Crops & Clips: Flashback to October, 2016

Once again I am delving through the photo archives to remember life as it was three years back, in October of 2016. Enjoying favorite memes-- Critters of all kinds (especially birds), flowers and fences, blue skies, clouds and reflections, the excitement of the changing seasons, and scenes which speak for themselves.

We enjoyed nearly a month of fair weather at our condo in NE Illinois. We missed Category 5 Hurricane Matthew, the strongest storm of the 2016 season, which devastated Haiti and killed over 600 people. It skirted the Florida coast, produced high winds and floods, then struck the Carolinas and inflected massive damage to coastal areas in the southeastern US.

On October 2, three Sandhill Cranes suddenly showed up on the lawn at the front door of our condo. I had to back up in order to fit them into the frame:





At nearby Bliss Woods Forest Preserve, the footbridge over Blackberry Creek was undergoing needed repairs:



Tennessee Warbler at Bliss Woods:



An Eastern Bluebird greeted us at Nelson Lake preserve:



A Sedge Wren did a split:



Hyperactive Golden-crowned Kinglets flitted throgh the trees:





A flock of American White Pelicans wheeled over the Lake before settling down:



A Clouded Sulphur butterfly sipped nectar from a Purple  Aster:



We enjoyed walks in the Hickory Knolls woodlands...



...where I found a monster rhino in this really spookey tree:



The Hickory Knolls woodlands end abruptly at the perimeter of a correctional facility, where autumn beauty was confined behind high fences and razor wire:



At Les Arends preserve, the Fox River branched around an island, creating a shaded side  stream:



A Great Egret reflected in the river's floodplain, reminding me of Florida:



Later in the month, sparrows, nuthatches, winter finches and more warblers arrived from northern breeding ranges. A White-throated Sparrow:



White-crowned Sparrow close up near a feeder on our daughter's deck::



Red-breasted Nuthatch seemed to defy gravity::





Male Purple Finch:



Orange-crowned Warbler:



The sumac thicket had turned red:



Back in Florida at month's end, a Great Blue Heron posed nicely:(October 31):




Cloudy morning on October 31:



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Linking to Misty's  CAMERA CRITTERS,

Linking to Eileen's SATURDAY'S CRITTERS,

Linking to SKYWATCH FRIDAY by Yogi, Sylvia and Sandy

Linking to WEEKEND REFLECTIONS by James

Linking to BirdD'Pot by Anni

Linking to Our World Tuesday by Lady Fi

Linking to Wild Bird Wednesday by Stewart

Linking to Wordless Wednesday (on Tuesday) by NC Sue

Linking to ALL SEASONS by Jesh

 Linking to Fences Around the World by Gosia

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Please visit the links to all these memes to see some excellent photos on display

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