The backyard in late june

On October 18, 2025September 20, 2025 By dinajohnstonIn bird photography3 Comments

The bluebird families were continuing to come to the mealworm feeder in the backyard throughout the summer.

I saw a pileated woodpecker in the oak tree in the back and ran out with my camera. I realized there were two of them and they were pretty high up in the tree. Dad (with the red stripe under his beak) quickly fed the juvenile and then went scooting up the tree with the young one screaming behind him.

Other birds at the mealworm feeder included a Carolina wren family and the thrasher that’s been hanging out here for a month.

We’ve had several bunnies stopping by and it’s fun to see 2 at the same time. One was much bigger than the other so I’m thinking the little one is an offspring of the bigger one.

A ruby throated hummingbird feeding on the shrimp plants.

The young squirrels spent so much time playing.

A juvenile Carolina wren was spreading his wings out in sun on our patio chair.

Watching the moon going down in the early morning from the driveway.

Summer skies in late June at the pond across the street.

The backyard in late May into early June

On October 6, 2025November 9, 2025 By dinajohnstonIn bird photography3 Comments

We’ve had 2 bunnies in the backyard since May. They both still come every few late afternoons, although not always at the same time. The first shot is the smaller bunny which I think may be offspring of the bigger one.

We had several juvenile tufted titmouse visit. They still have a little bit of cream in the corner of their beaks and don’t look so scruffy as the adults. I’m assuming they nest somewhere nearby.

We had a lot of juvenile cardinals as well.

Bluebirds have become regulars to the dried mealworm feeder and I can’t stop taking pictures of them.

We had a pair of brown thrashers in the backyard for a few weeks.

I saw the Carolina wrens hopping around and watched them go into my neighbor’s patio as the juvenile was still following the parent with the bug. The parent was teaching the young one to look for bugs but the young one just wanted to be fed.

My hanging shrimp plants were doing well. The hummingbirds get the nectar from inside the white part of the bloom.

I found some lacewing eggs on my jade plant that is up against the sunroom window. Those tiny white dots turn into something that looks like a moth but are a pretty green. I had the dots along the window as well but still haven’t seen any of the actual lacewings in the yard.

This is the first time I’ve seen one of these. A green coneheaded planthopper.

Taken through the window, a squirrel looking at me with an acorn in his mouth. I think he was afraid I was going to watch where he hid it.

I saw the turkeys through the window but since they were across the fairway I snuck out the back door and was able to get the above from the patio.

Later I looked out the back window and this one was right in front of our patio. I took the above through the window as she stared at me for a few seconds and then left with her friends.

Sunset going down behind the pond across the street.

Around the yard in early May

On September 15, 2025October 15, 2025 By dinajohnstonIn bird photography1 Comment

Watching through the trees as the sun goes down across the street.

Watching the sun go down from the kitchen window as a squirrel photobombs the picture.

Out in the backyard, the dried mealworm feeder was busy.

We had several bald molting cardinals visiting the feeders in early May.

Lizards were getting frisky. I took the above through the sunroom window.

I was taking the garbage out front and heard great crested flycatchers calling to each other. I ran and got my camera. They landed high up on the trees in the yard.

This dove was spending time in the begonia plant. I thought she might start a nest there but a few days later she left.

My neighbor on the left had siam tulips blooming and my neighbors on the right had plumeria blooming. I have the advantage of seeing them both from my patio.

I heard Harley (my 11 year old cockatiel) screaming from the sunroom. I ran over to the window and saw a red shoulder hawk on the ground in the back. Harley has a very specific “there’s a hawk back there” scream. After putting him in his cage I opened the back door and chased the hawk away (but not before taking a picture).

We had a few juvenile red bellied woodpeckers coming through with the parents. I was out in the backyard and was able to catch Mom feeding one.

My pitcher plant was blooming.

One late morning I was coming into the neighborhood and saw a coyote walking down the sidewalk right before my street. I luckily had my camera in the car and pulled over and was able to get a few shots before it took off into the woods.

The sunset shining on the clouds in the backyard right before dark.

Around the yard in late April

On September 1, 2025October 15, 2025 By dinajohnstonIn bird photography5 Comments

Everything was blooming in the front courtyard in late April.

My neighbor’s plumeria was peeking over the wall.

The lady ruby throated hummingbirds were coming several times a day.

The titmouse were checking out the unused bird house but they didn’t build a nest.

We had several young squirrels hanging around the backyard and they think our philodendron plants in between the two big oak trees are their playground. One morning I was sitting on the patio with my camera hoping to catch the hummingbird and this squirrel had the best time playing in the plants.

Taking a break from playing to eat a snack.

This blue jay is not shy and flew right over and sat on my chair and watched me reading for a while.

