Mushrooms, January 30, 2017

© Lea Holt - Lea's Menagerie

My computer is in the repair shop, so I am having to use photos from the past until I get it back. From my archives: November 2011

Have a wonderful week!

For more macro photos, visit Macro Monday 2: Click Here!

For more photos featuring the color Yellow, visit Monday Mellow Yellows: Click Here!

For a variety of interesting photos, visit Our World Tuesday: Click Here!

NOTE: Please do not use my photos without my permission.
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The Barn Collective, January 29, 2017

Tishomingo County, Mississippi, USA, December 6, 2016

I would like to see the front of this barn, but I did not want to trespass.

Have a blessed day!

For more barn photos, visit Tom for The Barn Collective: Click Here!

NOTE: Please do not use my photos without my permission.
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Critters, January 28, 2017

Saturday's Critters, Camera Critters, and I'd Rather B Birdin '



My computer is in the repair shop so I am relying on my archives for photos until I get it back. This rabbit came to our bird feeders in January of 2014



This Mockingbird in a Magnolia tree is from October of 2014.

Hope you have a wonderful week-end!

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NOTE: Please do not use my photos without my permission.
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Good Fences and Sky Watch, January 26, 2017

© Lea Holt - Lea's Menagerie

My computer is in the repair shop, so I am relying on photos from the past until I get it back. Looking in my archives, I found this sunset photo of the Tennessee River in October 2011.

Hope you have a wonderful day!

For more fence photos, visit Good Fences: Click Here!

For more sky photos, visit Sky Watch Friday: Click Here!

NOTE: Please do not use my photos without my permission.
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Cardinals, January 25, 2017

ABC Wednesday and Wild Bird Wednesday
C is for Cardinals - American songbirds with long tails and short thick bills


Prentiss County, Mississippi, USA, January 12, 2017

Northern Cardinals, Cardinalis cardinalis, live in the eastern half of the United States in woodland edges, thickets, brushy swamps, and gardens. (Their southern cousins live in South America)

Male Cardinals are bright red; females are brownish-grey with red on their crests, wings and tails. They eat seeds and insects, and often come to bird feeders in the Winter.

I hope you have a beautiful day!

For more on the letter C, visit ABC Wednesday: Click Here!

For more bird photos, visit Wild Bird Wednesday: Click Here!

NOTE: Please do not use my photos without my permission.
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The Barn Collective, January 22, 2017

Prentiss County, Mississippi, USA, December 8, 2016

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Have a blessed day!

For more barn photos, visit Tom for The Barn Collective: Click Here!

NOTE: Please do not use my photos without my permission.
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Critters: Robin, January 21, 2017

Prentiss County, Mississippi, USA, January 10, 2017

I was very surprised to see a few Robins at my house early one morning. I barely had time to get the camera before they flew away. This one is on a bird water jug that hangs in the pear tree most of the year, but we take it down in the Winter so that it does not freeze and break.
(I have a limestone bird bath for the birds to enjoy all year).

Have a wonderful week-end!

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NOTE: Please do not use my photos without my permission.
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Sky Watch: Wolf Moon, January 20, 2017

Prentiss County, Mississippi, USA, January 13, 2017

We were going home after eating with friends, when we saw the moon rising. I did not have my tripod with me, but when we stopped on the side of the road, I braced the camera on top of the car to get this image.

Happy Friday!

For more weather-related photos, visit Sky Watch Friday: Click Here!

NOTE: Please do not use my photos without my permission.
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Fences with Horses, January 19, 2017

Prentiss County, Mississippi, USA, January 23, 2016

We have had a lot of cloudy, rainy days these past few weeks, so I looked in my archives to find a fence photo from January of last year. A much sunnier day, it looks more like Spring than Winter.

Hope you have a beautiful day!

For more fence photos, visit Good Fences: Click Here!

NOTE: Please do not use my photos without my permission.
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Red-Shouldered Hawk, January 18, 2017

ABC Wednesday and Wild Bird Wednesday

B is for Buteo - a genus of medium to large raptors
(Commonly called Hawks in the USA, but known as Buzzards in other countries)

Prentiss County, Mississippi, USA, January 4, 2017

I think this is a Red-shouldered Hawk, Buteo lineatus. I was driving home from a friend's house when I saw it on an electric power line near a church. It did not like my stopping in the churchyard, but waited a minute before it flew away. Just enough time for one photo.

Have a wonderful day!

For more on the letter B, visit ABC Wednesday: Click Here!

For more bird photos, visit Wild Bird Wednesday: Click Here!

NOTE: Please do not use my photos without my permission.
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Garden Bloggers' Bloom Day January 2017

Northeast Mississippi, USA zone 7

I have several Hellebores, and they are all vigorously putting up new shoots.

And this one is advanced enough to be showing buds!

Happy Garden Bloggers' Bloom Day!

To see gardens around the world, visit Carol for Garden Bloggers' Bloom Day: Click Here!

For foliage photos, visit Pam at Digging for Foliage Follow-up: Click Here!

For an interesting variety of photos, visit Our World Tuesday: Click Here!

NOTE: Please do not use my photos without my permission.
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Sandpipers? January 14, 2017

Saturday's Critters, Camera Critters, and I'd Rather B Birdin'


Lee county, Mississippi, USA, January 10, 2017

If you noticed the question mark in my post's title, you probably realize that I do not know the name of this bird. It is a small fast-moving bird, constantly walking and probing the shallow water with its long bill.

I think it must be a migratory bird just passing through north Mississippi. I live about 300 miles north of the Gulf of Mexico, so I am not familiar with shorebirds.

