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Sunday, August 9, 2009

Two of my Favorite Birds!!

If you have read my blog for a while, you know that my FAVORITE birds to see in the wild are sandhill cranes, swans, blue herons and pileated woodpeckers. I have hoped to catch more photos of them all this summer and have been hunting for them to get photos of them to no avail.

So, knowing one secret spot where we once spotted swans a month ago, we went out looking for them again in the same area, hoping I could catch some pictures. Last time, it was raining when we got photos of the swans, so I was hoping for a clearer day to shoot pictures of them. My husband said it was a miracle to have found them the first time, because in all the years he has hunted in the woods, he has never seen swans in the wild other than the time this summer that we happened across them.

But you know ME. I just had to go and look for them again. Because maybe. Just maybe.

Wouldn't you know.....as soon as we got near where we saw them the time that I got to take some photos of them in June, it started to POUR. And then the background got all misty and foggy. So much for clear pictures of anything, I thought!

But we forged ahead anyway.

Right before we got to the pond where the swans were last time, we rounded a corner and out in a field were THESE!!!!!:

Two BEAUTIFUL sandhill cranes. Aren't they gorgeous?:


But they hardly noticed me. They seemed intensely focused on looking for something. They began calling out high pitched sounds and looking about.

I thought maybe they had babies in the field, but we waited a long time and never saw any babies.

Here they are looking and looking about, as if they were searching for something:




The one on the right is calling a sharp, piercing sound and looking about:


It began to pour rain, and I was worried that if the sandhill cranes were searching for their babies that we would interrupt that and endanger the babies...so we rode on, soooooo happy that I was able to see these magnificent birds.
Then, we arrived at the pond where we saw swans in June.
Again, it began to POUR.
We searched and searched the pond to see if we saw swans.
Nothing.
I told my husband that at least we tried.....
and
after all, if we hadn't ventured out to try and see swans again, we would have never seen and been able to photograph the lovely sandhill cranes.
But, as we were pulling out to go, my husband put on the brakes of the truck.
He said he thought he saw white in a grassy area waaayyyyy back in the pond!!!
We got back outside and waited.
In. The. Rain.
It was cold.
It was wet.
But, it was worth it................
Because in a little while, out they swam!
A mama swan and her baby!!:


And then???
The daddy swan and ANOTHER baby!!:





Don't they make an adorable family?:


By now, I was soaked to the bone.
But, it was worth it.
Because who could see anything more beautiful
than
THIS????:


I was so happy!
To see TWO of my favorite rare birds out in the wild on the same day!!??=priceless.
Life is good!!!

22 comments:

Wanda..... said...

How lucky and happy can you get...The cranes plus the swans all in one day! They made great photos...Did you thank your husband? :)

rainfield61 said...

To enjoy the nature and bird hunting is fantastic, especially it happens in the rain, husband-and-wife, soaked to the bone, who care?

Unknown said...

Great luck and what a superb outing! And you got your wishes come true. Love the pics.

grannyann said...

what a lucky person you are to be in such a beautiful place with all those beautiful flowers and animals.

The Retired One said...

Wanda: Oh yes, I thanked him in many ways....hahaaaaa....

Rainfield: Yes, you are right...who cares? We were together and happy doing one of the things I love...so all was well.

Keats: Thanks,...yes that day my wishes came true indeed.

Grannyann: We are very blessed. Thanks.

blushing rose said...

I just love visiting you & the birds are wonderful, the swans I dearly love, When we were Holland I was so excited to finally see black swans, but BOY are they fiesty! Your pics are always gorgeous. TY for sharing. TTFN ~Marydon

Brian Miller said...

persistence pays off...nice pics...what a treat. smiles.

DJan said...

How absolutely wonderful. What better way to spend the day than getting soaked to the bone while communing with nature? Especially with a favorite partner to share it with, and then to share it with US! You are right, life is good...

Catherine@AGardenerinProgress said...

