Tag Archives: Saturday’s Critters

White Pelicans and More on the RiverParks Trails

I went on a bike ride the other day on Tulsa’s RiverParks trails. I generally like to take one of my better cameras on the rides in hopes of capturing some critters.

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I saw a great blue heron and took a photo through the vegetation along the shoreline.

Later on, on I came across this rookery of American White Pelicans on a sandbar out on the river.

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There were a bunch of them and they were very skittish as I walked around trying to get a photo through the trees and brush so I didn’t try and work my way to the riverbank to get better photos. I figured they would all split if I tried that.

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So I moved back and forth trying to see what I could do. These are not too bad.

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They always seem to be on the wrong side of the river from me but this time they were right by me.

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Here is a photo of me from my go pro clone camera on my bike. I guess I could have tried to not be so bright and yellow.

And by the way, I saw more evidence of beavers along the river.

And now on the home front. This is Lizzie the Kitten. She is no longer a kitten but she is still very sweet.

And earlier this week it was National Puppy Day. I celebrated by chasing our Pomeranian puppy Kodi around the house with a broom. He and I both had fun. Please don’t think less of me.

I wore the little guy out. He kind of hops around now when I get the broom out wanting to play some more.

I’m linking with Saturday’s Critter’s. Go check it out!

Saturday’s Critters – Home and Away

First up our puppy Kodi and cat Lizzy. They love to play and seem to enjoy each others company. Kodi is getting bigger and stronger versus Lizzy getting better at wrestling. She has developed a takedown that she uses on him sometimes. It is fun watching them.

Kodi is getting bigger and stronger all the time. We start him at puppy school in a couple weeks. We all know that they should rename dog school as owner school right?

Kodi is still very small. The smallest dog we have ever had. We found out that we can just park him in a laundry basket if we need to confine him a short while and his crate is not available.

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Still got my trailcam going in the backyard. I think this is a downy woodpecker.

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This looks like a squirrel but cannot be a squirrel because it is feeding from a squirrelproof bird feeder.

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We are getting lots of robins scratching around for food under the feeders.

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And we get rabbits at night.

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I captured a red shouldered hawk on our neighbors roof. They like rabbits. I’ve seen them this year land in our front yard and walk into the hedges and come out with baby rabbits and mice. Hawks have to eat to I guess.

I saw a goose in the parking lot earlier this week. It proceeded to wander on the main avenue nearby and somehow did not get run over.

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I went on a hike the other day and spotted this pair of geese. I think they must be nesting or something because they didn’t move much and were giving me the stinkeye from clear across the pond.

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And a fuzzy photo of a mallard paddling around the same pond.

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The same hike, I came across robins. This one blended into the tree it was perched on.

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This one was on the ground scratching around.

That’s a wrap this week!! I’m linking with Eileen’s Saturday’s Critters. Check it out!

Critter Update from the Backyard and Beyond

From the Backyard TrailCam

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A male cardinal coming in for a landing

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And his lady friend a minute or two later

Squirrel

This squirrel is walking with purpose

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This guy freezes

Out and About

Some turtle basking action at Hunter Park
Ducks paddling away
Geese and Ducks say hello at Swan Lake (No swans around)
Kodi is very distracted, all the time.
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At Woodward Park in the Daffodils, Kodi with my wife and son on a family outing last week.

At Home

Lizzie catching a nap in the front room.

From the Air

Kodi is not sure that he likes drones.

That’s it for this week. I’m linking with Eileen’s Saturday’s Critters.

Critter Update

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A crow in our backyard. I alternate the trailcam from the ground to a bird bath.

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A couple doves visited.

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And a rabbit late in the evening.

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House finches

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Robins

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A female cardinal

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A thirsty squirrel

And Kodi, after a grooming appointment.

I went on a hike at a local lake and found lots of evidence of beaver activity. Looks like they were getting a little artsy with this tree.

I’m linking with Eileen’s Saturday’s Critters. Check it out.

Hiking at Oxley Nature Center

Last weekend, son Logan and I went for a little hike at Tulsa’s Oxley Nature Center. I was hopeful that we would view some deer or other animals.

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Oxley has a diverse combination of meadows, marshlands, forests, creeks, and lakes.