By late April the suet feeder was down and I added a small open feeder on that hook. I filled it with mixed seed and dried mealworms, hoping to attract the bluebirds back. In the beginning all I saw were the usual birds including woodpeckers and titmouse.

Sunset across the street.

Sunshine in the front yard

On August 13, 2025September 6, 2025 By dinajohnstonIn flowers and plants7 Comments

I planted sunflowers seeds early this spring in the tiny spot of dirt that gets full sun in our front yard. By mid-April the buds were coming up fast.

Another week later one was blooming and we were heading to south Florida for a few days and I was afraid I would miss the peak blooming.

I didn’t miss anything. Days after we got back from our trip the sunflowers were in full bloom and the few plants had a ton of blooms on them. I was thinking deer would come by and eat them all. Last year deer came by and ate half the plants right before they started to bloom and then squirrels started eating the sunflowers as they started to droop but this year we didn’t have anything bothering them except bees.

The sun comes up behind the house so most of the blooms did not face the street.

Buds kept popping up.

One of the stalks got top heavy and leaned over, almost to the ground so I got an old stick we had in the garage and tied it up to keep it standing. Luckily the stalk didn’t break off and continued to bloom.

SkyWatch Friday

Things in the yard and neighborhood

On August 11, 2025September 6, 2025 By dinajohnstonIn bird photography1 Comment

We have a little spot of dirt in our front yard that gets full sun so I planted sunflower seeds and a few weeks later they started coming up.

Near the end of April this one was the first to start blooming.

A tiny Eastern amberwing dragonfly was flying around the sunflower plants.

A titmouse was showing off his snacks. I’m assuming he had a nest somewhere high up in the tree. I kept seeing him fly up there but couldn’t tell where he was going.

A moth through the window. Taken with my phone.

This blue jay was driving me crazy. He kept eating the suet and digging around in the plants for bugs. He lets me get really close. I took the above with my phone.

Critters on the flowering plants in the front yard.

I was sitting at the kitchen table working on my computer when I looked up and saw a hummingbird flying around in front of the window. I pulled out the old window feeder that I hadn’t used in a long time and made some extra food and put it on the window. By the next day she was coming to the feeder. If I was standing still in front of the window when she flew in she would continue to feed as long as I stood still.

A video of Fred flirting with me through the window.

It was almost time to take the suet feeder down. It’s just too hot once May comes and even through the package says they don’t melt, they do. The woodpeckers will just have to eat the regular sunflower seeds instead for a few months.

I kept hearing a peeping noise when I went out to water the plants and saw a downy woodpecker hanging around a spot high up in the oak tree in the backyard. I saw the woodpecker fly away and walked over and saw the above juvenile looking out from a hole underneath a branch. So I did what any normal bird nerd would do, I went inside and got my camera and dragged my patio chair under the tree and waited for the parent to come back.

The parent came back several times. There were two juveniles in the hole but only one popped out at a time. It must be tight in there. I could see the red on the young one’s head so I knew it was a boy. There was also a female.

Both parents stayed busy bringing in food but they would stick their head far into the hole to feed the kids so I couldn’t get a shot of them feeding it.

I knew that the babies were about to be too big for that hole and a few days later I saw them chasing the parents on the trees.

A regular visitor to the backyard.

I was out running errands and on the way home I saw these 3 on the sidewalk in front of the utility field down the street. I pulled over on the nearby parking pad and got out with my camera and crossed the street. Then they started crossing the street and heading right for me. These guys were strutting around like they owned the neighborhood.

I realized there were 2 females behind the trees on my side of the street. The males got close to the females but the females ignored them and went into the woods.

Linking to A Stroll Thru Life.

In the backyard in early April

On July 21, 2025August 5, 2025 By dinajohnstonIn bird photography6 Comments

There’s at least 2 female ruby throated hummingbirds coming to the yard since early April. I see them almost every day, usually in the morning and late afternoon. Most of the time I see only one at a time but several times I’ve seen one on the feeder and then chasing another coming in to feed. I now have another feeder in the front yard just outside the kitchen window as well.

The red shrimp plants were blooming and she was coming to them as well. She also comes to the gardenia bush and the coral honeysuckle but I can’t seem to get shots of her on those.

Squirrels in the backyard being cute.

Northern parulas visit from spring into fall. I was outside when I saw these coming down close to the bird bath and was able to get some shots of them.

A skipper on the salvia. The purple salvia died pretty quick but the red salvia has been blooming. I have yet to see a hummingbird on it though.

Two fly-overs that I was able to catch while I was outside in the backyard was a swallow tailed kite and a short tailed hawk.

I’m assuming this blue jay was working on a nest. I couldn’t see where he went with this beakfull of nesting material.

When Fred’s not feeding on bugs he sleeps the day away just outside our window. I think he was flirting with me here. He is not shy or skittish.