Those cranes really are pretty, and to see the swans too I bet you were happy! Great pictures too!

Dav DiDi said...

Nice photos!

SquirrelQueen said...

Who says wishes don't come true? What fantastic luck to see two of your favorite birds on the same day.

The swans are beautiful and those babies are adorable. I have a theory on the cranes. Their babies are now teenagers and were out too late, mom and day are going to ground them when they do show up.

Bernie said...

Oh you did have a wonderful day and your passion kept you in the rain and cold to see nature's finest....wonderful photo's am so glad for you and for us. Have a wonderful Monday Joan...:-) Hugs

Rick (Ratty) said...

I've only seen swans once this year, and I have yet to post the pictures. I'm glad to see yours. I've never seen sandhill cranes before. They are simply beautiful.

Alan Burnett said...

Indeed, life is good. Wonderful birds, beautiful pictures. It's always a pleasure to stop by.

The Retired One said...

Blushing Rose: Thanks...black swans must be very beautiful! If you ever see any again, please take their photos!

Brian: Thanks..it was a treat for us, too!~

DJan: Yes! We love going in the woods and never knowing what we will see. Sometimes he laughs at me, because I will say..today I wish we would see some vultures...and then we see some! He calls me the bird whisperer or animal whisperer.

Catherine: I am generally happy just to be in the woods and seeing ordinary scenery....but when we see animals or birds, I am ecstatic!

Dav Didi: Thanks so much. You are new to my blog, aren't you? Thanks so much for stopping by! I hope you click on to become a Follower to my blog, that would be great to have you join us all the time!I would love that!

SquirrelQueen: I LOVE your theory and I bet you are right. Heck, I still yell for my kids and they are over 30. (Old that is, I don't have over 30 children) If I did, I would just be yelling. Period. ha

Bernie: I was thrilled....and thanks as always for your wonderful compliments on my photos.

Ratty: I can't wait to see your swan photos too! This is the third time we have seen the cranes...we actually see blue herons more often, but not this summer for some reason...have only seen one of those so far.

Alan: Thanks so much! Keep stopping by, love to have you do so!

Unknown said...

My Gosh... you live in a dream world up there girl. The plus is that you know how to use your camera and you don't mind sharing your finds!

Anonymous said...

You have become quite the determined photo bug!!! I never would have thought to look for swans in an area like that! Were the mosquitoes bad?? People who own property north of us IN THE WOODS on a lake said the bugs are HORRIBLE up there. Nothing much here anymore!

The Retired One said...

Gaston: Yes, we have been lucky to see the birds we have this year. Thanks.

Cathy: So far, the bugs haven't been too bad because of the cold weather we have been having..the day we went out to get the swan pictures, we had no bugs.

Jientje said...

Swans are my favorite birds too.They remind me of my hometown. I was born in Bruges, and there are a lot of swans on the canals. I think they're majestic birds.
The cranes look very exotic to me. We only get to see those at the Zoo here in Belgium. I can believe your trip was well worth it, I would thinks so too!

Maniacal Mommy said...

Wonderful pics!

Shelley said...

These were magical and delightful to see! I just love those sandhill cranes!!!

The Retired One said...

Jientje: You should post some photos of your swans in the canals some time...they would be beautiful to see!

Maniacal: Thanks so much!

Shelly: Thanks...I always love your bird photos too. Pretty soon they will be gathering and flocking past us to go south again.

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I retired in June 2008 and started my blog in November 2008. I worked at several jobs as a Registered Nurse prior to retirement. I LOVE being retired! Blogging has offered me a whole new venue to start writing again and to share new hobbies such as gardening, birdwatching and sharing my nature photography. If you like my blog, PLEASE click on "follow this blog". Having a lot of followers reading my blog gives me incentive to continue to do photography and to continue to write. I also LOVE comments, so I encourage you to leave me a comment after you read my posts. Thanks everyone, for taking the time to read me!!

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