Lynde Shores CA December 28th, 2015

“Something will have gone out of us as a people if we ever let the remaining wilderness be destroyed. We simply need that wild country available to us, even if we never do more than drive to its edge and look in.”
                                                        ― Wallace Stegner

With Christmas behind us, I grabbed the camera and went to Lynde Shores to see what was out & about in nature there.  The squirrels and birds there are very friendly, and there are always young families with seed to feed them... some adults on their own too though.

There were dozens of Chickadees, a couple Blue Jays, lots of Mourning Doves and a Hairy Woodpecker. I was told that this particular Hairy eats from your hand — first one I'd heard of that would do that. Downy Woodpeckers are more likely to.
 

I've always liked the coloring of Mourning Doves — the soft browns, with the slightest bluish tinge, and the black spots to add a bit of contrast. The pink legs & feet complement the browns.

Besides the birds, there were black & grey colorations of Eastern grey squirrels and a couple of Red Squirrels.

The shier ones slip behind trees and check you out.

Some people are very generous with their seed.

Not many fungi have color this time of year, so those that do stand out.

 

I've seen areas of cattails flattened before, but I still don't know the explanation. A strong downdraft of wind? The crop circle folks? :-)

How many thousands of female Mallards have I seen, and I can't say that I ever really noticed how different their beaks are from the males. I like to think I'm pretty observant of nature but I find that I still notice things that I think I should have noticed before. Maybe I saw the difference but it didn't register. Maybe.

A visit to Lynde Shores almost guarantees that you'll see some of nature's creatures. It's easy to see why it's the most popular nature area in our neck of the woods — especially to take children to.

- fini -