My Love For Chickens!

This is a photo of one of my sister-in-laws chickens.  She has

a small flock of free range chickens in her yard.

I was in heaven taking photos of them.

I can't remember the name of this particular breed,  but he impressed

me with his fluffy cheek feathers!

Deer Sighting in Montana

While on a recent trip to Montana, I had several deer sightings.  

We have deer in Alaska, but not in my area.  

I loved seeing them!!!

Clematis Flower

While traveling through Idaho, Montana, Oregon, & Washington,

I was lucky enough to see several of these beautiful flowers!

I can't wait till mine starts blooming!!!

Male Red-breasted Merganser

I love this birds hairstyle.  For some reason

he reminds me of the Woody Woodpecker 

cartoon character.

Beautiful duck!

A Very Tired Canadian Goose...

A single Canadian Goose on the shores of Kenai Lake.  This goose 

was very tired and was resting and warming itself up on the 

shoreline rocks.  I saw this goose feeding on young green 

shoots throughout the day.  I'm thinking it couldn't 

keep up with the rest of its flock.  I really hope  it

was able to join up with a group passing through the 

valley.  I sat with this goose for a little while 

and kept it company.

Yellowlegs Shorebird

A Yellowlegs shorebird....

This bird was busy trying to divert my attention away from his

mate.  He did a very good job.

Lichen Bliss

I love taking photos of lichen!!!  

I love it's beauty!!!

Enjoy!

Red-necked Grebe

I took a walk on a rainy day down by the Lagoon this last sunday,

and was lucky enough to spot this Red-necked Grebe.  

He was a really great little diver.

He was busy catching little minnows when I spotted him.

Goodbye Winter Coats!!

I'm excited to get rid of my winter coat for a couple of months, so 

I'm thinking this Alaskan Hare has the same thoughts as we head

toward warmer weather!!!  

Most of the rabbits that I have seen have already lost their winter

coats, but this bunny seems to be hanging on to his.

He looks rather elegant with his mismatched coat!  :o)

Pine Siskin

This little Pine Siskin came to my deck looking for 

free handouts, but none were available.

Springtime and birdseed = bear visitors, so the seed buffet will be closed till fall.

Red Breasted Mergansers....

These Mergansers are such a beautiful pair.  I had to sneak up on them to capture this photo.

Someday I might invest in a bigger lens, but then again that might

spoil all the fun of trying to capture a photo.

I'm sure they were wondering why I was hiding behind a boat dock!!

The male was always between me and the female protecting her.  

The lake still had a lot of ice so flying away was not their best option.

These are beautiful diving ducks.  They feed on fish, (fry, minnows, herring)

and occasionally shrimp or crabs.  They usually dive for food, hunting on lakes and rivers,

in coastal bays and a sea.  These two were on Kenai Lake.

Alaskan Pussy Willows

Springtime always has me searching for pussy willows, especially

those that look like they could be part of a firework display.

When the days are warm enough for the bees to fly from their hives, then 

these wonderful burst of color and pollen greet them.

Happy Spring and Mother's Day everyone!

Male Northern Shoveler

This is a photo of a male Northern Shoveler.   I guess they are a pretty

common duck and are listed as a dabbler.  They feed by dabbling for

plant food, swinging their bills from side to side and straining the food from the water.

They use their highly specialized bill to forage for aquatic invertebrates -  a carnivorous diet.  They have small, comb-like structures on the edge of their bill that act like sieves.  This allows them to skim crustaceans and plankton from the water's surface.  I love their bills!!  

Arctic Tern

This small little bird, the Arctic Tern is well know for its long

yearly migration.   Its travel from its Arctic breeding grounds to its wintering 

grounds off of Antarctic may cover as much as 25,000 miles.  This is the farthest yearly journey of

any migratory bird.  Pretty impressive!!!  These little guys can live up

to 35 years.  I spotted them this last Thursday, such a welcome site!!!

Snow Goose

These geese were so much fun to watch this spring as they 

stopped to rest out at Potters Marsh.

I've never seen them out there before, so it was a treat to see them.  

I think I have over 500 photos of them.  

I might share a few more throughout the year.

The First Flowers of the Season!!!!

It's always exciting to see our first set of flowers!!!

These tulips are thriving in their warm south facing bed.

Those little things in life can be the most rewarding, and

these spring flowers are one of those little things!!!

Oregon Sunset....

Spent the weekend in Oregon...

I stopped to take this photo on an overlook up on Bald Ridge Mountain right

as the sun was setting...beautiful!!

Dall Sheep

I took this photo in March out on the Seward Highway, so there is still a lot

of snow on the ground.  I'm so glad we don't have a lot of snow laying about anymore.

I sat and watched this sheep and a group of others for about a hour or

so.  Wonderful to be able to sit so close to them without them 

running off.

The Melting Process...

Spring is taking its time this year, but slowly

it's taking a hold on the snow.

These fish bones from last fall decided it was time to surface

from their snowy winter home.

Natures Heart Shapes

This neat heart appeared on a sunny day last weekend.

Enjoy!!! 

Cold Spring Mornings

I have been waking up to some pretty cold spring mornings.

Lots of frozen puddles.

These puddles can be very beautiful....enjoy!

The Icy Grip of Winter....

With reluctance winter is slowly releasing its icy 

grip.  A lot of plants are still snug and warm under small

little icy chambers.  Our local stores are starting

to store plants outside in their greenhouse areas...hopefully they will not be

hit by frost.  We can all learn from nature if we take the time to look and observe.

Tiny Ice Sculptures

Tiny little ice sculptures strewn on the Kenai beach.  All of these

little ice sculptures had beautiful little shapes.  

It was a day of ice instead of shells.