We had a dreary weekend here on the plateau in Tennessee... Winter came back!!!! Dad-Gum it All!!!! First of all, it rained ALL day and most of the night on Saturday. The big shocker (which NONE of the forecasters mentioned) was seeing SNOW when we woke up yesterday morning.
AND--it was 32 degrees with a cold wind blowing. The little bit of snow melted quickly --but the temperatures stayed in the low to mid 30's all day long... Needless to say, we had a roaring fire going in our fireplace!!!!
But, even with all of the dreariness, some good came from the weekend. First of all, we saw more deer together than we have EVER seen. They were on the golf course fairway in back of our house... There were 12 of them total.... I immediately got my long lens and took some pictures... They were spread out --so I never got all 12 in a picture.. BUT you will get the idea... Above and below are some pictures of the deer---and below that, I'll show you my next surprise!!!
Oh how I love my long lens!!!!! They were pretty far away ---but I got some good shots....
Here's one more picture I took at another time recently (February) of a group of deer which were near our woodpile in the empty lot... I love these beautiful creatures. That one was staring at the ole woman with the camera!!!!!
Here is a new bird at my feeder. This (I think) is a male Yellow-Throated Vireo . I have seen them on other blogs and they are gorgeous.. Of course, he is still in his winter colors, but he looks like a vereo to me--with the two white wingbars. The lighting was not good yesterday for bird pictures. BUT--he is still a gorgeous bird.
UPDATE: He is a male PINE WARBLER. Thanks
EILEEN.
This is the female Yellow-Throated Vireo. She is not as yellow and has a brownish head... Aren't they gorgeous? I was SO excited to see them... (If these two are not Yellow-Throated Vireos, please let me know. I checked online and also my books and I think they are... BUT???? I'm not totally sure. At first I thought they were Yellow Warblers, but now I don't...Thanks for any help!)
UPDATE: She is a PINE WARBLER... That is another 'lifer' for me.
This is a visitor I had last winter while he was migrating. He is a Yellow-Rumped Warbler *(Myrtle Warbler)... Again, he has his winter brownish colors --so is not the gray/blue color he is in Summer.
*NOTE: There are two Yellow-Rumped Warblers. The Myrtle Warblers are in the east and the Audubon Warblers are in the western part of the USA.
Here's one more picture of the male Yellow-Rumped Warbler (Myrtle Warbler). He has a yellow spot on his head, yellow on each side of his breast, and yellow on the upper part of his feathers... He has a small white eyebrow. I love the way he was looking at me.
SO---can you imagine how excited I was to see these new visitors yesterday??? It was a good day --despite the weather ---for birding and for seeing the deer.
Hope your weekend was a good one!!!!
Hugs,
70 comments:
Good Morning, betsy! I just love your deer, what a nice visitor. We woke up to snow this morning too after all day rain yesterday. I think your vireo's look more like the male Pine Warbler and the female Pine warbler.
It is exciting to see a new bird. It must be hard to find out what they are if they change colours with the seasons. He sure is a cute bundle of yellow.
The deer shots are beautiful with the green grass and dark sky and a tinge of colour on the trees. I hope they don't eat your plants.(the deer) Hope you have a warmer week. Our summer is cooling ever so slightly and then it comes back for a few days.
Good Morning! We've had too much spring-like weather to be having snow again! Thanks for sharing the beautiful photos of the deer and birds. How exciting to have new visitors. Hope you have a very nice week!
Good Morning my Friend...
I like your visitors; very lovely! I couldn't tell you of the correct identification of the birds but I like the photos!
Thanks for you comment on my sister's rebuttal..you know, we must all be given our voice! even though her's isn't as 'important' as mine :) (just kidding!) I actually had forgotten about 'Jaws' until she sent me her writing and I rolled on the floor with laughter!
Have a great day!
PS; did you watch the Tar Heel vs. Duke game? Ahhhh....sweet!
Sorry you got dumped on with the snow!! You know, I have forbid snow in Roane County.
Sorry you got dumped on with the snow!! You know, I have forbid snow in Roane County.
