Start Them off Early

For all you parents, grandparents, with children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren.  The earlier you start them enjoying the outdoors, the better it is.  Take them hiking, teach them birding and photography so that they enjoy the natural world around us.  Put away the cell phones during this time, except if you need an app to help find a location or some settings.

I have gotten my kids, grandkids and my great-granddaughter interested in photography and birding.  Although my great-granddaughter is under 10 years old.  She has learned how to use back button focusing on the camera.  Yes, either her father or I do set the settings and we will soon start teaching or how to use those settings herself.

Grandson and great-granddaughter photographing and viewing a red-tailed hawk

Red-tailed Hawk

When we do beach rambles.  I find that the children with their sharper eye find more objects to discuss and are very interested in learning.

Holding seaweed Dead Mans Fingers

Watching a diamondback terrapin returning to the wild

So, get the youngsters away from cell phones, television, and computer games and out into the world.

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Another Beautiful Day

Black-capped Chickadee Feeding on Pinecones

It is a beautiful Monday morning, Doug, Jenner and I started off at Jenney Pond in Plymouth, Massachusetts birding and photographing.  Besides the usual mallards, Canada geese and swans.  There was a large variety of passerine's.  The passerine's were very busy moving around and feeding on the seeds that were present as well as the seeds that were in the pinecones.  We saw four different species of woodpeckers but were only able to get photographs of the downy woodpecker and the Flickr.  We were happy when we saw one of the pastor means in the open, otherwise they were hiding in all the reads or in the evergreens keeping themselves hidden.  In total, we had 25 species of different birds at Jenney pond.  We will have to see what the rest of the fall and winter will bring.

American Goldfinch

Downy Woodpecker

Downy Woodpecker

Blue Jay

Downy Woodpecker

Northern Flicker

Northern Flicker

Using the coupon code morn, you will receive a 15% discount on any or all of the Topaz plug-ins.



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Tamarac Park, Lakeville, Massachusetts

For all of those who have been following my blog, knows that I like Tamarac Park in Lakeville, Massachusetts as a great place not only for macro photography, birdwatching and viewing nature.  I was there today to photograph changes that were occurring.  The best news, the friends of Tamarac, or cleaning out invasive plants and will plant native species and clean up the area.  Tamarac has place for everybody to enjoy from nature lovers, photographers, families and fishermen.  To me.  One of the big problems is that people leave messes behind, bottles, paper and all sorts of debris.  Hopefully as the area gets cleaned up and improved that the spoiling of the natural beauty by humans of discarding "crap"..

Cleaning out the Invasive

Plot Plan for Tamarac

The variety of wildlife seen today was immense.  Many different species of dragonflies, including Halloween Pennant.  The wild sumac flowers were blooming and pokeberry (poke weed) are forming.  In the shot.  Of time that I was there I identified at least 14 different species of birds.

Halloween Pennant - Celithemis eponina

Halloween Pennant - Celithemis eponina

Slaty Skimmer - Libellula incesta

dragonfly

Sparrow

Sparrow

Sparrow

Sumac Flower

Pokeberry

Tamarac Park is a long route 105/18 in Lakeville, Massachusetts, headed south and is at the backside of Long Pond and across the road from Assawompset.  As I've said before a great place to visit and to enjoy.


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"It's Never Too Early"

Father and daughter observing and photographing

I spent the day with my grandson and great-granddaughter and we visited Salisbury Beach State Reservation and Parker River National Wildlife Refuge. The thrill of the day, besides my great-granddaughter playing on the swings at Salisbury Beach was the very cooperative Red-Tailed Hawk that was in a conifer on the side of the road at the Parker River National Wildlife Refuge. What made the day a thrill, is that my great-granddaughter was standing with her father, while he was photographing a hawk, and she was utilizing my binocular's to observe the hawk. She was so fascinated by the hawk that she named it "Capt. Abby" after herself. Abby is five years old and is fascinated with birdwatching and utilizing binoculars. Like any five year old her attention span isn't long but she enjoyed the experience and wants to go out again.

Red-tailed Hawk - "Capt. Abby"