There's a Red Moon Rising.....

Did you know that each month the full moon has a different name?
I didn't until I googled 'full moon' tonight to see why
ours was red.
August moon is named 'Full Sturgeon Moon'
Some Native American tribes knew that the sturgeon of the Great Lakes
and Lake Champlain were most readily caught during this full Moon.
Others called it the Green Corn Moon or the Grain Moon.
All I know is as soon as the sun went down, the moon was
seen rising above the tree line. And it was very red.

I was on my way home and I pulled over and took some pictures.

I noticed a black ring running through the moon and ....

it moved down as seen here

And it looked like a second ring was starting.

If any of you are into astronomy you may know what this means

All I know is that it was different and very pretty

Since I was taking night shots I got this one of a monument
and the sky as darkness settled in.

About 5 minutes later and on up the road, I pulled
over again and shot this picture. By now the color turned
more to gold.

And on the opposite side of the sky, it was pink from the sun
setting.

Interesting moon rising shots.

To God be The Glory ~ Great Things He hath done

Some Scenic Drive bys.......

August is a quieter time in the backyard and I do

have to leave my porch and drive out into the
country in search of something more exciting.
This evening was a good one for sightings.

A perfect setting for the fawn and his sibling

But.. they sure didn't stay long when they saw me stop

These two fawns were far away in front of a tall field of
Corn, the tassle blowing in the wind. Did you know:
the tassels constitute the male portion of the
plant which supplies the pollen.

A little further down the road and another deer far
away but with a very pretty backdrop of a fence
and trees and Queen Anne's Lace.

The light was fading fast and my Sony H5 doesn't
do well in low light, (H9 still not back) but... the
results were quite pleasing to me. The pictures
that follow look like water color prints.

A few Canadian geese in a pond

Maybe Mallards, I couldn't tell, but loved the picture

And then the 'catch of the day' I saw the long neck raised
high and there was a Blue Heron fishing

I was far enough away he was not concerned about
me and my camera.

Finding nothing of interest he looks off and then...

he is up up and away!

To god be The Glory ~ Great Things He Hath Done.

What's in your yard?

If you look closely you will see the same things I am
in my back yard. The male Cardinal looks pretty
good from this view...but molting has begun...
According to 'All About Birds"
It takes a lot of energy to build new feathers. Molting is,
therefore, often timed to coincide with periods of less
strenuous demands, such as after nesting or before migration.
That would be now for a lot of birds.

Here is a great example of the 'molt'

This Cardinal almost looks tie dyed.

Any missing feathers are replenished immediately.

Since feathers cannot heal themselves when damaged,
they have to be completely replaced.
The replacement of all or part of the feathers
is called the molt. Molts produce feathers that match
the age and sex of the bird, and sometimes the season.

A Catbird starting to look a little rough around the edges.

Blue Jays are just beginning to loose a few feathers

Some birds have one molt per year and others have two.
Mr. Robin is still quite handsome with his white
rimmed eye and pretty orange breast.

I believe this is a hairy woodpecker. I have a male and female
that come for the suet. Curious little thing!

Tufted Titmouse

No feathers here...just popping up to see what all this
talk about molt is!

Enjoy

To God Be The Glory ~ Great Things He Hath Done

Over the fence...

All gardeners live in beautiful places because they make them so.
- Joseph Joubert

My office at work is in an old late 1800's house made into
a Funeral Home. From my very large upstairs window
I can look out into the yard across the street..
which I do often.
Today I see the fruits of the Gardner's labors with
some sunflowers, pink & brown cone flowers,
a dark burgundy dahlia .. and an inviting yard -- all viewed
'over the fence.

As I look out I see some movement and zoom in with

my camera to see a delighted goldfinch stealing some
late afternoon snacks.

He balances to easily atop of the large sunflower head

I have to go downstairs and out on the porch to get a closer
picture of Mr. Finch with a seed in his mouth

I was having a good ole time just watching as the bird
picks away at the seeds

a paler bird arrives to land beside the other...Strange how
much contrast between the two.

More movement and oh wow! Something else behind the fence
stealing a few seeds for himself.

I loved getting these photographs at work. This year I did
not plant sunflowers and sure do miss the action of the finches.

Hope you enjoyed looking over the neighbor's fence as much as I did.

To God be The Glory ~ Great Things He Hath Done