I wish I had an explanation for this, but I don't . . .

I'm on our deck with the shovel and ice chopper, making lots of racket -- and the nuthatches are at the suet feeder right next to me, chattering away.

But when I'm standing there with my camera, not making a move or a sound -- all the birds disappear. What do they know that I don't?

From Winona to Waukewan

Winona Road is one of New Hampshire's back roads -- a picturesque route between Ashland, Center Harbor and Meredith. This view is from a little bridge over the connection between two lakes, looking at Lake Winona from its southern end.




It was a cold February morning -- the skies were beginning to brighten, but the cold had left a thin layer of frost on all the bare branches along the lakes.







Looking the other direction from the bridge, the water flows out of Lake Winona into what eventually becomes Lake Waukewan.

The cold winter morning did not deter the ducks' bottoms-up routine.

It's been a long time . . .

. . . since I've put anything up (2-1/2 months long)! So to start catching up, I'll post a couple photographs from this last week.

The other day, when I glanced out the window, I saw a goldfinch on the ground -- just one, unlike the flocks of sometimes thirty or forty that I've been seeing lately. But when I took a closer look, I realized it wasn't a goldfinch, although there was a greenish-yellow tint to it. It was actually a little larger and the other markings weren't right.

I went outside to get some photos of it and was surprised that it actually let me get about four feet from it without flying away.




After I pulled out the trusty bird ID guide, I determined it was a female White-Winged Crossbill (Loxia leucoptera). I have seen it a few other days, too, always alone and feeding from the ground. This is one to add to my list.