Joie de Vivre!

My New Years Wish to all ... Joie de Vivre! A wish to enjoy whatever treasures of life you may! I was in my studio in December when I looked out my window and saw "something" on a neighbor's dock. I had my camera and leaned out to try a few shots. Not the best, it was a long view of 3 of my most favorite animals ... otters. (2 on the dock, 1 in the water under the dock) What animal could exhibit the Joie de Vivre as much as the otter? Energetic, playful and smart! They rob our crabpots and our fish nets, and even when we have no catch to offer they eat their own catch on our dock steps and leave remains. You have to love them for their Joie de Vivre!

Red bellied woodpecker

My pecan loving woodpecker.

Feels like Sunday

With holidays, the typical flow of the week is lost. This little one may have the same feeling as the weather has played against those out to collect her, Sunday being her only day of rest.

Buffie trio

Three female buffleheads, one on a dive.

Taking flight

A cormorant takes flight on a quiet Sunday afternoon.

Live Oak with Hummer

Our winter hummingbird way atop a live oak. Not much bigger than a single leaf.

Sapsucker

A female Yellow bellied sapsucker woodpecker.

Good things in small packages

Here she is just a couple days ago, our winter hummingbird. She is spotted almost once a day, drinking sugar water and on sunny days flitting about the live oaks. We fret when she is not spotted and rejoice the next day when we see she is still around.

Golden-crowned Kinglet

The crown is gold and reddish and seen in flashes of color as the busy Kinglet searches for food.

December Bluebird

Catching some sun on an otherwise cold day.

Tool, cont.

And so she flew off to another tree with her pecan and began rapping again. She flew away and left behind you can see the pecan placed in another tree hole.

Use of a tool?

I spotted this Red bellied woodpecker after hearing some loud and plastic sounding rapping. She was first spotted in the crotch of a tree and soon I saw what she was attacking ... a pecan! She was using the tree as a holder. More evidence tomorrow!

Leaves and Birds

Vine leaves and sparrows are silhouetted against the cold evening sky.

Young eagle

From earlier this year, a young eagle passes overhead. The blue sky is a contrast to the grey/white of today due to another coastal storm.

Forsythia nest

Tucked up into a Forsythia bush, this nest most likely held Mockingbirds.

Camelia

The bloom is so nice, in color and form.

Fogged in

The fog was pretty thick earlier this week.

Snow Geese

A flock of calling Snow Geese pass overhead.

Dreary Day Wren

The Carolina Wren on a recent cloudy day.

Ode to Catbird

I was concentrating on a woodpecker, when this pretty thing flew up out of the brush.

'C' is for Catbird
Feathered in a
Parson's gown,
That hides beneath
the Scarlet down!

(original poetry, Faune 2009)

Ring Necked Pheasant

Not a native bird, the pheasants are released by nearby shooting clubs. Some make their way across the marsh and are seen along the edge of a wood or a road. Could a bird be more fanciful? The colors and patterns are a fiber artist's envy!

Warming Doves

Brrr! The freezing temps this morning gave everyone a slow start. These Mourning Doves are fluffed up against the cold.

Exposed

Leaves are gone, but the trees still surprise. This is a good time to spot nests. I found this one high up in a crepe myrtle tree. I suspect it belongs to a Brown Thrasher.

Just One More

Just one more Robin photo, just one more berry?

Green tomatoes

Wish we could let them vine ripen, but the threat of a freeze forced the picking of the nicest tomatoes. Eating fresh tomatoes from the garden in December seems fair, as we'll have to wait until July for the next ones.

Evening Robin

The Robin perched in a hackberry tree. The hackberry (sugarberry) tree provides food for many. The trees were loaded this year and even after the strong storms there are still berries to be had.

Winter Robin Trio

Three Robins vie for perch positions near berries.

Winter Robin

One of a flock of robins and grackles that were spotted yesterday feeding on berries.

Honeysuckle

Today's chill is a contrast to yesterday's warmth. Wild honeysuckle is blooming! Even my forsythia bush has been tricked into producing a few flowers.

Buffleheads

The water level has been quite high due to all the rain and the temps have been on the warm side for December. May be two reasons why no ducks are here. So from January here's a shot of some 'Buffies.'

October tree frog

Another pretty frog.

November tree frog

A pretty brown tree frog dangles on a nandina bush.