Steve`s Country
For a smile as wide as a country sunrise
Tuesday’s Tidbits. #5
Good morning everyone! Well, it is definitely another good coffee morning, so, why not grab a cup and visit with us for a few minutes? It is a beautiful, sunny morning with clear blue sky. There does not seem to be any wind out there at the moment and the temp this morning was a bit milder than yesterday at just -29F (-34C). Yesterday was just plain cold. I mean cold. At its coldest it was -47F (-44C).
Only someone crazy would go out in a temperature like that. That kind of temp means a person stays home and relaxes inside. I went shopping in the morning. Prior to that I put the bird feeders out. Taking that first breath of outside air is a shocker. It was just plain cold. Enough of that subject. It is nicer today, though tonight it is supposed to get colder again.
Although not the best photo, I still like it for the mirror image of this male Goldeneye duck.
But enough of that subject. I like warm weather and warm places. But you already know that. There are few birds around these days. Normally when it gets cold like this, the feeders are very busy. Birds like easy to get food when it is cold. But not so this winter. That is very strange. There are other birds around the area, which means someone else is getting them. So it must be someone close by, perhaps even the people across the street. They would be able to intercept the birds before they get here.
A friend of mine spotted a couple lynx the other day and got some nice pictures of them. That is an animal I would love to photograph. On my list of mammals, they are at the top, with moose being in second place. Lynx and bobcats live around here, even close by. I did have a bobcat on my deck at least once, but it was at night and I was inside. Sigh. Plus I have seen tracks along the trail to the river. Moose do not come anywhere close to town, but I have seen many moose over the years further from town.
This is the female Goldeneye, but her mirror image did not turn out so good.
But there are a lot of mammals on my list, fox, mink, beaver, otter, weasel. A person just needs to be in the right place at the right time of day to see some of these animals. That is where the problem enters. Oh well. For now I concentrate on birds, and there are a lot of birds still on my list. Like owls. There is a pair of Great Horned owls that live nearby.
I have heard them calling at night, even right out here in the birch tree. There is also a Barred owl that shows up now and then. This must be right on the edge of its territory, so it does not show up much. They are both large owls. I would love to get a picture of them and the best time for that is in the summer. That is when they show up more during the daylight hours, usually very early morning or in the evening.
Here is a pair of Goldeneyes next to a bit of ice along the river shore.
There is always something new to photograph, or perhaps getting a better photo of something I have already. Must be time for more coffee. I hope you enjoy the pictures of Goldeneye ducks at the river last winter. Have a wonderful day everyone and God bless!
Steve and Muffin.
©2023 Steve McLeod.
Steve`s Country 
Have a good too!😁
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thank you Dusty!😃😺
LikeLike
You’re Welcome!😁
LikeLiked by 1 person
My greatest appreciation.😊
LikeLike
Indubitably 😁
LikeLiked by 1 person
Bobbledybibbldobop!😃
LikeLike
I don’t know about all of that!!! But it was certainly my pleasure!😉😂😂😂
LikeLiked by 1 person
I appreciate your appreciativeness!😃😹
LikeLike
And I can almost feel it!!😳
LikeLiked by 1 person
Wow, that is amazing indeed!
LikeLike
I know!!😳😳😳 It’s amazing!!!😁😁😁
LikeLiked by 1 person
Wish I had thought of saying that.
LikeLike
You will… 😉😁😁😊😊😂😂😂
LikeLiked by 1 person
I enjoyed your pics of the ducks ! …it is cold out there , altho’ I did not go outside…no birds at the feeders…have a warm and restful sleep ! 😻🙂😴❗️
LikeLiked by 1 person
Yep, very cold indeed, but at least a little warmer than yesterday. I could almost stand outside for a few minutes watching the chickadees! Have a good night!😊😻🌛☕☕😴
LikeLike
My one encounter with a female moose with her calf was in Alaska with some local teens in my car. We saw this cow off the side of the road, maybe 200-250 feet away, close enough I thought my camera could get a good pic with my zoom lens (in the days of film). As I stopped and got out of the car, the cow looked up, kind of bowed her head and her ears folded back. The teens in the car started yelling for me to get back in the car!! She started trotting for the car and the kids went ballistic with one of the guys running out to grab me and force me back in. I realized they must know something I did not, so when they told me to step on the gas, we scooted out of there with the cow coming onto the road in my rear-view mirror ready to make chase until she saw my Dodge had better speed.
It was then they informed me that you NEVER stand around near a moose with her calf nearby. They had seen cars with holes in their hoods or tops when a cow attacked to protect her young. Usually the humans survived, although in one case the hoofs had hit the driver in the head and instantly killed him and its thrashing seriously injured his passenger. But in all cases the moose would wind up trapped and frantic and usually had to be shot to remove it.
My zoom photo just showed a blur of the ground as the kid had pulled me in to save my (and his own) neck.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Yes indeed, moose can be very protective of their calves and you were very close, not a good idea to get out of the car in such cases. Better to move farther away and then try for a picture. They are a large animal, but beautiful to see them even though dangerous. I saw a cow and calf once, swimming across a lake where I had set up camp for the night on an island. I prayed they would not venture over to my island. They kept on going to the other side of the lake though which was nice. That was in the evening. Too bad you did not get a picture. Have a great day!
LikeLiked by 1 person