The one below was taken early in the fall...I do love the color and simplicity of this shot.
Look at this...just look where it is growing. First this closer view....
Then this one where I am not zoomed in.
Now, this is not a true macro or anything like that. It is just a cropped area
from the shot below. I like feathers.....
When I worked at the orchard I would sometimes collect hawk and turkey feathers and stick them on the tractor...I did not know that it is totally illegal to have them in your possession. I think it is a federal law...and though I may be mistaken, I think only Indians are allowed to own the real thing from a bird of prey. I just did a quick search; check out some laws here....I just learned that we are not supposed to have bird nests in our possession either. I'm not sure if that includes all nests or not.All the time I worked at the orchard there was a pair of hawks that I seen quite often...probably would have seen them every day had I noticed. I watched them enough...I considered them 'ours' as if we owned them. But they stayed there, and they raised their young there...and I am sure they killed dozens and dozens and dozens of mice in the orchard. I loved them for that reason alone. Once or twice, one of them landed in an apple tree not too far from me..I got down off my picker to see how close I could get to it. That was two trees away--probably about 20 feet from it.
Sometimes when we mowed under the trees, the hawks would follow not too far away. I didn't know it till I worked there, but mice are hard on apple trees. The burrow in and around the roots, and and can do a lot of damage to the roots. You just would not believe the runways they will have under the trees.
Rose,
ReplyDeleteI didn't know about mice and apple trees!
You wouldn't believe how many times I tried to photograph hawks last summer. HA! So far the results have been TERRIBLE! Maybe I ought to hang around an apple orchard. ;-)
What a great post, the photos are amazing - especially that little flower in the 'window.' And mice and apple tree roots! I'll never look at an orchard the same way way again, now that I know what's likely going on underground. I suspect many people bring home loose feathers from their nature walks. I don't know how the government would keep track of that - they probably are only looking for the bigtime poachers and traffickers.
ReplyDeleteI love all these leftovers! I can't imagine why anyone would care if people picked up feathers off the ground...so weird. I suppose the concern is that people might have killed the bird to get the feathers, but a law seems over done somehow. That plant on the wood shot is great! Love that house, too!
ReplyDeleteThe feather close up is done very well... I love taking pictures and cropping them as you do.
ReplyDeleteI love the second shot... very pretty.
Nice series of photos.
~Michele~
What a wonderful post Rose, love the macro of the feather, but all your pics is so fab.
ReplyDeleteThanks for your kind comment.
Interesting pictures. The stone house is really pretty. Don't see many of them. I guess that is some sort of old building where the flowers are growing. I think I've heard that before about the feathers but not about the bird nest. Kids (and grown ups) pick up bird nest and feathers all the time..unknowing of course about the laws.
ReplyDeleteGreat things here Rose!
ReplyDeleteI'd love a stone house. There is a section of country near Leesburg, Virginia that has has many and a small section in western Virginia where we have traveled that you see quite a few.
I thought the closeup of the feather was the top of a baseball cap.
The feathers - guess I better hide the turkey feathers and the bird nest I have in my garage I picked up out of the yard this summer huh!
I'm wondering about the painted feathers I've seen if they are fake feathers. Something to look into.
Thank you Rose, for identifying my tree! What a strange tree and I've never heard of a Paulownia before! Unfortuately, it is suppose to be invasive in Indiana!
ReplyDeleteI love that stone house. I have always thought rocks beautiful.
ReplyDeleteI too pick up feathers around here on the farm.
I sure would hate to be hauled off to jail for having a feather.
I can see it now... some big fellow asking "what you in for?"
me.."feather possesion." lol..
Sorry. I have this weird sense of humor sometimes.
I really enjoyed my visit here and looking at your wonderful photographs.
You do an amazing job with a camera.
Have a great day.
Pam
I didn't know that about the apple trees either! What an interesting job that must have been! Wow, that cropped closeup of the feather is wonderful! I love hawks so much, too--stopped my car yesterday and tried to take a picture of a red-tail on the wire, but he flew out of range, and circled around till I left, and then I felt guilty for bothering him!
ReplyDeleteMarie