A few days later I realized he was shedding. One morning when I put my phone up to the window he came right up and posed for me.

The full moon in the backyard, taken with my phone.

A little later I went out with my camera and shot the above.

Linking to A Stroll Thru Life.

Around the yard in late March

On June 23, 2025July 10, 2025 By dinajohnstonIn bird photography4 Comments

Things blooming in the front yard in late March. The bottom one is a fire star orchid that was gifted to my neighbor from a friend who was moving. It’s a huge potted plant that is full of blooms. When she brought it home in the winter it was a pile of dead sticks. She said her friend said to trust her and wait until spring.

We had another dove couple (or it might have been the same couple from the other tree) nesting on a palm tree on the other side of our driveway. They nested much higher up and I could only get a shot of one baby when it was getting big although there were two. They grew up so fast and were gone before I could get another shot of them.

Fred spends the afternoon sleeping on the old small trellis in front of our window. He’s got distinctive ridges on his back and he never runs away when I get close to the window.

We finally got a new bird bath. The old plastic one covered in metal lasted 20 years but was falling apart in the Florida weather. The squirrels love the new one.

Birds coming to the backyard in late March included a great crested flycatcher (the first 2 shots). I think he was going to get a drink but wasn’t sure with the fountain going. Northern parulas were plentiful in the yard and I don’t know what that crow had in his beak. He might have gotten a mouthful of leaves with a caterpillar or maybe he was building a nest?

Right before dark I was going out to get the mail and I kept hearing black bellied whistling ducks calling from the pond. One day I took my camera and walked across the street and saw them sitting on the bank on the other side. For at least 2 weeks they would come in late in the day. I wondered if they were nesting nearby but I couldn’t start walking through people’s backyards looking, could I?

This is when I would hear them whistling. Right before the sun went down behind the trees across the pond.

The sun was coming up through the fog one morning as I was heading to the grocery store.

I knew the eagles in my neighborhood were sitting on eggs in the nest for a while and eventually I saw them sitting up on the edge of the tower and had been bringing in food. I was thinking maybe the babies had hatched but it would be a while before they were big enough for me to see them.

Finally, weeks later I could get a decent shot of the baby. I had seen glimpses of gray fuzz for a few weeks but now I could see the face. It looked like there was only one baby.

A week later the baby was much bigger and I could see one of the parents feeding it on the nest. I’m glad they have a baby. The Dad is a first time dad since he was only a 4th year juvenile last year when he started “dating” the Mom who had lost her mate earlier that year. You can read my post about the loss of the eagle family last March here.

Dad flies off to get more food.

One day another juvenile eagle went flying over the nest. The parent chased him away. It might have been a baby from the nest on the other side of the neighborhood. Those babies were born much earlier but it’s too far away to get pictures of that nest.

Linking to A Stroll Thru Life.

Around the yard in early March

On June 2, 2025July 10, 2025 By dinajohnstonIn bird photography, flowers and plants5 Comments

Things blooming in the front yard in March.

I was taking pictures of the flowers in the front yard and saw this ibis over by the pond across the street. I walked over and realized he had a snack (frog). He flew off with it in his beak.

The great crested flycatchers were back for the summer. I heard them calling when I was taking the garbage can out early one morning and ran in and got my camera. They stayed high up in the trees.

A brown thrasher was also in the trees in the front yard.

Swallow tail kites cruise along the golf course and they don’t hang around for long. I saw this one across the fairway from the window and ran outside with my camera. He flew close and quick right over my head and then flew off over the trees and was gone.

I don’t see snakes often in the yard so I was excited to see this harmless black racer cut across the yard. The first shot was through the window and then I crept outside and was able to get a shot of his face before he slithered under the neighbor’s bushes.

The bunnies have been coming by the back yard since January. They usually come right before dark and don’t stay long.

Nanday parakeets feeding on the bottle brush tree down the street.

Sunset from the front yard and across the street.

The full moon from the backyard in March.

Linking to A Stroll Thru Life.

Around the yard in February

On May 10, 2025June 6, 2025 By dinajohnstonIn bird photography1 Comment

In early February my neighbor told me he kept seeing a dove fly into the palm tree in between our driveways, near our garage. I got my camera out and saw that she had a baby. We get a lot of doves in the backyard. They like to sit on the bird bath when it gets dark. I wasn’t expecting to see them nesting high up in the palm tree.

A few days later I realized there were 2 babies. They were growing fast.

Days later a bad storm came through and I went out after the storm right before dark to make sure the babies hadn’t gotten blown out of the nest. They were pretty big at this point. This was the last time I saw them in the nest. At some point over the next few days they flew the coup.

Then I noticed 2 juvenile doves in my backyard under the bird bath. They stuck close together and they didn’t have their full black spots on them and their beaks were still small so I’m thinking these were the 2 babies.