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An old highway running through the refuge used to be US 169 the main route from the north to downtown Tulsa. It is now part of the trail system at Oxley. It is kind of handy after it has rained and the dirt trails are muddy.

We took some back country trails. We didn’t see any deer the whole time.

And we went out to the lakes and creeks.

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Makes for pretty scenes. There was not hardly anybody else out there even though it was a weekend.

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We finally some waterfowl. I think these are geese.

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I’m not sure what these are, sorry for the fuzzy photo. iNaturlist said “Ducks, Geese and Swans.”

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Another fuzzy photo. Too fuzzy for iNaturalist to do much with. It guessed “Wigeons and Allies.”

Pretty good little walkaround on a nice day.

And a bonus.

Our Pomeranian puppy, Kodi taking a nap in his toy box.

And my wife with Kodi. He’s a lot of fun but he is a handful.

I’m linking with Saturday’s Critters. Come check it out, especially if you love animals.

Saturday’s Critters – Live, Artistic, and AI

Went on a walk at Tulsa’s Lafortune Park the other day and a squirrel started chatting me up.

All sorts of geese on the ponds at the park.

And a moose tromping through the decorative grass.

And dogs chasing after birds.

On Groundhog Day, Paxsutawney Kodi went outside and saw his shadow. Lots more winter coming he reports.

Kodi and his kitty sister Lizzie love to play and wrestle each other around.

Here’s an AI version of a Pomeranian dog.

I’m linking with Eileen’s Saturday’s Critters.

Saturday’s Critters – More Kodi

Kodi, our little Pomeranian is continuing to grow. He is still very small though. He is wearing a cat harness because the smallest of dog harnesses is too big for him. The way he is eating though he’ll be larger before we know it.

He loves playing outside in our backyard.

Kodi the Joey in his pouch
We call him Kodi the Joey when he is in the pouch

We bought a pouch for him to take him on neighborhood walks. He loves seeing the sights and hearing the sounds especially barks from other dogs we encounter during out outings.

He’s a lot of fun.

I’m linking with Saturday’s Critters. Go check it out!!

Saturday’s Critters – Wild and Domestic

On a recent hike on Turkey Mountain I found this tree that had been cut down. I am thinking that it may be a beaver.

And on a different area of the mountain I found this beaver cut that somebody had decorated with gold leaf. What a lot of work! Lots of people have posted this on social media so I joined the crowd.

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And from the trail cam in the back yard I got several photos of rabbits. Or least their ears and one eye.

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I captured images of squirrels as well.

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Here is a guy practicing his toe hold and doing a vertical yoga updog stretch (or upsquirrel?)

Our little Pomeranian Kodi continues to grow and bond with us. He is very smart and when in the right mood, obedient, but most of the time he just wants his way. I kind of get that.

He and Lizzie, his older sister are becoming friends. We call her Nanny because she keeps a close eye on him. When she gets tired of him she just jumps up on a chair and Kodi cries at her.

And that’s a wrap for today. I’m linking with Eileen’s Saturday’s Critters. Lots of talented blogger/photographers post there, and me. Check it out.

From the Trail Cam

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I decided to fire up my trail camera in the backyard again. On New Year’s Day it captured this cardinal couple getting a drink.

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And a squirrel. Critters of all kinds need water.

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I’m thinking that these might be house finches but I am not sure.

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And a squirrel climbing up the fence.

Our new Pomeranian puppy, Kodi is a delight but he is also a whirling dervish and I have yet to get a decent photo of him. He does not sit still. He had a play date with his brother Tucker, the light colored dog above. Tucker and Kodi used to play hard together before we brought Kodi home and they resumed that quickly during the play date. All sorts of fearsome noise and chasing and pulling on chews and toys in the opposite direction. Nobody lost their temper and they were both exhausted afterwards. It was fun!!

He’s a fun and affectionate dog and loves being around people and playing hard.

A late update, a portrait of Kodi!! I finally took a halfway decent photo of him. My wife gave him a bath and that calmed the whirling dervish down to where I could take a photo.

What a face!!

That’s about it for this week. I’m linking with Eileen’s Saturday’s Critters. Go check it out. Lots of talented bloggers link there.