As I sat working at my desk this afternoon, I suddenly realized that in addition to the usual outdoor noises I could hear the distinctive chirp of a Cardinal—one that was obviously nearby. Figuring it was a decent time for a ten-minute break, I grabbed my camera, unlocked the back door, and slowly made my way out. I managed to spot the bird in question fairly quickly, but it was pretty well obscured by the branches around it.
While I was waiting to see if it'd move to a different perch, I became aware of the fact that there was also a lot of noise coming from the tree I was standing next to. I looked up to see at least a half-dozen Chickadees flitting around amidst the branches. They tend not to sit still for very long, but I did manage to get at least one halfway decent shot off:
And of course, the Cardinal that drew me outside in the first place:
I stopped by Mom and Dad's on my way home to pick up something, and as I pulled into their driveway I spotted a deer grazing along the edge of the undergrowth:
The deer reacting to hearing Kaylee barking at me—it's looking right at the house, and you can see how focused its attention is:
Mom and I settled on the back porch to enjoy a drink and chat for a bit; Dad was at a weekly golfing thing. As we watched for birds, Mom suddenly realized that the thistle feeder was... well, see for yourself:
That would be what happens when a hungry black bear decides it wants to bring a possible meal down to its level—metal poles end up looking like bendy straws.
Happily, we only saw the usual suspects as we sat enjoying our adult beverages, including this Cardinal that landed near the top of the blue spruce:
Come to think of it, the spruce was a pretty a popular spot among the birds this evening. It provided the perch this Chickadee (with its back to the camera) is letting go of in this shot:
And, obviously, is where both the Redpoll and Cardinal were sitting when I took these next two images:
A chipmunk that decided to sit and have a snack about two feet from the edge of the porch:
It's not often I'm facing the right way when a hummingbird decides to visit the feeder hanging next to the back door, but once in a while I do get lucky:
Finally, Kaylee. In this one she's carefully monitoring a bee working the flowers growing nearby:
Completely focused on the piece of rawhide that's coming towards her from the upper left corner:
And enjoying the scents being brought to her by the mercifully cooler evening breeze:
Second Kaylee photo: It's a hellhound! She's not just focused, she's fierce!
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