Crops & Clips: Flashback to May, 2018

 As I do each month, I enjoyed looking back over my archived photos, taken three years previously, to remember how things were then and maybe get some idea of what to expect this year. As usual, I searched for images which reflected favorite memes: critters of all kinds (especially birds), skies and clouds, reflections, flowers and fences, as well as scenes which speak for themselves. 

This was our final stay in our Illinois condo. It had served as our second home for eleven years, but keeping two residences was getting to be a chore. We vacated it late in May and closed the sale remotely during the next month. 

Early May is the height of songbird migration in NE Illinois, providing lots of color in the May photo archives. The first entry was a Baltimore Oriole:

Yellow Warbler:

Red-headed Woodpecker:

Rose-breasted Grosbeak:

Eastern Bluebird:

Common Yellowthroat:

Tree Swallow:

Less colorful but nonetheless intriguing, a Great Horned Owl:

A few years earlier, within walking distance of our condo, we had discovered the first nesting Lark Sparrows in the county. To be honest, MaryLou spotted them and noted that they were unusual. 

When I looked at them through the binoculars I  recognized their strikingly bold face patterns. Lark Sparrows were back again this spring:

They can be difficult to see out on the dry prairie:

In the same field were Savannah Sparrows...

...and the smaller Grasshopper Sparrows:

A pair of House Sparrows snuggled on a fencepost:

Bobolink:

Also in the prairie, a Killdeer guarded two chicks:

Along the woodland path, Trout Lilies bloomed:

Wake Robin flowers were opening:

Blue Violets are the Illinois State Flowers:

Our daughter's family had gained two new pups within two weeks, a black Standard Poodle (Casador) and another Tibetan Mastiff (Moncada) to join Agramonte:

Agramonte greets the newest member of the pack:

The last of our furniture was towed away:

Sunset over neighborhood Jones Meadow Park:

On final approach to the Fort Lauderdale airport, we could find our house and familiar landmarks (click to enlarge):

We ended the month in Florida. A back yard highlight was a Tricolored Heron:

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Linking to:

Garden Affair

Fences Around the World

Nature Thursday

Skywatch Friday

Weekend Reflections

Saturday's Critters

BirdD'Pot

Camera Critters

All Seasons

Wordless Wednesday (on Tuesday)

Natasha Musing

Our World Tuesday

Wild Bird Wednesday

My Corner of the World

Timeless Thursday

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Please visit the links to all these posts to see some excellent photos on display
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Crops & Clips: Flashback to June, 2017

At the beginning of each month I enjoy looking back at photos from three years previously, to refresh old memories and perhaps anticipate what beauty awaits this year. Especially, I look for favorite dreams, memes and themes-- critters of all kinds (especially birds and butterflies), flowers, clouds, skies, reflections, fences... and images which speak for themselves.

It was a busy month, in which I processed almost 900 photos, beginning at our (then) second home in NE Illinois, returning to Florida for three weeks before going back to Illinois. 

My first subject was a rather common bird at Lippold Park in Kane County, a European Starling. It is a male, indicated by the depth of iridescent color and the blue at the base of his bill:



A Baltimore Oriole provided a last flash of color before we returned to Florida:



Lippold Park had undergone some improvements, including a pavilion overlooking a boardwalk which traversed the wetlands:





We returned to Florida on a rainy June 3. The next morning a Snowy Egret posed on our back lawn:



At the local rookery, a Green Heron gazed inquisitively:





At the Bald Eagle nest, the two eaglets, now about 120 days (17 weeks) old, had fledged in late April and early May. They continued to return to the nest to be fed as they gained hunting skills. We have observed this behavior to be common when there is more than one eaglet, as it is a more efficient way for the parents to feed and protect their brood. 

The younger (male) eaglet was resting on the nest on June 8...



...as his sister flew low over the area:



In our back yard, a White-winged  Dove roosted on a metal pole: 



A Loggerhead Shrike replaced the dove on the perch:



In nearby Weston, the Wood Stork colony was a busy place. Most of the birds were juveniles (distinguished by their feathered heads and light beaks) waiting for parents to bring in food:

 





Tricolored Herons had successfully raised many young, which clamored to be fed:







An adult rebuked an over-demanding fledgling:



A White-tailed Doe waded across the wet prairie in our neighborhood patch:



A Swamp Lily casts a nice reflection:



Then back in Illinois to finish the month, we visited Nelson Lake prairie:



We caught up with the Dickcissels, which had not arrived until early June. They are hard to pin down, but so photogenic:







Other prairie birds included the Grasshopper Sparrow...



...Savannah Sparrow...



... American Goldfinch female...



...and male:



Along the wooded border we saw an Indigo Bunting...



...and a Rose-breasted Grosbeak:



Common Buckeye:

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Linking to:

Fences Around the World

Skywatch Friday

Weekend Reflections

Saturday's Critters

BirdD'Pot

Camera Critters

All Seasons

Wordless Wednesday (on Tuesday)

Our World Tuesday

Wild Bird Wednesday

My Corner of the World

Timeless Thursday

________________________________________________

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