The Quack(ers) are back.

Today was a wet one and just made for ducks. Back when the University of Oregon was in the football hunt, mid '90's, their motto was The Quack is Back, thus a stretch on the lead for this entry. (Bill has the correct UO slogan. He was almost laughing with tears at what I wrote, since he figures that'd be a very benign threat--it was The Quack Attack is Back.)About 3 this afternoon I heard lots of noise outside. As I opened the back door, it appeared the field was once again alive, just like last year. I ran in to get my camera. Of course, I had to switch lenses and even with all the falter all, I made it back out to capture these events. In the first pic, they were right out behind our fence, thick as thieves. Then all of a sudden the entire flock (is that what you call a bunch of ducks?) lifted into the air. I finally caught sight of an eagle coming from behind the old barn, flying from north to south. Pretty soon there was another one, but in my excitement and the pouring rain, this was the best shot of the four pix. There were hundreds of ducks flying this way and that way. I found it amazing that there weren't any visible collisions. I think these were Golden Eagles, but like I write, it was raining like crazy and I was in a bit of a hurry.


After flying around long enough for the eagles to leave the area, the ducks landed just in a field south of where they were. The standing water was all a roil as they landed. The six in the overhead picture came right up and over the deck.

About the time I was ready to head in to dry off and warm up, three swans came into view. Again, the beauty of the farm and being able to view nature from our deck is just awesome.

Sights and Sounds in the Skagit Valley

I know the video quality it lacking, but I want to share the sights and sounds from this morning. The swans can be noisy on the ground, but they usually are honking up a storm when they're inbound. You may also be able to hear the ducks and other birds in the background.

Since it was quite cold this morning, a shade under 30, it was easy to hear all the birds. In the first picture, I was caught a bit off guard and nearly missed this immature eagle coming from the East, up and over the barn. The second is a hawk heading the other direction. I think it was a Red Tail.


In the third, there are a few of hundreds of gull that were in the air. Have to admit it was a bit nerve racking this morning, looking up. Know what I mean? In the forth picture there are some Mallard ducks. They're just gorgeous, but they won't let me get too close. With these and all the swans and other birds, there was a noisy chorus going on this morning.

This Great Blue Heron was sitting on the back fence this morning. To help you figure out the size, the top fence rail is six inches high and the fence posts are four by fours. They're big. At this time of the year, there's always one that hangs out behind the barn.

The swans are back.

The big guys and gals have been showing up for the past couple weeks. There was a huge gathering today, in the SE field. Don't know if swanm poop is good fertilizer, but if it is, that field will be in prime shape come planting time. One doesn't realize how big a swan is until one comes gliding low over the patio, preparing to land in a near by field.

Out of the fog.

This morning we woke to the drone of engines. Once on the floor I tried to figure out what was going on. It wasn't even first light, but I figure the potato harvest was on. It was foggy and took until about 7, to be able to actually see the equipment in the fields. In the first picture, you can see the conveyor peeking through the fog, in the center of the pic. Kinda looked like the "Loch Ness Monster" at first light. I didn't get a clean shot of the potatoes being loaded into one of the trucks, but if you click and blow up #2 and 3, you can see them coming out of the shoot. #4 is a nice view of the John Deere tractor and potato harvester. I'm working on an installment for Cobwebs, about how I first saw a potato harvest in about 1960.

A calm visitor on the deck

This charming little visitor wasn't the least bit intimidated by Zoie, the dogs or me. Just sat on the end of the deck and let all of us inspect from every angle. I love how Muffy was able to go right up, sniff and it only changed position.

Prisms in the fields.

After a wet Winter, Spring and early Summer the farmers have had to haul out the irrigation equipment. There's an old saying about corn should be knee high by the 4th of July. Well, this year that didn't happen and the corn fields look pretty scrawny and sparse. This sprinkler is watering a potato crop. I found the prism effect amazing. I'm hoping the images come close to what I was able to view off the front porch.

Drifting spider webs/trails

Unfortunately, these pictures didn't capture the totality of the amazing scene of spider webs/trails floating across the field to the East.

Did you know? As a young spider comes of age it begins looking for a piece of high ground. This may be only the tip of a blade of grass, a small rock, or perhaps a fence post, but it must be a place where air currents pass. And there the spider waits for a breeze to carry it off. From its spinnerets the spider plays out silken lines like a fly caster testing a trout stream. Soon the spider’s parachute lengthens until it’s large enough to support the creature’s weight; then it becomes airborne. Where it lands only the spider will know. This is usually a phenomenon in the Fall. Think our crazy weather may have caused confusion this year.

If you click on the first picture, it'll blowup and let you see the scene clearly and the wonder of this event. Then just click back and you'll return to the original blog.

Bumble bees for Emma

Emma, after seeing you with your frog and hearing that you like all creatures big and small, I couldn't resist these shots. There's a continual buzz by the raspberries. Our bumble bees are mostly bright orange. Haven't really seen any yellow ones so far this year. A couple were almost the size of a quarter.