SAL-70400G – The Bald Heretic – Short, bald dude with a goofy beard

New Zealand Day 17 – Milford Sound

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This was the day I really wanted sunshine, and New Zealand delivered! We woke up to clear skies and a bit of frost and the forecast indicated the sunshine would continue and it would get a bit warmer.

Our schedule was to drive the Milford Road for 2 hours to meet our ship to cruise around Milford Sound (actually it’s a fjord) for 2 1/2 hours.

We decided to allocate 3 hours drive time just to be on the safe side.

We got underway and as we climbed into the Southern Alps we were in great spirits as we marvelled at the scenery. We came to an overlook and decided to pull over because there was a great view. When I got out of the car I noticed a Kea Parrot on the railing.

I was really hoping to see these birds. The Kea is the only mountain parrot in the world and is only found in New Zealand.

Kea Parrots are known for their destructive nature and they frequently chew the rubber bits off of cars, causing extensive damage if left to their own devices. As we got back in the car and were getting ready to leave we heard something on the roof. The Kea and hopped on to the top of our car and was up to no good.

We shoo’d him off and got on our way before he could cost us our deposit on the rental.

We arrived at the terminal to catch our cruise and got checked in

The weather continued to shine and we had an awesome time cruising around Milford Sound.

We really enjoyed the cruise and we enjoyed taking a leisurely drive back to Te Anau.

Tomorrow we drive to Invercargill. This will be the furthest south we get before turning back to drive up the east coast of the North Island.

Dragonfly

Sony A99 combined with the SAL-70400G

Brazos Bend State Park

Sony A99 and 70-400G

So Long, Endeavour!

The Endeavour passed through Houston on its way to California. As it flew low and slow over the city it flew right past my office window. It’s not every day you can look out your window and see a spaceship fly by. This was taken with the Sony A77 and 70-400G lens. The ghosting around the tail section is due to shooting through double pane glass windows.

Red Bellied Woodpeckers

We have an entire family of Red Bellied Woodpeckers living in the neighbor’s tree. I’d been meaning to try to get some photos and was finally up early enough to catch them with the sun at the most flattering angle. All of these are shot using the Sony A77 and the glorious SAL 70-400 G lens.

Summer Hummers

Not so many hummingbirds this season. But a few.

Wings Over Houston – 2011

All shot with the magnificent Sony 70-400G lens attached to my Sony A850

Backyard Birding Report – April 20th, 2011

We’ve not spotted a single hummingbird so far this spring. BUT, we’ve spotted two kinds of birds not previously seen in our yard. We’ve seen a few Indigo Buntings, but I’ve not managed to get any photos. We’ve also seen a few of these:

I knew it was a Chickadee the minute I spotted it. Cynthia said it can’t be a Black-capped Chickadee (though it looks EXACTLY like one to me) because they don’t come to Texas. We looked up the Black-capped Chickadee and sure enough, they’re indigenous to the norther regions of the U.S. and they don’t migrate. A little research and we determined them to be Carolina Chickadees.

Also, one of the birdhouses we have hanging on the side of the house looks to have been attacked by something with sharp claws. It has not, however, stopped a pair of sparrows from raising three babies in it

And, although not spotted in my yard, this guy strikes me as interesting. A very ragged vulture that rides the drafts between my office building and the one next to us.

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