Betsy you made the best of the dreary day we had yesterday...yes it was in my part of Tennessee too..I'll take your guess at the birds....I know nothing at all about them but that they are pretty little things and some can sang. Trish
How wonderful to have Mother Nature right outside your door Betsy! And to have a zoom lens! :)
Happy Monday friend!
xo Catherine
It was a dreary weekend. At least we didn't have snow!
Those are great pictures Betsy!! Those birds sure look like Yellow-Throated Vireos. I love pictures of wildlife....good job.
Very nice to have deer hanging around your back door, Betsy! I think I counted ten in one of the pictures you took. You are good with that camera. Of course we know those deer know the rules - that is, they are not to come out into the open like that during the hunting season. LoL. And just imagine - you had snow. We had plenty of rain down here, but it was just a few degrees warmer here in the valley than you have up on the hill. I noticed on the way to church and back that all of our creeks and rivers were full of dirt brown water charging downstream, carrying leaves and sticks and logs. Some fields between Etowah and Tellico Plains were flooded. One place along Mecca Pike looked like it only lacked two inches more before over-flowing onto the tarmac road!
My goodness, that is a lot of deer! You got some great shots of them!
Your bird pictures are pretty too! I'm sure it was exciting to see the new ones!
It rained here all day yesterday. The birds were all over the feeder. The rain wasn't bothering them! :)
Have a great week!
Fancy you having snow!! In March to boot!! We had a HUGE storm on the weekend and we have just finished digging out! Still -20 every morning.
That is a pretty bird and I don't know what it is either. We had a red eyed vireo here two years ago and I haven't seen one since but they might just stay out of sight.
Your deer pictures remind me of the time we watched a group of deer walk up our street, not run, walk like it was the normal thing to do. It was one of the funnest things to see since the woods are just a few yards away and how they normally travel.
What a treat to have so many deer so close.It seems that bad weather brings out the birds and animals.I am encouraged to see migration beginning,this means that before long I will be enjoying some of these birds in my world.
Blessings,Ruth
We had a bit of a cool down around here too. Not as drastic as yours though. Your little birdie looks similar to a pine warbler to me.
Good morning Betsy !
Isn't it bazarre how temps are in the 70's the beginning of the week, and then down in the 30's by the weekend.
Love the deer pictures, they are beautiful creatures, however we have become so over-populated they are causing car wrecks everyday, they are everywhere.
We have the resident vultures once again, they went down the road for a few years but now they are back. I hope they don't know something I don't :)
What a pretty little bird, an unusual one.
Have a great week, we're getting rain again Wednesday...oh dear.
Hugs,
~Jo
I especially love the deer at your backyard buffet! Alas, we don't see them here in the city. We did see rain and snow over the weekend. Enough!
Best,
Bonnie
Wonderful pictures of the birds and the deer, Betsy. I always think deer are beautiful as long as they're not in my yard eating my favorite plants. :-) The little birds are so pretty---I wish I could help you with ID, but I'm a rank amateur in bird recognition. But even if I don't know their names, I adore them just the same. They give me such pleasure.
Not as excited as you about the herd of deer. They are such voracious eaters in my yard. But the birds, that is another story!
The road departments have posted warnings everywhere warning of deer crossing. The rain is pushing them out of their natural habitat.
so very very very jealous at this moment, i just came from Remington and he had deer outside the window and now here i am at your post with the same thing. i have never seen deer in the wild but one time, and that was a flash in the woods as they ran across the path, i really really love that little yellow bird
That last little fellow has quite an attitude on his face! Lovely pictures. Makes me think spring will really be outside my window one day soon. We has snow Saturday night too; we woke up to a white ground, but it all melted in the sunshine yesterday.
Thanks for sharing your lovely visitors.
WOW, Snow huh?? Spring has to be close though.lol I have been loving this warm weather, guess we had to brought back to reality. Pretty pics as usual! Hope you and George are doing Well, Take care.
Oh my, aren't they all beauties! sorry ya'll got snow & more cold weather... it's coooold this morning!
COME ON SPRING! =)
So the deer convention was near your house! Wow - that's a lot in one place. Just LOVE deer and that look of innocence in their big brown eyes!
