Month: May 2022

Photos and Haiku for 07 May 2022

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Here’s Clark Nutcrackers

Adult feeding a young one

Outside my window

This is a fun series of photos taken this morning through my east facing kitchen windows of an adult Clark’s Nutcracker feeding suet to a young one that was obviously born this spring. It is always a good idea to have a camera handy because you never know what you are going to see.

Photo and Haiku for 06 May 2022

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A Cassin’s Sparrow

it’s rare in my area

Prefers dry grasslands

This is a very rare bird for my area.  It was seen and photographed a few days ago so, of course, I had to go out and see if I could see it and maybe get a few photos.  The photos aren’t that great, but it was mid-day and the lighting was not very good.  I waited 2.5 hours before I could see it and get some photos.  It is a ground feeder so was hanging out in high grass and not visible until it hopped up on a fence with a grasshopper in its bill.

Photo and Haiku for 19 April 2021

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A flash grabs my eye

First hummer of the season

Each day a new gift

When I went out this morning, there was a flash of green that dove at a red colored feeder containing sunflower seeds.  I quickly got out a hummingbird feeder from the shop and hurriedly mixed up a 4:1 sugar solution, let it cool and put up the feeder….I was out all morning birding and at lunch time I saw one hummer at the feeder….I quickly grabbed my camera and got only one image before it flew off and did not come back….I’m wondering if I hurriedly mixed up the solution incorrectly……one thing I do know is that i need to wash my windows……

Photo and Haiku for 01 May 2022

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Two Rock Hyraxes

Related to Elephants

Lives in classless groups

Here’s a break from bird haikus for a change….although we do love our birds


The Rock Hyrax is found in Africa and these two I photographed in the Masai Mara of Kenya a few years ago.  They are really interesting animals.


from Wikipedia:  ” They are superficially similar to pikas and marmots, but are more closely related to elephants and sea cows.”



And this….also from Wikipedia….. is really interesting and a lesson for today’s society:……

 ” Hyraxes that live in more “egalitarian” groups, in which social associations are spread more evenly among group members, survive longer.[27] In addition, hyraxes are the first nonhuman species in which structural balance was described. They follow “the friend of my friend is my friend” rule, and avoid unbalanced social configurations.[28] The balance of social interactions within a group is positively correlated to individual longevity, meaning that “it is not the number or strength of associations that an adult individual has (i.e. centrality) that is important, but the overall configuration of social relationships within the group.”[29] The reason for such a balanced group configuration, rather than one that is centrally dominated by a few individual hyraxes, was suggested to have to do with the fact that information flow to all members is important in a fragmented habitat as that of the hyrax, making a dominance hierarchy a liability for the survival of the group at large.[29]“