Monday, June 10, 2013

The good, the bad and the ugly

We went for a rainy day drive through the refuge.

The good: Canada Geese, they are grazers and poopers.  They make abundant supplies of fertilizer for your lawn.

One Canada Goose

The bad: Great Blue Heron..bad if you are a small fish or a chippy..he is a relentless hunter with a huge appetite for fish, frogs, snakes (Yay!!), and birds.Great Blue Heron

The ugly: circling..just like in the old Westerns..nothing good is ever found by these birds.

Circling birds

Turkey Vultures

Turkey Vultures.  They eat carrion (dead stuff), reptiles, insects and small birds in their nests.  They are ugly with their bald red heads.

It was a nice drive.  We hit up a couple of antique shops..more old photos made their way home with us and some erector set “stuff.” Perfect rainy day activities..followed by a nap:)

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17 comments:

Anonymous said...

Sounds like a perfect day. I enjoy your old photos so much. Have a good day.

David Oliver said...

The photo of the Canada goose I really liked but the most interesting is the one of the vultures.

DJan said...

The Canada geese have a bad reputation because of all that poop. Some people are even poisoning them. I know so little about herons, but if they eat all those snakes, they can't be all bad! :-)

linda m said...

Very interesting photos. I have seen the geese and the Great Blue Heron, both in our backyard. However, I have never seen a turkey vulture that close up before. Love those rainy day rides.

Muffy's Marks said...

All this rain is getting a little old. The lakes are full, enough already!! Hope you have a 'sunny' week!!

Dreaming said...

Even though they are good, bad and ugly... in their own way they are all beautiful!
I'm glad you enjoyed a nice, rainy day!

Primitive Stars said...

Well, guess we have to take the good, bad and ugly in the wilderness.....nice pictures though, Francine.

Anonymous said...

When we were moving trucks last week we saw about 8 or so Turkey Vultures in someone's front yard. Kind of creepy!

Anonymous said...

Your shots are gorgeous!

Nancy said...

I'll add magpies to your list of the bad - noisy and obnoxious.

Anonymous said...

Canada geese are not especially welcome here as we consider them to be poop machines. I hadn't thought of them as fertilizer machines.

Country Gal said...

Sounds like you had a good day ! Lovely photos ! Thanks for sharing ! Have a good day !

lisa said...

That seems to be the norm around here, the ugly turkey vultures!

Red said...

Nice touch with the good , the bad, and the ugly. This could start many interesting discussions. Maybe even some heated debates!
Anyway you deserve credit for getting out on a miserable day and finding something interesting to do.

Terry and Linda said...

I like the nap idea very much. We take one every day...have to as we get up way too early and the heat saps our strength ... then after nap we are good to go again!

Linda
http://coloradofarmlife.wordpress.com

Linda Reeder said...

Nature, birds, and antiques. works for me!

Rita said...

Rainy day and a nap--sounds like an excellent combination. ;)
We actually had some sun today and it was suddenly hot enough to need the AC! What a shock! :)