Its companion was working the other side of this slow-moving stream. I am thinking it must be some kind of Sandpiper, maybe?

I am hoping someone can identify this bird for me.

UPDATE: Thank you birding friends - they are Wilson's Snipes!
Wilson's Snipes are migratory birds, breeding in Canada and the northern parts of the US. They are seen here in the southeastern states only in the Winter.

Have a wonderful week-end!

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NOTE: Please do not use my photos without my permission.
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Sky Watch: Sunset, January 13, 2017

Sunset, Prentiss County, Mississippi, USA, January 8, 2017

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Have a wonderful week-end!

For more weather-related photos, visit Sky Watch Friday: Click Here!

NOTE: Please do not use my photos without my permission.
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Good Fences, January 12, 2017

Tupelo, Mississippi, USA, January 5, 2017

I always take my camera with me wherever I go. This fence is along a service road near the Mall at Barnes Crossing. I bought a pretty sweater at the after-Christmas sale at Belk's, but seeing this cute little bird on the fence is what made the day special.

I think my bird-watching hobby has turned into an obsession!

Have a beautiful day!

For more fence photos (with or without birds!), visit Good Fences: Click Here!

NOTE: Please do not use my photos without my permission.
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American Coots, January 11, 2017

ABC Wednesday and Wild Bird Wednesday

A is for American Coots - grey, duck-sized birds seen on North American lakes and marshes.

American Coots, Pickwick, Tennessee, USA, December 5, 2016

It was raining when I made these photos, but I guess rain does not matter to birds that spend most of their time swimming. They were busily foraging for food. Their main food source is aquatic plants, but they come on shore to eat grass, seeds, grain, and insects. Water pollution is the biggest threat to their health and safety.

American Coots, Fulica Americana, are heavy birds with short wings. They require long, running take-offs to get airborne.



And look at those feet! When they take a step the toes spread out, giving them more support on muddy, marshy ground.

Have a wonderful day!

For more on the letter A, visit ABC Wednesday: Click Here!

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NOTE: Please do not use my photos without my permission.
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Monday Mural, January 9, 2017

Booneville, Mississippi, USA, January 3, 2017

Donating blood can make a world of difference!

In February of 2014, I was diagnosed with Leukemia. Over the next six months, along with chemo treatments, I received a dozen or more units of red blood cells. Thanks to the Good Lord above and wonderful doctors and blood donors here, my Leukemia is in remission.

A BIG Thank You to all blood donors, and especially to you who are B positive!

Have a wonderful week!

For more mural photos, visit Monday Mural: Click Here!

For a variety of interesting photos, visit Through My Lens: Click Here!

And on Tuesday, please visit Our World Tuesday: Click Here!

NOTE: Please do not use my photos without my permission.
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The Barn Collective, January 8, 2017

Tishomingo County, Mississippi, USA, December 6, 2016

When I made this photo a month ago, we were enjoying mild Autumn temperatures, but now in January it is much colder. Nightime temps are in the teens (15F), and the days warm up to just above freezing. But no snow yet.

Have a blessed day!

For more barn photos, visit Tom for The Barn Collective: Click Here!

NOTE: Please do not use my photos without my permission.
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Meadowlarks, January 7, 2017

Saturday's Critters, Camera Critters, and I'd Rather B Birdin'

Lee County, Mississippi, USA, December 24, 2016

Look for Meadowlarks in open grassy areas. I saw these in a small field across the road from the gas station while my husband was filling up our car. They use their sharp beaks to probe the ground and grasses to find insects, their primary food source.

I photographed 50 kinds of birds last year. I found most of them just like this, by paying attention to my local surroundings. Look around! Birds are everywhere!

Eastern Meadowlarks, Sturnella magna, can be found in southeastern Canada and throughout the eastern half of the United States. Their range overlaps that of the Western Meadowlarks, their close cousins. Despite the 'lark' in their names, Meadowlarks are not Larks, but members of the Blackbird family.

Have a wonderful week-end!

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NOTE: Please do not use my photos without my permission.
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Great Blue Herons, January 6, 2017

Sky Watch Friday and Weekend Reflections

Lee County, Mississippi, USA, January 1, 2017

Dense fog on New Year's Day almost obscured this Great Blue Heron.

I had seen Herons at this pond before, so I looked carefully. And there he was - very handsome in his breeding plumage!

And for Weekend Reflections

Lee County, Mississippi, USA, January 5, 2017

The same pond, but on a different day. I think this is a different Great Blue Heron, too.

Have a beautiful day!

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Dove on a Fence, January 4, 2017

ABC Wednesday, Wild Bird Wednesday, and Good Fences

Z is for Zenaida - a genus of American pigeons

Tupelo, Mississippi, USA, November 30, 2016

Mourning Doves, Zenaida macroura, are the most frequently hunted game birds in North America. Despite the seasonal hunting, the number of Mourning Doves in the United States is estimated to be 350 million (see source below). Their name comes from their low mournful calls: coo, coo, coo




Look for them near fields, perched on electric power lines or fences. To attract them to your backyard feeders provide seeds on the ground or on a platform feeder. Dense shrubs or evergreen trees will provide nesting places for them.

Source: All About Birds

Have a great day!

For more on the letter Z, visit ABC Wednesday: Click Here!

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NOTE: Please do not use my photos without my permission.
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Bluebird, January 2, 2017

Eastern Bluebird, Prentiss County, Mississippi, USA, November 1, 2016

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Hope you have a wonderful week!

For more photos featuring the color Blue, visit Blue Monday: Click Here!

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NOTE: Please do not use my photos without my permission.
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