My favorite birding habitats have always been marshes, swamps, and seashores. And Charleston has all of these. The difficulty is accessing them. Of course, right now, with the federal government closed, federal areas are closed. Gates across access roads are shut and padlocked. But in Charleston and the surrounding areas, it is hard to find […]
Cleon and I are traveling – we will be gone about 2 weeks. Road trip! Our good friend Miles will be taking care of the feeders and bird baths. You will see him most days on the livestream early morning and late afternoon. And as always, Justin will be taking care of the livestream and […]
There is not a lot going on at our livestream camera right now – especially between the hours of 10AM and 3:30PM. However, in early mornings and late afternoons, there are birds eating and taking baths. Also loafing – doves are great loafers. But there is lots going on in our yard. First of all, […]
If you have been viewing the livestream cam on our bird feeders and have not seen anything, maybe you should adjust your viewing time! There is a whole lot going on – just not between 9AM and 4PM. Turn up your volume to enjoy faint, but rather soothing sounds of the night, then click and […]
As you know, Cleon and I live in central Illinois. What you might not know is we have been in a drought since the beginning of July. According to the Illinois State climatologist, the area where we live is on the border between ‘severe’ and ‘extreme’ drought. We are fortunate that our daytime temperatures have […]
Most of us living in the lower 48 states are still in the midst of migration. Here in central Illinois, most of the birds who spend the spring and summer with us have left for their winter homes. One of the exceptions is the Ruby-throated Hummingbird. Although most hummingbirds are gone, we still have a […]
Cleon will tell you that I am one of those people who just cannot leave well enough alone. And he would be right. It always seems to me that with just a bit of reorganization, something would be so much better! And so once again, I have shuffled things around, reorganized a bit, and added. […]
Once again, this is why I should never leave my easy chair in front of our windows. Cleon was looking out over the lake when he spotted a large dark silhouette in our neighbor’s large oak tree. Of course, the bird was on the far side of the tree, so we were looking at it […]
I was not quick enough to get a photo – probably because I was rooted to the spot. But a few minutes ago, I was looking out the window at the bird feeders and a Blue Jay was drinking, then taking a bath in the larger bird bath. When all of a sudden, a bird […]
Thanks to all of you who have been sending me photos and videos. I love looking at all of them. Here are a few: This first photo is from Janelle in Alaska. It is a Ptarmigan, but as I have never been to Alaska (ALAS!!!!!!), I am only guessing when I say it is a […]