat, Its amazing what you find when you look for it and people living in the community have no idea whats close by as they go about their everyday lives,