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Thursday, October 12, 2023

A photogenic mantis

As the remnants of Tropical Storm Ophelia drenched us in late September, a second storm named Phillipe slowly meandered northward off the Atlantic Coast. It threatened to strike Bermuda, but instead took a left turn in early October. As it broke up over land, the storm brought heavy rain and gusty wind to New England and northeastern Canada. 

Although there was local flooding, The major inconvenience was that it kept us inside for several days. Our area has now experienced rain on 15 of the past 20 weekends. The past two weeks provided only a few "blue sky" days with favorable  conditions for photography.

Highlights against the sky included a brief visit from a Cooper's Hawk which seemed to have an eye on the feeder birds. They all scattered when the hawk landed on our roof. This one was quite large, about crow-sized, so it was likely a mature female, about 20% larger than a male. She had a particularly prominent "bustle" of white feathers under her tail:

She circled over the back yard and disappeared:



Two days later, an Osprey, our only fish-eating raptor, appeared high in the sky.  It was sailing on an updraft and then glided down, only to spiral upward again. Very  likely migrating, it never flapped its wings and gradually disappeared over the western horizon:


Most of the Eastern Phoebes have migrated away, but a few linger on.  Although they normally subsist on flying insects, they can survive on berries and their seeds during a mild winter:
  

Song Sparrows are permanent residents...

 

...but relatively few Chipping Sparrows are seen here during the winter:

White-throated Sparrows have arrived from northern breeding grounds:


Dark-eyed Juncos will soon be the most common sparrow species at our feeders. Only a few have appeared so far:

Ruby-crowned Kinglets can be fairly abundant during migration, and a few persist all winter. This is a male, whose red crown is barely visible:



When sunshine returned, it was evident that autumn color was beginning to develop:


The back fence overlooks the clear-cut area, which slopes down sharply, about 500 feet (152 m)  into the valley, descending about 80 feet (24.4 m) in elevation:   
 

Sassafras leaves have turned red:

Sunbeams tried to burst through a stormy sky:

At sunset, the sun peered out from under the cloud deck:

On a clear and calm day, the lake reflected autumn brilliance:

A Praying Mantis walking along the fence provided an unexpected opportunity for my iPhone:

 

This video illustrates the tactile sensitivity of the mantis:



This week's header: Hartford in Autumn

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Linking to:



Wordless Wednesday (on Tuesday)

Wild Bird Wednesday

My Corner of the World
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Please visit the links to all these posts to see some excellent photos on display
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24 comments:

  1. Hello :=)
    You are fortunate to see so many bird species all beautiful birds, and beautifully photographed. I enjoyed the Mantis video and the close up photos. They are strange creatures. Once one fell, or jumped on to the top of my head from the Wisteria above. It gave me quite a shock I can tell you!:=)

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  2. An hawk and osprey and then a mantis. Beautiful nature images.

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  3. ...the sassafras is a treat to see, it has been a favorite of mine still I was a kid. The smell is great! I haven't seen a mantis this year. Enjoy your weekend.

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  4. Impressive! Despite the less than pleasant weather, you were able to take wonderful animal photos again. Your nature is simply overwhelming. I have only seen a Praying Mantis once while on holiday in Andalusia, although they are now supposed to be here in Frankfurt too. The video is great. Seeing this animal in motion is really like winning the famous lottery (I'm sure you say it differently). The nice weather is over for now, but I hope that there will be a few more sunny days and lots of colorful leaves on the trees. Kind regards and thanks for the link to Nature Thursday.
    Elke

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  5. Astonishing pictures of the Praying Mantis! Also nice to see the Sassafras, which we don't see here.

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  6. Beautiful captures of the birds and skies and of course of the praying mantis and the colourful leaves.

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  7. Your sunset pictures are breathtaking. And the other pictures amazing. Especially the ones with the mantis

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  8. Your photos are very professionally done ~ awesome ~ all of them ~ hard to pick a favorite ~ sky is amazing though ~

    Wishing you good health, laughter and love in your days,
    A ShutterBug Explores,
    aka (A Creative Harbor)

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  9. Hello Kenneth.
    You suffer from the rain and we suffer from the drought.
    Your photos are magnificent as always.
    Good weekend.

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  10. Hello Ken,
    We could use some more rain here. Awesome captures of the Cooper's hawk and the Osprey. I have not seen many Chipping Sparrows this season, now they are probably gone. I am waiting to see the Juncos here. The Kinglet images are beautiful, they are adorable birds. Lovely sky images. Thank you for linking up and sharing your critter post. Take care, have a great weekend. PS, thank you for leaving me a comment.

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  11. Nice fall colors! The leaves don't change colors here in Southeast TN until end of Oct. It's been really dry and warm here. The ospreys build their nests here on the river over the summer, but have migrated south. The coots have moved in.

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  12. As always, great photographs. I love your fall color. I especially love your praying mantis.

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  13. Good shots! I especially like the hawk.

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  14. The close up of the Mantis is fabulous! #Allseasons

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  15. Stunning photographs! Catching that Cooper's Hawk in flight is incredible as well as your Kinglet photos.

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  16. Man, those storms are finding you up north! Beautiful shots of the Cooper's and kinglet. That view is amazing!

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  17. Your photos of birds and nature are great. The stormy weather seems to make the wildlife even more interesting. I love the fall colors.

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  18. The Praying mantis photos are amazing. It really is such a unique creature. I hope the weather stays nice for awhile and you can enjoy the sunshine!

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  19. Beautiful photographs showing us the force of Nature in your área. Ever is so good for me, to see this good images.

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  20. I would never have guessed that a praying mantis would be the first picture I'd be complimenting you on, but that close-up and the video are both amazing. I'm so glad you have this beautiful place to live (ignoring the stormy weather, which of course was always a possibility in Florida too!). Autumn looks wonderful "up there" and you still have lovely birds ... and I still very much appreciate that you share them and your talent! Thanks.

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  21. What a nice nix of photos beatifully shot as always :-)

    Have a tanfastictastic week 👍

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  22. Beautiful photos.
    Especially love the Kinglet and the Cooper's Hawk.
    The Mantis looks amazing and a tad scary. :)

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  23. Love the photos of the Kinglet! They are so cute. The Mantis really is something! Made of steel?

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  24. Mantis is fabulous ! The sky shots are dramatic and outstanding . Thanks for sharing with Garden Affair.

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