No matter where you stand in the food chain, in the summer woods, everywhere you turn is a ready picnic, nature’s smorgasbord. Just look at all these flies:
Yummy appetizers for the Yellow Warbler:
Or this succulent fruit. I’m sure the bee knows he’s an item on the smorgasbord too.
But for the moment, indulge:
Not so lucky for this dragonfly, securely locked in the beaks of a Song Sparrow:
Robins are clean eaters, they swallow berries whole:
But not the Goldfinch:
Eat to your heart’s content, no need for etiquette here:
This baby Oriole in its high chair waiting for lunch. Be patient, junior, mommy’s coming:
Take it easy, my Deer friend. I wouldn’t want to do the Heimlich Maneuver on you:
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What’s your summer smorgasbord like?
Ripple Effects 
What a juicy theme! More species of birds have recently returned to my little garden to join the insects, and to eat some of them! Chickadees and finches are eating the black sunflower seeds in one feeder, and orioles join hummingbirds at the hummingbird feeder. It’s very busy out there!
Your pictures are great. I love the high chair scene. 😊
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Gretchen,
Looks like you’ve more varieties of birds right in your backyard than in my woods! Good for you. Enjoy the rest of your summer! 🙂
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Wonderful – wonderful!
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Sigrun,
Glad you like the pics! Thanks for stopping by! 🙂
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This is my first summer back in the country after too long in the city. Your photos were always a salve. I’m excited that this year, I get to see many of these creatures for myself. As always, you capture them unaware that you are watching. Love it!
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Michelle,
You know, I’m often surprised when I upload my photos onto my laptop. Only then would I know what exactly have I captured. The feeding sequence is a good example. I just saw the two Orioles there, and I knew one was an adult the other was a juvenile. But I couldn’t actually see what exactly were they doing. So, always nice surprises photographing birds. Enjoy your summer in the country! 🙂
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You have some wonderful captures here. I was trying to decide why you have so many images of parents feeding babies, and it occurred to me that (at least here at home) I don’t spend any time around woods or thickets, where nesting and fledging occurs. Maybe next spring. The time is nearly past for us, now, and the woods are so full of mosquitoes, no one wants to go there.
I did go to the nearest refuge this morning, very early — up at 5:30, there at 7 or so. I was the only person there, as far as I could tell, and it was lovely. While I was photographing some flowers, I heard a strange noise: a kind of snort. Yes, it was a deer, and I got to watch it bound across the prairie. It was beautiful, indeed.
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Linda,
As I was telling Michelle above, I’m often surprised at what I’ve photographed. Only when I upload them on my laptop do I know exactly what I’ve captured. The feeding sequence in this post is a good example. Also it’s because my lens isn’t that powerful, so I can’t see clearly when I toot the shots. You know, my motto is, stop, aim, shoot. Easy as that. The hard part is to find a small clearing of leaves and that the birds are not moving, it’s very hard to find such a window of opportunity, often only just 1-2 seconds. 🙂 But you’re right, spring is the best time to observe birds nesting and fledging.
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Oh Arti. You outdid yourself with these wonderful photos of the birds and bees etc. Okay, how do you get so close?
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Heather,
Thanks! Glad you like them. I use a tele lens 70-300mm which is not too powerful. Birders usually carry a 400mm-600mm lens. But those are too heavy for me. So, I try to walk very slowly and quietly closer. I tell you, this is the best way to train one’s patience. 🙂
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I’m so happy to see your post! It’s been a long time. And I love that you are out in the fields doing one of the things you love best — shooting the birds. You must have a world of patience to get such terrific action shots! These really are remarkable!
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Jeanie,
I got some more pics on a Great Blue Heron tonight, together with a Black-crowned Night Heron. At least that’s what I thought it was. Two diff. kinds of Heron in one frame. That’s quite unusual. Anyway, I’ve been birding all along, it’s blogging that I haven’t been picking up the pace.
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How did you manage to catch all those shots? Summer is Southern California does remind me of death, not life. I feel as if all the wildlife struggles when it’s this hot. Global warming is real. This is the hottest summer we have had in a long time. Today it’s expected to hit 116 and we’ve already had a 120 degree day. Animals and birds around here are focused on water. Little puddles after the grass has been watered, little drips from a faucet. Everything dries instantly in this heat so they have to be fast.
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Ti,
I can’t imagine what it’s like to be over 100F, let alone 120! I’d rather have -20F than 120F! For sure. Our summer has been quite hot, but nothing higher than 90F, for us anyway. But not in Quebec. It’s just depressing to hear you say summer reminds you of death, not life. In the Province of Quebec, there’s 74 heat-related deaths this summer. Temp. there reached 110+
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This summer is definitely a different kind of heat. It’s been 110 all week long and today is supposed to be the hottest day.
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