The birds are so pretty Betsy, but I would have no clue how to identify them. Your grass is such a lovely spring green! Blessings for great week!
What lovely surprise visitors. Normally peeps who pop in with no notice are annoying....but not these babies!
The vireo is exciting. I don't see any warblers until May. I did see flocks of bluebirds yesterday. Thise deer are fun, but remember they love to eat tulips.
Wow, you have a herd. So glad that many survived the hunters and car bumpers.
Is that Yellow-Rumped Warbler giving you the skunk eye?
We too are cold and rainy, but no snow. Spring will make it--honest.
Lovely photos Betsy... we actually enjoyed bright sunshine yesterday and a nice walk after church... now we need to prepare our mindset for possible blizzard again... take care, Larry
Some of the deer look like they were posing for you. We got no snow but over 2" of rain - we should be about back to even for the year.
What delightful sights! All I saw yesterday was rain, rain and more rain!
I love the picture of the Vireo, he looks like he's lost in thought!
Have a great week.
☼ Sunny
We love to watch the deer come out of the woods and graze....but lately I haven't been seeing them. Two Reasons.
1. our neighbors have taken to keeping all stray dogs and letting them breed....ugh. the dogs wander to the spot where the deer "usually" came out right at dusk!!!
2. some of the wooded area bordering our land has sold and guess what the first thing they are doing? Yep.....cutting ALL of the trees.
these 2 things are messing up the deer sightings and makes me so sad!
Amazing shots!!! Love the deer and the birds!!! We got winter back also...hopefully the sun will shine today, that always helps!!!
Have a beautiful day!!!
So pretty, Betsy. Thanks for sharing.
I'd agree...you did have some great visitors yesterday.
We were driving home from Louisville, KY on Saturday and arrived home in a snow storm. Fortunately most of it is melted. Our valley, which is flood plain, has a lot of water in it now, and yesterday I heard a lot of splashing, and it was deer trying to run through it.
Have a happy day!
I love your pictures of the deer. That last picture near your woodpile is so beautiful. I love how their fur(?) lays in that shot. The birds are sweet too. I have a story about a bird from yesterday, I think I'll blog it.
So now you have a pair of pine warblers, maybe babies soon!!! Those dang warblers are the most confusing group of birds ever, I can't keep them straight. I don't think I have ever seen a warbler in real life. so you really DID have a good weekend!! It rained here all day, then snowed in the evening. sun's out now and Phil is off to pick up Ella. I was sick over the weekend, but am fine now.
What lovely winter visitors! And I LOVE those crocuses in your header photo.
Hi Betsy, What a thrill! I think you have the touch for taking great pictures! Have a great day today & stay warm!
LOVE the pictures of the wildlife you see from your house. I especially liked the pictures of the deer! You can zoom in pretty good with your lens too.
Beautiful pictures of the deer!!!! It is cold here also!!! Wishing you a wonderful Monday!!!.....m...
Our weekend brought much of the same....cold temps which was a bummer but we also had tons of deer :) I am always just in awe and so giddy when I see them! Which for us, is daily but, like you, they just are soo beautiful and seeing them is such a gift!!
I Love your birds too! I need to take some pics of ours! My husband has some beautiful shots I need to share sometime!
Happy Monday ~ Love and Hugs to you!
Nature at it's best---rain, wind snow and lotsa deer. I love the little birds and whichever type they are --seems to be a controversy going---very cute. MB
Love that I landed on your blog somehow??!! Great photos! And really LOVE the pic of the flowers in your header ~ VERY cool! Happy Monday to all!
Hi Betsy, great shots of the deer and birds. The deer population is getting too big, tho. Too many car wrecks have occurred due to them running out in front of the driver. There's no way to avoid them as I found out myself a few years ago. He did damage to the tune of 5K to my car. Luckily he didn't come through the windshield. Your grass looks so green and pretty, spring is on the way! Have a great day! Hugs, Cheryl
That's quite a herd you've got there!!! We're putting down Deer Scram today. It usually works quite well -- the deer actually walk the perimeters of the property.
