Can You Identify This Pretty Little Bird?

Avalus took some good photos of this little guy, but he hasn’t been able to identify what type of bird this is. My bird guides are North American, so not really useful to identify a European species, but I bet that one of you can help us figure this out. Leave us a comment with your ideas.

©Avalus, all rights reserved

©Avalus, all rights reserved

©Avalus, all rights reserved

©Avalus, all rights reserved

The Last Birds of Winter

Ahh, my friends, Spring is coming. We actually had a “heat wave”, with more than 20°C in February. Climate change will be no fun, but there’s nothing you can do about an early spring day but enjoy it. The pics here are a few weeks old, but I didn’t get around to post them. BTW, <b>Charly and rq</b>, the cranes are on their way. I sent them with greetings for you.

©Giliell, all rights reserved A little wet siskin

©Giliell, all rights reserved Not a siskin, but a wet yellowhammer

©Giliell, all rights reserved A female sparrow. We’ve got lots of them, but usually behind the house is tit territory and they keep t the hedges in front of the houses.

©Giliell, all rights reserved While taking those pic I thought “that’s actually the weather when the hawfinches used to come” and look who made her appearance.

And then we had a very rare visitor, and they didn’t want to stay for an extensive photo shooting, so I only got one halfway decent pic:

©Giliell, all rights reserved

If you ever wondered what the back of a sparrowhawk looked like…

Patterns in Ice

From Avalus,

A muddy, frozen puddle by the roadside.
Boring, one might say.

©Avalus, all rights reserved

But, what interesting patterns in the ice, indicating the shrinking liquid underneath.
Let’s look closer.

©Avalus, all rights reserved

Structures emerge between the layers!
Let’s look even closer.

©Avalus, all rights reserved

The ice sheet that seemed so uniform from afar is structured, almost like cathedral glass, from many tiny crystals of ice.
Everywhere, there is beauty in the universe.
(This was pretty much my thought process when I came by that frozen puddle. That, and my cold feet, reminding me of my poor choice of shoes I took for that walk :D)

Bramblings Whoosh

This year we have snowy winter. The snow came late, but it came in droves. And with plenty of snow also came bramblings, a flock of about 30 individuals. They returned multiple times, and I have managed to get some pictures, although the light was less than ideal.

© Charly, all rights reserved. Click for full size.

© Charly, all rights reserved. Click for full size.

© Charly, all rights reserved. Click for full size.

© Charly, all rights reserved. Click for full size.

© Charly, all rights reserved. Click for full size.

The Art of …

… flowers, by  Raku Inoue

This Montreal-based artist uses fresh flowers to create images. The pictures below are from his Natura Insects series, and you can read more about it at My Modern Met. You can also visit the artist’s web site, Reikan Creations, or his Instagram page, where you will find even more awesome whimsicality.

Kabutomushi (Japanese Rhinoceros Beetle), by Raku Inoue. Image from My Modern Met.

Black Widow, by Raku Inoue. Image from My Modern Met.

Butterfly, by Raku Inoue. Image from My Modern Met.

 

Goldifnches!

These were very welcome visitors – about 8 to 10 of them. Last year I have seen no goldfinches at all, the whole year. A small flock last week made me really happy.

© Charly, all rights reserved. Click for full size.

© Charly, all rights reserved. Click for full size.

© Charly, all rights reserved. Click for full size.

Fungi Friday

It’s unusual to find mushrooms in the winter, but Avalus has a good eye and found a few to share with us. Enjoy.

Here are some photos I took over the last few days of January mushrooms.

These two I found in front of the department building. I really like the colour of their tops, they look like leather. The undersides look fascinating too. (photos 1 & 2)

Yesterday we had some snow as well and today I found this little fella, poking out the fresh snow. (photo 3)

Photo 1, ©Avalus, all rights reserved.

Photo 2, ©Avalus, all rights reserved.

Photo 3, ©Avalus, all rights reserved.

Jack’s Walk

Looking east and dreaming of seeing the Gaspe again ©voyager, all rights reserved.

I’ve been struggling to write this column, which is why it’s been so long since you’ve heard from Jack and me. We’re both fine, but our lives have changed, and we’re not having many adventures anymore. My sweet, beautiful Bubba will be 13 on Feb. 29th (March 1 in this non-leap-year), and he’s succumbing to the ravages of old age. He’s a big, heavy boy and his weight-bearing joints are full of arthritis, making it difficult for him to get around. He still wants to go out a few times a day to wander around the yard, but taking a real walk is no longer possible. We’re lucky to have an excellent vet who keeps Jack comfortable, and he remains a happy boy who spends his days gazing out the window or dozing by my side.

My vision for Jack’s Walk has always been for it to be a happy place where we take a moment to appreciate the wonders of the world around us and maybe take a deep breath and have a smile. It’s been hard to find that voice over the past few months, but it’s still there, and today, I have a HappyJack story to share.

Bye, Bye big bloody wart ©voyager, all rights reserved.

For the past year or so, Jack has been bothered by warts on his face that itch. He rubs his face on everything – table legs, people legs, carpets, snow, grass, dirt, telephone poles, his bed, my bed, my hand if it’s dangling in reach, and sometimes even poop if it smells just right. One wart grew very quickly and then started to break down and bleed, and it’s been so bad recently that the vet and I finally decided to go ahead and have it removed. That would mean an anesthetic, which is risky for an old boy like Jack, who was listening in to our conversation and making plans of his own.

A few days later, I noticed that Jack wasn’t rubbing his face, and then it struck me that the big ugly wart was gone. I took a closer look, and all I could see was a small, clotted stump resembling an umbilicus that was ready to drop off. Apparently, Jack scratched it off himself.  No need for surgery, no need for wound care, and no need to spend the estimated 1,200 dollars. What a good boy, eh?

Winter Wonderland 5: Miscellaneous

©Giliell, all rights reserved

Well, it’s not the Arctic sea, but for a frozen puddle it looks dramatic enough.

©Giliell, all rights reserved

A little chaffinch used the open ground under the trees to look for food.

©Giliell, all rights reserved

The Nile Goose knows how to pose with a frame of tree branches.

©Giliell, all rights reserved

Aaaand, save the best for last. It’s my absolute favourite. Taking pics of crows is damn hard, because the pitch black will just throw off your auto focus and they rarely keep still for long enough to adjust it manually. But in the bright sunlight, the auto focus caught on and the blue and green frame it perfectly.

Winter Wonderland 3: More Swans

©Giliell, all rights reserved

©Giliell, all rights reserved

The two juveniles must be about the same age. They are still smaller than their parents, although they have grown a lot since they first arrived, but they have always been about the same size and started out the same cygnet grey. Yet one of them keeps clinging to its baby colours, only reluctantly letting go of the grey and slowly turning white.

©Giliell, all rights reserved

©Giliell, all rights reserved

©Giliell, all rights reserved