Red Bellied Woodpecker
I’ve been ever so slightly keen on seeing woodpeckers while I’ve been in Virginia. They are common here because there are many …
There a Dogbane Tiger Moth fluttering around me
I’m out in the heat and the noise of a Virginia forest in the summer and I’m suffering. I’ve bought a litre …
A dash of Blue Dasher
There are plenty of dragonflies over the creek at the bottom of the garden here in Virginia. This one is a Blue …
Great Blue Skimmer – Libellula vibrans
There’s a Great Blue Skimmer dragonfly, Libellula vibrans, at the bottom of this Virginia garden. It’s a handsome beast: I creep a …
Great Blue Heron in a great grey sky
We’re relaxing on the rocks at the side of the Potomac River when a Great Blue Heron flies straight past us. It’s …
A Swallowtail butterfly striped like a zebra
There’s a swallowtail butterfly species I’ve never seen before fluttering around me. It’s too close to focus on. I move away and …
The Green Frog waits beside the pool
In the garden here in Virginia there’s a small pool. One day, as we approached it, a black snake slipped away into …
A freshly fledged Bald Eagle overhead
We set out to see the Bald Eagles. I’ve seen such mouthwatering photographs of the adult Bald Eagles coming to their chicks …
Fowler’s Toad at Scott’s Run
We’re at Scott’s Run Nature Preserve in Virginia. It’s not very big and it’s hemmed in on all sides. One of the …
The 100 year old ban
Red Cardinals were once prized as a pet, but their sale as captive birds in cages was banned in the United States …
The tiger with six spots
We’re walking along the River Potomac in Virginia, in Scott’s Run Nature Preserve. It’s hot and humid: Along the path are the …
Mourning Dove
I think I’m in love with the Mourning Dove:
A Red-Winged Blackbird displaying in the marsh
Dyke Marsh Nature Preserve in Virginia is a wonderful place. There are nesting Ospreys, nesting Bald Eagles, snakes, turtles and no end …
Common Whitetails and a Prince Baskettail
I love how decorative this Common Whitetail dragonfly is: It looks completely different against this background: And this is a Prince Baskettail …
Skinky
We are walking along the Potomac River in Scott’s Run, a small nature preserve trapped between State Route 193 to the south, …
Approached by a White Tailed Deer fawn
It’s lunchtime and I’ve brought lunch out into the garden here in Virginia. As we walk down to the lawn there’s a …
Cottontail
We’re waiting in the heat of a Virginia afternoon for an Uber. I hope I have grandchildren so that I can tell …
A Double Crested Cormorant at Great Falls
We are at Great Falls on the Potomac River in Virginia. It’s an impressive place. Up the River is a much smaller …
There’s a Chipmunk on the basketball court
I can’t think of a more American sentence than, “There’s a Chipmunk on the basketball court.” I crawl a little closer: I …
The thrill of Ospreys at Belle Haven Marina #5
It’s a difficult day for photography here at Belle Haven Marina in Virginia: It’s overcast and the sky is grey. I can …
I’ve flown 6,000 miles and all I can see are Sparrows, Starlings and Pigeons
I’ve travelled from the UK to Washington DC. It’s 6,000 miles. I’m hoping to see some exotic birds and photograph them. The …
Screaming Blue Jays
There’s a raucous screaming outside in the car park. It’s the Blue Jays again. They call to each other all the time. …
One that walks or haunts the stones, calling loudly
As I walk along the bank of the creek I keep hearing loud plops. Each time, I’m startled and can see nothing …
The thrill of Ospreys at Belle Haven Marina #4
It’s the evening and we’ve been watching the Ospreys at Belle Haven Marina in Virginia all day. The male has been hunting …
The Tearers, clothed in black, come to the barbecue
We have a trip out to Great Falls here in Virginia. It’s not a Humpty Dumpty theme park but a beautiful area …
The thrill of Ospreys at Belle Haven Marina #3
The Ospreys at Belle Haven Marina in Alexandria in Virginia are a constant source of awe and wonder to me. I could …
Spotting another parasitic plant
I was delighted to see a parasitic plant in the forest here in Virginia. It was an Indian Pipe, a completely white …
A Great Crested Flycatcher comes down from the treetops
Amongst the American Robins, introduced European House Sparrows and the bright scarlet Northern Cardinals in this garden in Virginia appears a bird …
Chimney Swift
There are Chimney Swifts, Chaetura pelagica, screaming above me here in Virginia: They are such tricky birds to photograph: they fly high; …
Four in ten Americans believe God created the Earth and anatomically modern humans, less than 10,000 years ago.
I’m visiting the Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History in Washington DC: It’s got everything you would expect of a major national …