You are so knowledgeable about birds!!! I would have just assumed that was a goldfinch in winter colors...
PS We ordered the zoom!
I always got excited to see deer in the backyard close to the house. Thanks for sharing your wildlife photos. Still chilly here today, but no rain today so far.
I would say you had a blessed day. God was showing you his beautiful creatures. The last one was certainly not feeling friendly, was he? I love your pictures. I wish I could get some good closeups of the quails by us, but I don't have the camera or even the steady hand for it. You have inspired me to try, though, and I have become very aware of birds, thanks to you.
And of course,the deer are always a treat. What more could you ask for in your front yard?! ^.^)
Love the deer! How exciting! I know that deer are not universally well-received due to their tendency to eat things people would rather they left alone, but they are beautiful creatures.
I would have been thrilled over new birds, too. What precious little beauties they are.
Oh Betsy, I was overjoyed to see the gorgeous header photo! So very hopeful that spring is out there somewhere! And I loved seeing all the deer, how nice of them to visit so you could get photos. We hd heavy rain last night and alot of snow disappeared.
Oh, I would be so excited to see those deer that near my house!! Great pics!!
Have a blessed week!!
We had pretty much the same kind of weather here for the weekend. Rain all day Saturday and then woke up to snow on Sunday. I hadn't gone out all day on Sunday and when I went to get in my car this morning to go to work all the doors were frozen shut.
I didn't have all the wonderful visitors in my yard like you did either. Love all your pictures. What fun to watch those deer. I need to get one of those long lenses...lol
Hi there Betsy...
My husband loves the deer pictures.. He is all ready to come for a visit! ha... The deer are loving that green grass!
Something is happening to me! I have a lot of new friends and they are always posting pictures of birds. I found myself purchasing the cutest little bird figurines this past weekend at "First Monday"
Am I becoming a Bird lover? I know nothing about them, but I sure have seen some darling little birdies in the pictures lately.
Blessings,
Shug
Congrats on your Pine warbler lifer, Betsy!
Those deer are amazing!! I think I've seen a few of those warblers around here, too. Great pictures.
I can sure understand your disgust in the slow spring...we are expecting 6 inches of snow on Wednesday here. groan! Those little birds are gorgeous!
What wonderful visitors you had! That surely helped ease the disappointment of colder weather.
Beautiful pics. I like how that little bird is looking at you too.
Your bird pictures are great, Betsy! And I love all the deer. How fun to be able to see them from your home.
All the visitors made up a little for the cold weather didn't they?
It's nice to see the deer survived the winter! They looked pretty healthy. It's also good to know that the birds are beginning to migrate so we know Spring will arrive soon!
I think I may have seen some of those Pine warblers at my feeders but thought they were either pine siskins or gold finch in winter colors. I hope they come back so I can get come clear pictures.
We also got winter temperatures back and blowing snow,we knew it was to good to be true.
Have a blessed tomorrow
Marilyn
I know your excitement when seeing a new bird.
:D!!!
Love the deer pictures-I bet they were happy to see some green grass.
Look at you go with that new camera, Betsy. You are getting some amazing shots of the deer and birds. And you have green grass. I am sooo jealous. We have smaller snowmen! but no green grass yet. As I write this, we already got another couple of inches of snow and getting more.....argh.
Send some 'melting' powers our way, but no floods.
BlessYourSweetHeart
Wow I have never seen that many deers together!
kim
I love your deer photos, Betsy! How neat too that you got to see some new birds at your feeders. You got some nice shots of them also. :)
I cannot imagine seeing that many deer practically in my back yard! I would love it...
The birds are beautiful!
Lovely Clicks...! The green grasses gives a double effect. Thanks for sharing
Well seeing deer on a rainy day would certainly brighten up things for me, they are beautiful animals. Great shots Betsy, the telephotos do come in handy.
The little Pine Warbler is adorable. It looks like the word is getting around that your feeders are the best in the area.
nice pictures as always Betsy!
*hugs*
What great photos!! We had Pine Warblers this winter--first time in our yard, too. I am enjoying your blog.
Kay
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