Wild Bird Wednesday and ABC Wednesday
K is for Killdeer
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| Killdeer, Guntersville Lake, Alabama, USA, September 11, 2015 |
The Killdeer, Charadrins vociferous, gets its name from its call, a shrill kill-deee, or killdeer, or sometimes dee-dee-dee. Their range covers most of North America and parts of South America.
Easily identified by the two black bands across the breast, Killdeer are the most common Plovers in the United States. (Weird how that rock looks like it has teeth).
Most often seen near water, Killdeer probe the mud to find and eat worms, snails, small crustaceans, and insects. Their colors blend in with the rocky shore. I didn't see the second one until I loaded the photos onto my computer!
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Wildflower Wednesday
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| On the Natchez Trace Parkway, Lee County, Mississippi, USA, September 13, 2015 |
Mimosa microphylla, Littleleaf Sensitive Briar, is a native wildflower of the southern United States. It is a member of the Pea family, but its thumbnail-size bloom is nothing like what you expect from a Pea.
The thorny stems are weak so that the plant trails along the ground. The pinnate leaves react to being touched by closing up, hence the 'sensitive' part of its name. The leaves also close at night and on very cloudy days.
I think this pollinator is a Hoverfly, Milesia virginiensis, aka Good News Bee. It completely ignored me as I was down on my knees using my macro lens. It was systematically working its way across the bloom, getting nectar and/or pollen from each tiny port.
Wednesday Waters
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| Tishomingo County, Mississippi, USA, September 20, 2015 |
On Sunday we spent the afternoon at Tishomingo State Park. This view of Bear Creek was made from the bridge at the beginning of one of the hiking trails. Most of our trees are still green, but with cooler temperatures, we are beginning to see hints of Autumn color.
Hope You Have a Beautiful Day!
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NOTE: Please do not use my photos without my permission.
A great series of photos. I especially like the photos of the Killdeer next to the water - not a bird we see out here in Australia.
ReplyDeletePretty bird and a unique name!
ReplyDeleteHappy ABCW!
Great series, the Killdeer are sweet birds. Lovely photos. Enjoy your day!
ReplyDeleteI can almost hear the call of the killdeer as I see them in your photos.
ReplyDeleteThank you for introducing the killdeer to me!
ReplyDeleteHave a great week.
Wil, ABCW Team
Great shots of the KIldeers
ReplyDeletevery nice images of the Killdeers :)
ReplyDeleteI loved seeing Killdear when we lived close to the coast and had our early morning walks. Nice photos!
ReplyDeleteThat's a beautiful Mimosa flower. Gillian
ReplyDeleteWonderful photographs, thank you for posting and taking me along your trip !
ReplyDeleteHave a nice abc-week / day
♫ Mel☺dy ♫
(abc-w-team)
such a tough-sounding name!
ReplyDeleteROG, ABCW
Cute Killdeer photos, they do like water but I have seen them everywhere I have lived, frequently on soccer fields. I love their call. I miss the Sensitive plant from my Houston childhood, we liked to play with them. The Hoverfly is cute, too, great details, Lea.
ReplyDeleteWhat a pretty flower, the pea family is an inventive flora.
ReplyDeleteLovely views...
ReplyDeleteLove the first, third and last pic best. ;-)
ReplyDeleteLovely series of photos. Love the pattern on the bird's feather and beautiful view of the creek.
ReplyDeleteHi Lea, I enjoyed seeing your photos in the different posts until I got down to your Wildflower Wednesday one. You have some birds we do not have, or at least that I haven't seen here in SE Nebraska. Your water spots are so beautiful! I don't know if we have that mimosa, either. What a pretty bloom! Your hoverfly reminds me of the yellow jacket hover flies I have seen here. http://www.americaninsects.net/f/milesia-virginiensis.html
ReplyDelete