Monday, February 28, 2011

Winter Wonders

Here in the Midwest, winter's inclement weather has not been very conducive to nature photography. We have seen little of the bright, glorious sun, thus days are gray and appear monochromatic. So far, this season, the Chicago area has received over 50 inches of snow, making it very difficult to wander through nature preserves and bird sanctuaries. Frosty temperatures have also kept me indoors, as my fingers seem to be especially sensitive to the cold. Even though the weather has not been very pleasant, the birds have been most plentiful at our feeders. It's always a joy to observe the busy Black-capped Chickadees, tree scaling White-breasted Nuthatches and lovely Dark-eyed Juncos delighting in sunflower seeds. For this post, since I have had very few photo opportunities, I decided to look back into my archives to see what feathered beauties I was photographing last year at this time. Enjoy!

A sleek White-breasted Nuthatch surveys the buffet table

A sightly Tufted Titmouse perches amid bare branches


A Black-capped Chickadee selects the perfect cracked corn kernel


A pretty Red-bellied Woodpecker goes seed shopping


A curious Downy Woodpecker awaits my offerings


A solitary female Northern Cardinal on a cold winter day


The brilliant scarlet feathers of a Red-headed Woodpecker


Decisions, decisions ... which seed to choose? ~ Blue Jay


A well-camouflaged Brown Creeper spirals its way up the tree trunk in search of food


The lovely profile of a Dark-eyed Junco


Shelled peanuts are this White-breasted Nuthatches snack of choice

38 comments:

de schoonheid van de natuur said...

Hoi Jullie.
Wat een geweldige foto’s van die vogels.
Ik heb er erg van genoten geweldig.
Groetjes Herman,

PoetessWug said...

What beautiful birds. The chickadee is my favorite among these though...I can't wait until all of this snow is gone for the season. And yet I thought we here in Massachusetts had it bad!! Chicago has really been walloped!!

Simon Taylor said...

Beautiful images Julie, every one of them. Well done

Anonymous said...

Oh my look at all these colors and beautiful birds coming to your "buffet" - great captions, too!

Dan said...

Fabulous photo's, Julie!

I suspect we'll be seeing more of these in the days and weeks a head.

Daniel

Explore. Dream. Discover.
http://daniels-view.blogspot.com/
--

Kerri Farley said...

AWESOME captures my friend! So glad you posted from your archives! These are some of my fave birds ....and I've never seen Red-headed woodpecker in person .... oh what a BEAUTY!

Anonymous said...

Fabulous series Julie!! I love the way you captured their expressions and personalities...details are amazing!! Always a JOY to see your photos!

Unknown said...

Fantastic shots!!!!

Dawn Fine said...

Glad you kept these beauties in your archive to show us now...hope your weather clears soon and you are out taking more photos!

BirdGalAlcatraz said...

Julie, I so love looking at your wonderful captures of the most beautiful birds. I love both of the images of the White-breasted Nuthatches and the Black-capped Chickadee is special, too. The Tufted Titmouse is always a favorite and I just so enjoy seeing all of your terrific images. Glad for your archives!

Weekend Cowgirl said...

Absolutely beautiful bird photos...

Steve Creek said...

Very nice captures Julie!

Ana Márquez said...

I love birds and I love these wonderful birds pics :-) Thanks for sharing!

Marco Luijken said...

Hello Julie,
What a wonderfull pictures of these lovely birds. I've never seen woodpeckers with these beautiful red colour on their head at all. I like it very much. And I like the picture of the Blue Jay to. Really nice pictures!! My compliments!!

Greetings, Marco

Unknown said...

Hola, buenas fotos, saludos

SLH said...

These are fantastic!!

Bill S. said...

Great pictures. You must use a blind set up by the feeders. I use one about three feet from my feeders and really enjoy the close up views.

I hear you about the snow. We have 18 inches still on the ground and they are predicting rain!!! Not good. Like you I am hoping for spring soon.

NESASK said...

Great shots. Especially love the woodpeckers.

cindyzlogic said...

These are all excellent shots, Julie!!!

Carol said...

Fabulous captures Julie! I love the red-headed woodpecker and brown creeper shots especially!

The Zen Birdfeeder said...

Fabulous series, Julie. I especially enjoyed seeing the Red-headed Woodpecker. Gorgeous bird, not common here.

Unknown said...

Beautiful photos! I love your work! Looking forward to more!

John's Island said...

What a great series of photos! Missed your blog while I was traveling! Thanks for sharing Julie!

Anonymous said...

Greetings from Southern California

I am your newest follower. I invite you to visit my blog and follow me if you want too.

God bless you :-)

~Ron

Unknown said...

Julie...as always you nailed this post! These images are crisp, clear & evocative. After seeing them I want to get outside and start "shooting" birds! Thanks!

Richard said...

Great blog about birding. Keep the good work!

Unknown said...

Forgot to mention before that I "Stumbled" your post :)

Ben said...

Hi Julie,
Great pictures of these wonderful birds.I love the perfect sharpness. It's a joy to see how beautiful the colours of the birds are and the settings in which the birds are photographed. Compliments!!!

Grtz,
Ben

Julie G. said...

Extending a heartfelt thank you for all the thoughtful remarks left on this blog post. I am so very appreciative of every single comment.

Anonymous said...

So much personality...

Kathie Brown said...

Wonderful photography! I have seen most of those same species in my yard this winter except for the red-headed woodpecker and the brown creeper! I would love to add both to my yard list!

eileeninmd said...

Julie, fantastic series of birds and photos. I especially love the creeper and the Redheaded woodie.

Tammy said...

Beautiful shots! We have similar taste in subjects :)

Kah-Wai Lin said...

Beautiful!

Kah Wai
http://kwbirding.blogspot.com/

RVDaalen said...

Wow... really great birds captures....good job!!


Greetz from Holland,

Remco

forgetmenot said...

You and Kerri have the world of nature "covered" with your stunning photos. Beautiful shots--I've become a follower because I can't wait to see other posts. Lovely work. Mickie

Debbie Miller @HooootOwl said...

Gorgeous captures!

Joanna Durczok said...

Beautiful set of photos. Wonderful scenes and birds' poses. I love each of them :)