Image #196 – Eastern Towhee (Pipilo erythrophthalmus)

Eastern Towhee (Pipilo erythrophthalmus)
Eastern Towhee (Pipilo erythrophthalmus)

A good snow fall, like the one we had last week, brings many birds “out of hiding.”  The Eastern Towhee is one of those birds. Throughout the months that I have been here I would catch a glimpse of the Towhee, normally its backside, frittering about in the underbrush but rarely did I have a chance to study this beautiful bird. The snow changed all that. This fellow was grateful for the scattered seed on the porch as well as respite from the wet underbrush. I have now learned that Towhees are part of the sparrow family and it is wide-spread throughout North America. And apparently I am not alone in my inability to study this bird. According to Wikipedia, “The taxonomy of the towhees has been under debate in recent decades, and formerly this bird and the Spotted Towhee were considered a single species, the Rufous-sided Towhee.”  ❧

Image #194 – Sisters in the snow

Two female Northern Cardinals (Cardinalis cardinalis)
Two female Northern Cardinals (Cardinalis cardinalis)

Two female Cardinals during our recent snowstorm. I have quite a flock of cardinals: two, possibly three males and at least four females. ❧

Image #193 – Dark-eyed Junco

Dark-eyed Junco (Junco hyemalis) - Slate colored
Dark-eyed Junco (Junco hyemalis) – Slate colored

The snow and clear, arctic air have combined to give absolutely gorgeous lighting for my bird shots. This Slate-colored junco has some beautiful highlight on his brilliantly white underside and all thanks to the snow. Had I walked outside and placed a spotlight I could not have done it better. ❧

Image #192 – Practical or Greedy?

Female Northern Cardinal (Cardinalis cardinalis)
Female Northern Cardinal (Cardinalis cardinalis)

I think practical.  The bird seems young and it is probably her first snow fall so why not take as many seeds as the beak will hold?  ❧

Image #191 – Snow Event

Image #191(1)We had snow today, at least three inches. It started in the early morning and lasted all day with varying degrees of intensity. I was delighted since it was what I had stayed for–winter.  Photographers want to record experiences and I wanted some pictures of winter. I’m not sure why. I hate the cold but, oddly, snow seems warm to me. Tango and I had a good walk in the early afternoon, up Potts Branch Road to Little Cove Rd.  The snow was coming down  steadily. It was quite lovely.Image #191(2)

Tango had never seen snow and he thought it was …well, who the heck knows what he thought?   He seemed to enjoy it. I could tell he was confused about smells. He would nuzzle his nose deep into the snow, trying to follow a scent. I worried a few times that he would topple over into one of the many creeks that was along our walk but he is too clever for that. In the end, as you can see, he was happy and, like me, enjoying the experience. ❧

Image #191

Image #189 – Dry Falls — Summer and Winter

Here’s another view of the Cullasaja River.  Yesterday’s post (#188 –  Cold, Cold, Cold) showed a peaceful portion of the river but it is more renown for its remarkable series of waterfalls, there are four major falls on a relatively short span of river and all can be seen from the highway that runs between Highlands and Franklin. In fact, the Cullasaja River is solely contained in Macon County.  It spills out of the mountains near Highlands and then empties into the Little Tennessee River near Franklin.  Eventually the water makes its way to the Mississippi River after passing through the Little Tennessee, the Tennessee, and the Ohio Rivers.

This post gives you two very different views of the rather oddly named Dry Falls. There is certainly plenty of water so I was unclear as to why it is called Dry Falls but learned it is because you can walk behind the falls and remain relatively dry — most of the time.

On Friday no one was walking under the falls. The ice was too severe, the way too treacherous.  Quite a contrast to the second photo of the very same falls taken last July. People strolled leisurely under the falls in the warm summer day. ❧Image #189

Image #189(1)

#187 – Got Your Back

Image #187This sparrow, I think it is a White-crowned Sparrow, landed on the handrail of the deck near my gargoyle. During this frigid weather, that has seized most of the nation, the birds are flocking to my feeders in great numbers.  Normally there are waves of birds who will all fly off at once and leave the feeders empty for a while. Now, however, it seems the feeders always have visitors. Some look very ragged and I wonder if they will make it through the night. The wonder is that any of them make it through this cold. ❧

Image #185 – Life is Good, III

Image #185It became a fine spring day here in Franklin, NC on the 19th of January. The temperatures topped out in the mid-50s and, if you chose your position properly, the wind was not a problem. These two canines–Sweet Pea and Murphy–were clearly enjoying the day on Boni’s deck.  Poor Murphy is an old man. He can no longer navigate the stairs to go and “do his business” in the yard so he pees on the deck and Boni patiently cleans up after him. We should all hope for this when we are old–a warm place in the sun and someone to lovingly clean up after us. ❧

Image #183 – Life is good!

Image #183

And its even better with friends!  ❧

Image #182 – Getting Re-acquainted With Winter

Image #182It may sound odd  but after nineteen years in Florida but I am enjoying the process of getting re-acquainted with winter in North Carolina.  Don’t get me wrong, I am not about to move to Minnesota.  It has been plenty cold for me with temperatures dropping into the teens at night and sometimes barely breaking 40 degrees during the day.  But there is treasure everywhere and there is certainly treasure in winter. It is an integral part of the automatic earth, a time of slumber and re-alignment. It is also a time of crisp, rich blue skies with low-slung cirrus clouds that seem to materialize before your eyes and quickly join forces to make a bright day gray.

Armed only with the iPhone camera I enjoyed a walk down Potts Branch Rd. today and climbed a pasture hill to enjoy the view and snap this photo.  Tango, of course, was at my side and he too enjoyed the smells and sights. Every day is a gift. ❧

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