Belted Kingfisher, Osprey Pair

Gold Beach, Oregon

This evening as I took the trash out I looked off in the distance at the Osprey nest…just then one of the Osprey gracefully launched and flew towards the river.  It was 30 minutes before I needed to feed the dogs, so off I went with my camera hoping to catch an Osprey returning to the nest with a big ole fish in its claws.  I have seen this many times in Oregon, and even on this trip…but I have never had my camera at the ready to catch “the picture” of an Osprey.

   

   

I had not seen a Kingfisher before...at least not that I was aware of.  As I was sitting near the Osprey nest, this Belted Kingfisher fly just across the street and landed on the power lines.  I was able to get a dozen shots or so, and then it flew away toward the river.

Yesterday evening when I took the dogs out for a short walk, I saw both Ospreys over at the nest.  It was a overcast night…so much that the fog did not burn off today until after 1 pm. 

   

As you can see, from this distance, and with the grey background of the foggy clouds, it makes for “not so good” pictures.

After the Kingfisher flew away, I did see the Osprey return, flying over the nest to be sure all is well.  I could hear little ones up in the nest…sounds like two or three of them.  The other Osprey was up in the nest, but other than its head popping up a couple times as I walked over there, I did not see it again.

   

I did get a few good shots of this one flying around the nest…and then it headed back to the river.

I had been gone for about 20 minutes, and I knew it was getting close to “doggie dinner time”.  But I also had heard Osprey off to our west, and I even saw one up in a tree a few days ago, but had not found the nest.  On my walk back I looked at a large power line, and there it was in plain site.  Got this picture, and did not realize until I brought it up in Photoshop that there are two birds in the nest…the one on the right you can only see its legs and lower body.  Perhaps tomorrow I might be able to get some more shots.

As for Skruffy…who is diabetic (as most of you know…but we get new readers from time to time), I tested her today at 1:00, six hours after breakfast, and her blood sugar was at 77.  She is doing so well…always grateful for the excellent care she got, and the training and advice we got, from the Soldotna Animal Hospital and Dr. Meezie.   And Bubba…well, Bubba is Bubba.  He sleeps much of the day, is like a little kid when I take him for a walk, and his the most excitement he shows each day is when I feed them both.  He tries to play it cool…but by the time I get everything measured out and mixed together, he is jumping all over the place.

Speaking of Skruffy….my niece Kathryn posted this picture on Facebook of her little Maddie at the wheel of their Jeep…so I posted a picture taken of Skruffy back in 2012 at my computer and wrote: “You drive, I will navigate using Google Maps!”  Above my comment Marcia had said, “For a minute, I thought she was Skruffty's sister......too cute!”  (I blurred out the names of other people commenting.) It is amazing how Maddie and Skruffy look so much alike.  Now here is the kicker, and I wish I had pictures to show it…but my niece Kathryn and my daughter Stephanie looked so much alike when they were younger…but there is over 10 years difference in their ages.  One time my mother gave me a picture of Kathryn which was a splitting image of Stephanie.  I showed Stephanie’s mother and said, “Isn’t this a cute picture of Stephanie?”  She looked at it, paused for a few seconds, and said, “That is not Stephanie…although it looks just like her.”  I asked how she knew, and her reply was, “I know she never had a dress like that…”

Goodnight from Southwest Oregon…