Birds and Barns

There were hordes of small flying insects over the bluff last weekend; feeding on them were swarms of swallows. The birds were moving too fast to single any one bird out of the swarm. I just pointed and clicked to get the following shots. I don't have a telephoto lens. Duh.

 

At first I thought they were all tree swallows, probably because I have two nesting boxes with families in them and have been watching their antics for several weeks now. In the first photo below you can see the tail of a tree swallow - straight across; in the second photo you can see the forked tail of a barn swallow. Their chests are colored while the chests of tree swallows are white. Clicking on photos enlarges them.

 

I've talked about the native viburnum bushes in my north forest which flower about this time of the year and produce red berries that show up in the autumn, persist through the winter untouched, and finally are eaten by migrating birds in the late spring. I'm guessing they need to age before they are palatable; probably the aging improves the flavor or reduces the toxins. There are several cedar waxwings in the center of the photo below; they are among the very few birds I've seen eating viburnum berries.

Yesterday evening I went to The Barn Theater in Port Sanilac (http://www.barntheatre.net/ ) to watch the Woody Allen play "Don't Drink the Water". The semi-converted barn cum theater is set in a lovely historical 'village', a peaceful and beautiful venue. The audience was virtually all geezers like me and we all had a good time.

 

 

Upcoming presentations include: "Wait Until Dark", "I Hate Hamlet", "Night of the Living Dead",  "Having a Wonderful Time, Wish You Were Her" (no typo), "James and the Giant Peach" - for the kids, "Outgoing Tide", "Musical Comedy Murders of 1940", and the Black River Bluegrass Boys - the Black River is nearby. A very ambitious schedule, don't you think? I plan on seeing most of the productions; the prices are reasonable. Of course I was out past my bedtime and the dogs missed me, at least I would really like to think they did........

Always beautiful and changing sunrises, eh? The wild daisies in the foreground are just beginning to flower.