School Started Now

This past week has been cold.  I hope we still have some warm weather left. 

Pie-billed Grebe;  "I hope so.  I will stay here during the cold months."☺️

Green Heron:  "I am not made for cold, so I will be leaving soon for south."😉

Canada Goose:  "We are made tough.  We will be around all the time."🤩

Big Birds at the Wetlands

A summer day.  The sun is hot and bright here early.  🌞

Most of Canada Goose go up north during the hot months.  But some of them still stay here and raise young ones.

 

Canada Goose:  "We are on landing training.  A smooth landing today."🪿

Great Blue Heron:  "I raise young ones here, too.  Less babies to feed at the colony now."👶

Osprey:  "I am here, too.  Today I am flying together with my spouse."🤗😘

Cold Weather is Arriving Here.

 Autumn weather.  The waterfowl's season has begun.

"I am Pie-billed Grebe, a regular resident here.  When the 

weather cools, my friends all gather here." 😍🦆🪿🐦‍⬛🦅

"We are Cackling Geese.  We will hang around here now."😄

"We are Canada Geese.  We will make a lot of noise.  Honk, honk, honk."😮🤩👍

The Wetland Summer

 At the nearby wetland, young Canada Geese are busy with their parents.

.

"It takes a while to train them all.  Today is swimming."😊

Black-headed Grosbeak:  "I am still looking for a mate this summer." 😎🩷

Cedar Waxwing:  "I like to eat these berries."  😁👍

Spring Wetland

 At the wetland nearby, most of the waterfowl are gone to the north.   Spring is here with bushes loaded with buds.

"I am ready to sing."

Canadian Geese are loud.

"Will you be my girlfriend?"

Tree Swallows are back to nest here.

"Oregon is a cool place to stay."

Autumn Migration

 Today the sky was filled with clouds with some patches of blue.  

Many Canada Geese are heading toward south.

We found first Northern Pintails at the wetland reservoir.  

"We just arrived here for winter."

"I see many ducks slowly filling the water around here."

Warm Fall Weather

 The fall sky is always filled with Canada Geese around the wetland.

"Honk, honk, honk...."(Very noisy)👀🪿😉

"We are quiet, but always here.😊🪿"

"We stay here only during the cold months.👍🌞🪿"

June at the Wetland

 Some of Canada Geese stay at the wetland nearby to raise their family.

The other day when we were walking around a big pond, a gooseling was walking toward me.

It was getting closer and closer.

"I am lost.  Where is my mom?😢😢"

Then it hid in the bush and swam into the pond, where it finally found his/her family.   

"I found my mom!😍😍"

Up above, an Osprey was flying around.

"No catch today👀👀💦."

A Calling Season

 Although the temperature fluctuates, birds know it is spring.   I found many birds are getting active and often calling out loud.

"I have to contact my friend👩."

"Me, too.  Where is my friend?👨"

Even in my backyard, the Varied Thrush was calling someone.

"Spring is the season for calling!💘💑👀👍"

Kalapuyan Land

The other day when we visited a wetland, we found this sign 👀👀.  What is this?❓

"...The Kalapuya tribes' traditional homelands were the Willamette Valley of present-day western Oregon in the United States, an area bounded by the Cascade Range to the east, the Oregon Coast Range at the west, the Columbia River at the north, to the Calapooya Mountains of the Umpqua River at the south..."

(excerpt from Wikipedia)

We hope this land will be kept in a good condition so that people can enjoy watching birds as we do😍.  

A lone Bald Eagle in the distance.

"I appreciate Kalapuyan land!👍👍💝"

A Nutria 

"Thank you for my pond.😄😄"

Many winter waterfowl: Canada Geese, Cacking Geese, Pintails, etc.

"Many friends have arrived here for the winter months.  

We appreciate the wetlands.😊😋😍"

On a Windy Day

The very cold temperature returned and stayed here for a week.  Even on a sunny day, we shivered with the chilly wind.

"It is chilly....😣😣"

A couple of Bald Eagles were perched on the regular tree.  As we walked around the reservoir, one flew over us.

"It's been cold.  Don't catch any virus👍👍."

There were enough Canada Geese around.  In the protected area, five of them were almost suntanning.

"The sun really keeps us warm in the early spring😊😊."

After Many Days of Rain

After a few weeks of rainy days,  we returned to the wetland.   Just like people, birds are happy to be in  the sun. 

"Now we can fly around without getting drenched."

"A Canada Goose and an American Coot can be friends together."

"I am a male Green-winged Teal."

"I am his girl.  Look at this green on my side."

Red Leaves

The blueberry leaves are changing to red.

 

Against the blue sky, a large flock of Canada Goose were quacking loudly above the wetland.

There are more down on the ground.

"I found a good place to rest.  Too tiring to fly around."

Babies are Everyewhere.

 This time of the year, all the birds are busy raising their young.

Here is a Duck mom with eight baby ducklings.

"We are training to swim."

Here are a couple of Canada Geese with four gooselings.

"The babies are to learn where to find food."

My iris are in bloom in the backyard.

Flooding near the Reservoir

Quite often during the rainy winter months, the wetlands get flooded.  The other day was such a day.

The road is blocked.  We could not go into the reservoir area where people used to walk, jog, take photos, etc.

Later, we stopped at another nature refugee, which was also flooded at the lower area.  The entry way is higher and was not flooded.   We walked and took some photos.

Young Red-tailed Hawk:  "I could see a lot of water down there.  I hope

 I can find some rodents or something for my breakfast."

Canada Goose:  "We are ok.  It may take a while 

to get the water to recede, though."

Big Birds

Many Canada Geese against the blue sky in winter

Red-tailed Hawk at the favorite branch
This must be one of the two hawks I saw a month ago.

Sentinel at the pond
Right in front of me, he/she was posing for me on that sunny morning.

"I am photogenic.  Right?"