Tendrils

Category: Birds

  • Snow Mountain

    This morning I was greeted by a tiny bit less than an inch of snow here on the mountain. I skipped yoga (!!) and spent the morning walking and enjoying the sounds of snow. Okay, mainly the sounds of birds enjoying the new, white blanket. Many were robins, and cedar waxwings gathering in the tree…

  • Winterberry

    I am in my element now. It is winter. I like to say, whatever season is happening at the moment – it is my favorite, but truth be told, winter is really my favorite. At least for the next few months! I love the stark landscape, very little color (with the exception of black, gray, white, and browns),…

  • Virginia Pine

    Virginia Pine

    The holidays. They’re here. They’ve got me thinking of pine trees, and pinecones. And I’m wishing for snow. I’ve had a tiny bit of snow already, but I’m ready for more. This is Virginia pine, Pinus virginiana. I live in a cabin, in the Blue Ridge Mountains, in central Virginia. There are plenty of Virginia pine up…

  • Spicebush

    As the woods are shutting down this fall, there is fruit to be had. Fruit for many birds and small mammals. Fruit for the adventuresome human as well. These are the berries (also known as drupes) of Spicebush, Lindera benzoin. Berries that turn a brilliant scarlet in September, when the leaves are still a lovely contrast. A…

  • Smooth Sumac

    Smooth Sumac

    Just a couple weeks ago, some of the bushes along my woodland edges were abuzz with pollinator activity. The flowers of Smooth Sumac, Rhus glabra, were the magnet. Butterflies, including this Red-banded Hairstreak, Calycopis cecrops, were part of the crowd. Honey Bees, gathering nectar, to help some bee keeper with his honey supply were also attracted. And so many…

  • Thistle Seed? No!

    What are these seeds, that I’ve been calling thistle seed, since I was a child? These seeds that Goldfinches, Chickadees, Tufted Titmice and White-throated Sparrows seem to go bonkers over? What a surprise I had, when I looked up thistle seed on the internet. Seems thistle seed is not thistle seed at all, but the…

  • Grumpy Birds

    Those of you who are fortunate to have hummingbirds come to your garden, to get a sip from your feeder, or to enjoy the nectar provided by your flowers – you’ll know how intolerant they are. I’ve actually seen one hummingbird come up behind another, who is feeding, and hammer him on the head with…

  • Black Bear Hibernation

    Sleeping through some, or most of the winter, as Black Bears (Ursus americanus) do, has been referred to as winter sleep, carnivorean lethargy, dormancy or torpor. Now leading physiologists simply call this long sleep, hibernation. We humans sometimes get up in the middle of the night for a midnight snack. Black Bears are known to…

  • Just An Inch

    Wednesday night, into Thursday morning, the weather forecast was for some rain, and maybe in the mountains a little snow.  Hooray for elevation!  It was beginning to stick when I hit the sack and Thursday morning I was greeted with an inch of snow on the grass.  Given all the talk of the rain/snow line…

  • American Mistletoe

    The leaves in the forest, for the most part, all have fallen, yet every now and then there is a tree that has an odd, large clump of leaves.  At first glance it appears to be a squirrel’s nest.  Upon further investigation, small, leathery, emerald green leaves are revealed.  This is the stuff of many…