White River Gardens - Owl Butterfly

Caligo Butterfly resting on a white, steel I-Beam.

White River Gardens, Indianapolis.

May 23, 2013.

Canon EOS 50D| Canon EF 100mm f/2.8 L IS USM Macro.

Yellow Jacket

I found this Yellow Jacket roaming around in the rock garden one fall afternoon. I Don't know how I managed to get this close without getting stung, but I did! 

Nikon D300 | Nikon AF-S VR 70-300mm f/4.5-5.6 IF-ED

Flamingo Grooming

A flamingo grooming. Indianapolis Zoo, 2012.

Rose-breasted Grosbeak

The incredibly elusive Rose-breasted Grosbeak

May 2013

Sadie the Cat and the Great Blue Heron

Anybody who knows Sadie the Cat will understand why this Great Blue Heron 5x her size would run (or rather fly)! After all, Sadie has tamed 6 dogs ranging from 50 lbs. - 115 lbs. Sadie likes to showcase her hunting prowess by bringing me presents. Usually she leaves them dead on the door step, but occasionally they are merely wounded and still alive. I have no idea how she was going to get this bird to the door, but I don't put anything past this feisty feline.

This post has been sitting in the draft box for quite a while now, but I decided to post it today because last night Sadie brought me a gift. At 11:00 pm last night Sadie sauntered right past me and into the house with something in her jaws. I screamed "Nooooooooo! No Sadie! Noooooo!" So surprised by my dismay, Sadie dropped 'it' right in the middle of my kitchen floor. My worst fear was that it was a mole (ugly creatures) but to my surprise it was a very much alive, female, house sparrow that flew straight away, off the bounce, through the house. At which time 6 dogs, 1 cat and 2 humans followed in hot pursuit. The scene that followed can only be described as reality show meets Warner Brothers cartoon. 

No telling how long Sadie carefully held that poor little bird in her jaws waiting for me to open the door, but lucky for the bird, I did finally open the door. The bird hid indoors all night and I finally managed to usher her out a window first thing this morning! My thought for today? "CAT FOR SALE!"

Blue Jay - Stump

Caught these two Blue Jays having breakfast one morning.

Northern Mockingbird - Wings

The Northern Mockingbirds' white wing patches. 

I have tried and tried to get a photo of the Mockingbird's white wing patches. For all my efforts...this was the best I could do <sigh>. I will probably photoshop the pole and fencing out of the background later as they are quite distracting, but for you guys - you're going to have to enjoy it just the way it is:)

Northern Mockingbird

This Mockingbird is keeping a very close eye on me, just in case I get any funny ideas about steeling the very food I set out for him! Yes, he is every bit as intimidating as he looks! 

My own personal Mockingbird. This birds' sole purpose in life is to aggravate me! Mockingbirds are extremely territorial. It is very unusual to see more than one mockingbird unless they are briefly sparring for territory. I have no idea whether this is a male or a female, but it chases damn near everything away from the 10 feeders I have located in the back yard. The woodpeckers and Blue Jays don't seem to be overly bothered by the Mockingbird, but the Cardinals, Blackbirds, Nuthatches, Titmice, Wrens and Chickadees are always sure targets for this evil bird. Mockingbirds have even been known to defend their food source from squirrels, though I've not seen them do that here. Just last week a second Mockingbird has appeared and I assume, from observing their behavior that they are a mated pair. I have read that Mockingbird pairs defend separate food sources in winter, so perhaps that is why I have not seen the other until recently. Despite its ill-natured personality, the Mockingbird is a very beautiful, entertaining bird to watch.

American Coots - Walk on Water

American Coots - Goose Pond, 2012.