April 27, 2013
-
Chicks!
To get out of the house, last week I went to visit the herons. Along the way, I found a sure sign that our spring has sprung and summer is almost upon us -- the green fields are quickly turning to brown.
A boat in the harbor channel was having difficulty,
and was escorted in to the harbor.
After parking, I looked up into the trees and found that several of the nests now have chicks in them.
Spring has definitely sprung!
Comments (30)
Hi Janet, really interesting. I had to adjust a boat loss in Santa Cruz, Ca. as a young adjustor. It crashed into the rocks and was a total loss.
Loved your chicks. lol Some chicks are cute, but some are not too cute. lol
Anyway,
Have a great weekend,
frank
Yay for Spring! Spring isn't my favorite season but it's nice to see flowers and things. My favorite season is Autumn and looking at the cars in the first photo, wouldn't it be cool if cars changed colors in the Fall!
The chicks are cute.
A boat with a flat tire! Fortunately I've never been on a boat having difficulty. I'm sure it's a real bummer.
Awe bird babies I am just loving your picture's.
Babies....wonderful. I love it. I'm going down to the dam where these birds hang out here and see if I can track down their nests.
That brown grass is a sure sign of summer there. I tell people CA has two seasons. Wet and dry or green and brown. lol
I haven't spotted any baby birds around yet but I hear them. So excited that spring is finally showing up!
Wow lots of birds on those rocks. They look like big birds--How big are they? Eagle size or bigger?? Love that blue water !
The first two pictures are just wonderful. I love the line up of cars, and the birds sitting in a line in the second picture. Hope you are having a good day.
I love spring time and it looks like it might be here finally! We have been seeing some birds retuning.
Love those little ones. Your photos are great.
Babies!!! I am so envious but must thank you for giving us all a peek at the peeps!
It still amazes me that herons nest in trees, simply because I only see them when they are in the river, and that's a rare sight in itself. They are huge birds. I don't know where I expected them to nest, but it always surprises me to see your photos of them nesting! I know, I'm silly!
Great pics Janet!!
Omg baby herons! I've never seen babies, for as common as the adults are you'd think we'd be falling over them. I may have to go see if the places I know they hang out have any nests.
wow, Great photos! The hills are turning brown already? I thought spring/summer was the growing season.
@HUMOR_ME_NOW - The "VesselAssist" boat is a great idea. This is the first time I've actually seen more than the hungry beaks of the heron chicks -- I thought that was pretty exciting! Thanks for the rec.
@TheSutraDude - Hmm -- what colors should the cars change to in the fall? Is that what you like about fall -- that the leaves change colors? When I went to PA as a freshman in college, I was really disappointed that the trees all just looked dead -- never did see a really good fall! I thought the chicks were cute, too -- and this was the first time I've seen them in the nests like that -- I think they really trimmed away all the branches that were not protected by the nests, so it's easier to see what's up there. I've been on a sailboat when the sails got a bit tangled, but the wind helped with straightening them out, and there wasn't a "VesselAssist"boat then! Thanks for recommending!
@SisterMae - Thanks, Mae -- I'm glad you're enjoying the pictures!
@C_L_O_G - Green was a very short season this year! We're already in fire season -- it usually begins in August! When you go looking for heron nests -- look UP, for BIG nests, HIGH in the tallest treetops. I hope you get to see some -- they're really awesome. Thanks for the rec.
@Lady_Kelacy - These babies are 50 feet high in the trees at this point. I imagine they'll fledge in a couple of weeks.
@Maggietx1 - The birds on the rocks are mostly cormorants and/or pelicans -- a bit smaller than eagles, I think. A little later in the day, they'd be mostly cormorants, which are a slimmer, lighter bird about the same size otherwise.
@ZSA_MD - Thanks, Zakiah -- and for the rec. The first shot was a stoplight shot. And I always enjoy seeing the birds on the breakwater.
@dingdongdingbat - Thanks, Barbara -- I think summer has arrived here, after a very short spring. It's supposed to get to 90 this next week!
