Finely tuned instument

A rufous hummingbird grooms her dainty beak while perched in a blackberry thicket near Elkton in western Oregon on Tuesday, March 30, 2021. The 3.4-gram Rufous hummingbird has an epic migration. Some of the little birds travel 3,900 miles (one way) from Mexico to Alaska and back each year. 

 

Lazy day

A California ground squirrel yawns while relaxing on a brush pile on a hillside near Elkton in rural western Oregon on Sunday, March 28, 2021. California ground squirrels are frequently preyed on by rattlesnakes. They are also preyed on by eagles, raccoons, foxes, badgers, and weasels.

 

Up, up, up, and away

A spider attempts to use its thread to catch the wind to become airborne from a fence post along a country road near Elkton in rural western Oregon on Sunday, March 28, 2021. Ballooning, sometimes called kiting, is a process by which spiders, and some other small invertebrates, move through the air by releasing one or more gossamer threads to catch the wind, causing them to become airborne at the mercy of air currents. 

 

Flight of the woodpecker

An acorn woodpecker takes flight from a fencepost along a farmer’s field near Elkton in  rural western Oregon on Friday, March 26, 2021. Acorn Woodpeckers have a very complicated social system. Several different individuals of each sex may breed within one family, with up to seven breeding males and three breeding females in one group.

 

What sharp talons you have

A female American kestrel shows off her needle sharp talons while perched on a utility wire along a country road near Elkton in rural western Oregon on Thursday, March 24, 2021. There is a channel down the back of each talon to help their prey bleed out. The American kestrel is a mourning dove sized falcon found coast to coast in North America.

 

Year in Pictures from ZUMApress

 The Year in Pictures from ZUMA Press. Our great great grandchildren will learn about 2020 in their history mind-vids. I'm honored to have a few of my photos paired with this amazing set of historic images. Toggle full screen, turn up the volume and get ready for a ride...

In the bag

A Persian cat looks out of his owner’s clear plastic backpack while waiting in line at a grocery store in Roseburg on Monday, March 22, 2021. The clerk at the store was pleased to see the animal and said it was the cutest cat she had ever seen. 

Ladybug in repose

A ladybug sits still on a blade of grass in a thicket along the Umpqua River near Elkton in rural western Oregon on Wednesday, March 24, 2021. According to the website Ladybugplanet.com, during their resting period, during which they remain still and unresponsive for hours, the ladybug will tuck its legs under its shell and pull its head in for protection.

 

It's easy being green

A Pacific tree frog, also known as a Pacific chorus frog, floats in an isolated pond on a hillside near Elkton in rural western Oregon on Tuesday, March 23, 2021. At about 2 inches in length, much of their diets consists of spiders, beetles, flies, ants, and other insects and arthropods; they can and do eat insects that are almost as large as they are.

 

Busy honey bees

 Bee sure to check out my sweet video...

Curious ground squirrel

A curious California ground squirrel gets up close on a dirt trail near Elkton in rural western Oregon on Sunday, March 21, 2021. Locally known as digger squirrels, California ground squirrels are often regarded as a pest in gardens and parks, since they will eat ornamental plants and trees. They commonly feed on seeds, such as oats, but also eat insects such as crickets and grasshoppers as well as various fruits.

 

Rainy first day of spring in western Oregon

On the first day of spring, a wild striped skunk forages on a rainy hillside near Elkton in rural western Oregon on Saturday, March 20, 2021. Skunks have very poor eyesight, but they have excellent senses of smell and hearing. A skunk's sulfuric spray has a range of about 15 feet, and its odor can be detected up to 1.5 miles. 

Nearby, a wild black-tailed deer reaches to feed on Spanish moss hanging from an oak tree on a hillside.

Turkey time in western Oregon

A group of male wild turkeys, including a pair of white birds, display and showoff for a group of nearby females in a plum orchard on a farm near Elkton in rural western Oregon on Saturday, March 19, 2021. Spring is the mating season for the animals. 

According to AllAboutBirds.com, in the United states wild turkey numbers dwindled through the early twentieth century. In the 1940s, people began catching wild birds and transporting them to other areas. Such transplantations allowed Wild Turkeys to spread to all of the lower 48 states (plus Hawaii) and parts of southern Canada. Roughly one in 100 wild turkeys is white or mostly white-colored.

 

Green day

A clover is refracted in a dew drop.

On a cool damp Saint Patrick’s Day morning, the sun highlights dew drops clinging to grass in a pasture on a farm near Elkton in rural western Oregon on March, 17, 2021.

 

Spring flowers

As the sun begins to set, raindrops speckle the petals of a daffodil flower near Elkton in rural western Oregon on Monday, March 15, 2021. The National Weather Service is predicting spring-like weather to continue in western Oregon with cool evening and a mix of rain and sunshine over the next few days.

