Nature Notes: Viewing nature from my air conditioned house

I can't believe what a hot June we've had so far. It has been almost 10 degrees above the average highs and lows for the same dates for most of this month, so far.

Fortunately, I am able to listen to and see a lot of nature from the comfort of my home by looking out the windows. The juvenile cardinal above sat like that for a long time, no doubt enjoying the shade of the pecan tree.

The black eyed susan in my deck pots are mostly courtesy of the birds. I stopped planting the pots years ago. I have found many of my deck pots have ended up with entirely different plants than what they started with because of nature spreading seeds around.

I spotted the blue bird above from my kitchen window in the cherry tree. Many of the birds hang out in that tree and eat the tiny fruit.

From my living room window I spotted the tufted titmouse below, peering out of the bush.

Another shot from my living room window caught a couple of small birds, I think at least one is a purple finch.

I was glancing out my bedroom door and noticed the blackberries starting to mature on the deck wall. There is a mix of plants so most of the leaves in the shot are of other plants but the red berries are blackberries and they will get dark as they mature.

My deck bird baths continue to be a good place to watch the birds from my bedroom.

I have a much nicer birdbath in my front yard but I can't photograph that one from my windows without standing on a chair and they usually fly off before I get the shot.

It's much easier to shoot them on the deck either from my bedroom door or den/office windows. The female cardinal takes lots of long luxurious baths and is a favorite subject for me. The shot above and below were taken on different days so probably not the same bird.

I also spot the male cardinals on the deck a lot either perching on chairs or taking a dip in the bath.

The light out my front windows is usually not good for photography but that's how I usually see the nuthatches.

This one kept going back and forth between the front walk and trees.

The light on the woodpecker below wasn't good at all (side window) but I liked how it's mouth was open.

I guess I'll stop now but these are some of the many aspects of the natural world that I can enjoy without ever stepping out into the oppressive heat. For other nature notes or signs of the season, please visit the host at Rambling Woods.