@murisopsis - I was surprised that I could see the babies so well this year -- before I've only seen the beaks reaching for food! Glad I could get shots this good to share with you!
@songoftheheart - Not silly, Jo -- we do think of herons as water birds, and there's not much water up in those trees! They are very protected there, and thus quite friendly because they're used to crazy people.like me who stop to watch them and photograph them!
@Bricker59 - Thanks, Thom -- and for the rec, too! I'm glad you like my chick friends
!
@moniet - Look UP in the tallest nearby trees you can find! This was the best view I've had of the babies over the last 3 years. Very exciting!
@rnjennison - Spring is our growing season too -- but it was a very short spring this year!
@slmret - Sorry the trees in PA looked dead haha. The change of colors are normally breathtaking but I like Autumn more for another reasons hard to describe. I experience rushes of memories like those produced by smells and old songs but much more intense. It's like a flood of ancient memories.
I don't know what colors the cars should change too. Would be interesting to find out! I was also thinking it would be cool if the hubcaps fell off like leaves. We'd get new ones in the Spring!
The chicks are adorable!
@TheSutraDude - Love that imagination -- cars change colors and lose their appendages, so they can grow new ones in the spring. I've always liked spring and summer best. Outdoors is better then, and spring feels to me like a reawakening of the world. Our seasons are more subtle than yours, but still there. I do think I understand about the smells and songs of fall producing memories -- but that's almost like living in the past, and I have a problem with that -- prefer living in the now or in the future. I need to get back to the harbor and visit the chicks again pretty soon -- they must be growing pretty fast now!
@slmret - Get back to the chicks again before they're all grown up!
I'm into the present and future too. I've never cared much for people who live in the past but Autumn for me is something different. The feeling is like a story of all time, timelessness. Maybe it's just my imagination but it's what has always poured through me. Also I wake up in winter haha. I have fun in Spring and Summer but winter invigorates me and I love coming in from the cold to a fireplace! Every season is good though.
@TheSutraDude - Winter for me is a true period of dormancy -- and fall is the time when the world tucks in to that dormant state, getting ready for hibernation! I wonder if there's a difference between calling it 'fall' or 'autumn'? Because it's not that cold here, winter is just a depression, without the joy of a fireplace (that we really can't use anyway because of smoke restrictions). Back to the chicks tomorrow, but first a night's sleep.
@slmret - I hear ya.
Sleep well! I'm off to bed too!
Late but finally spring is there for the joy of the birds.
@slmret - OK Janet. I'll keep that in mind. Look up high in the tallest trees for big nests. Thanks for the tip,
I love seeing your heron pictures - adult or baby.
Enjoyed the nice blues.
Great photos! Thanks again for sharing them. We have birds here in Indiana...but seldom see any water birds except for geese and ducks in our rivers. I do love seeing those lime green ducklings when they first hatch but haven't gotten photos of them so far.
@Gma_Joyce - Thanks, Joyce! Your birds are beautiful, too -- and they're the colorful birds we don't see. These have been fun to watch, and get to know
!
Chicks!
Ha! I wondered what your post was gonna' be about! 
Aw! One of the sweet happy Spring things: baby animals and birds!!!
Thank you for sharing the chicks with us! I love watching animal/bird parents take care of their young! 
Love your pics, always!!!
HUGS!!!
awww ~ the babies!
Just this morning, outside of the hair salon, there was a Momma duck being followed by 9 chicks! Spring has sprung here too!
@adamswomanback - They're growing up fast!
@fwren - This was the best view I've had of the babies!
@heart_beep - Awww -- I love ducks and ducklings -- do you know the kids book, "Make Way for the Ducklings"?
@slmret - Oh my gosh yes! Its my favorite children's book. I was just talking about it today. Robert McCloskey, the author, was born and raised near Cincinnati, Oh, in Hamilton. Another favorite of his is "Blueberries for Sal". You should read it since you're such an outdoorsy person! I also love his "Time of Wonder" and "One Morning in Maine". Can you tell I'm a Robert McCloskey fan?!!!! hee, hee
Comments are closed.