 

Sleepy baby

A lamb yawns after waking from a nap next to its mother in a southwestern Oregon pasture on Sunday, March 14, 2021. Newborn lambs sleep 12-16 hours a day.

 

Catching some rays

A yearling black-tailed deer fawn rests in the sunshine on a warm spring-like day on a hillside near Elkton in rural western Oregon on Saturday, March 13, 2021. The National Weather Service is predicting snow for the middle and higher elevation in the area Sunday night and into Monday. 
 

Say AHHH!!!

An adult bald eagle vocalizes from its perch on a dead tree overlooking the Umpqua River near Elkton in rural western Oregon on Friday, March 12, 2021. According to AllAboutBirds.com bald eagles can live a long time. The oldest recorded bird in the wild was at least 38 years old when it was hit and killed by a car in New York in 2015.

 

Never get into a staring contest with a great horned owl

A wild great horned owl perches on a tree branch on a hillside near Elkton in rural western Oregon on Thursday, March 11, 2021. Great Horned Owls are fierce predators that can take large prey, including raptors such as ospreys, peregrine falcons, prairie falcons, and other owls.

 

Meerkat in Oregon?

 No, not a meerkat, just a California ground squirrel keeping watch while feeding on new shoots of grass and weeds on a hillside  pasture near Elkton in rural western Oregon on Thursday, March 11, 2021.

Belting it out

A male red-winged blackbird belts out a song while clinging to a cattail flower head at the edge of a swamp near Sutherlin in southwestern Oregon on Wednesday, March 10, 2021. In early spring red-winged blackbird males attempt to claim territory by singing and displaying their distinctive red shoulder patches.

 

Vulture culture

A turkey vulture perches on a fencepost along a country road near Elkton in rural western Oregon on Tuesday, March 9, 2021. Turkey vultures have an extraordinary sense of smell. They have been known to be able to smell carrion from over a mile away, which is very unique in the bird world. The turkey vulture has the largest olfactory (smelling) system of all birds. 

 

On the fence

A pair of yellow-crowned sparrows perch on a farmer’s fence along a country road near Elkton in rural western Oregon on Monday, March 8, 2021. According to AllAboutBirds.com, this sparrow is one of the least known of our songbirds, particularly on its northern breeding grounds. It has been the subject of only a few laboratory and field studies. 

 

The bees and the birds

A honey bee forages on a flowering wild plum tree growing along the Umpqua River near Elkton in rural western Oregon on Sunday, March 7, 2021. The spring blossoms on the tree attract insects searching for nectar and birds hunting for insects.

A yellow-rumped warbler forages for insects while perched on the branches of a nearby flowering wild plum tree along the Umpqua River. 

 

Signs of spring

A yellow-rumped warbler hunts for insects while perched on the branches of a flowering wild plum tree in the riparian zone along the Umpqua River near Elkton in rural western Oregon on  Saturday March 6, 2021.

 

Rainy day spider

A spider waits to ambush prey on a rain soaked daffodil along a roadside near Elkton in rural western Oregon on Friday, March 5, 2021. Commonly known as wild daffodil or Lent lily the species is native to Western Europe, but wild populations have become established in many location including Oregon, Washington and British Columbia.

 

Kiss the baby

A wild black-tailed doe licks her yearling fawn on a rainy hillside near Elkton in rural western Oregon on Friday, March 5, 2021. Black-tailed deer are considered a subspecies of the more widely distributed mule deer. 

 

Found kitty. Free to good home. Local pickup only

As dusk falls a striped skunk forages in a clearing on a forested hillside near Elkton in rural western Oregon on Friday, March 4, 2021. The skunk family is composed of 11 species, 9 of which are found in the Western Hemisphere. Photo was taken at 5000 ISO with Nikon D5 and 600mm lens at f/4, and 1/100th second.

 

Return to sender: early season honey bees in Oregon

Honey bees return to their hive in a plum orchard on a farm near Elkton in rural western Oregon on Tuesday, March 2, 2021. Honey bees are used extensively for commercial pollination of fruit and vegetable crops. The scale of these pollination services is commonly measured in the billions of dollars, credited with adding about 9% to the value of crops across the world.

 

Quarrelsome sea lions

A group of California sea lions quarrel and display their teeth as they bask on floating platforms at the historic Newport Bayfront on the Oregon coast on Monday, March 1, 2021. Sea lions are particularly intelligent, can be trained to perform various tasks and display limited fear of humans if accustomed to them.

A few of the sea lions enjoy a snuggle.

About 100 of the large marine mammals were basking mostly peacefully on the platforms.

 

Spring training for honey bees

A honey bee stretches its legs as it stands at the entrance to its hive on warm spring-like day on a farm near Elkton in rural western Oregon on Sunday, Feb. 28, 2021. Honey bees become active and start foraging at about 55 degrees Fahrenheit (13 Celsius). 

A bee forages on a flowing tree along the nearby Umpqua River.