As an adult, I appreciate the trees that we see on our walks and I am happy to say that Richard and I are beginning to identify many of those that we see. However, the tree that you see above....is it a pignut hickory, a mockernut hickory or a shagbark hickory? Can anyone tell me for sure? The tree has serrated edges (might be hard to see in the photos) and has five leaves, arranged...well, you see how it looks, one big leaf at the end and the other leaves are two on each side, directly beside each other.
The bird that came to us a few weeks back, we think it is a yellow rumped warbler. It must be a female as the male would be a bit brighter. Having said that, this bird was gorgeous and I am sorry you can't see the bright yellow patch on its backside! We think that this is a Myrtle warbler (there is the yellow rumped warbler called the Audubon's warbler with slightly different coloring that is mostly in the western USA.)
The Myrtle warbler is migratory and it overwinters in the southern US. And guess what I have read about it, it is "an occasional vagrant to the British Isles"! Isn't that funny, so am I!
We only saw this bird for a week or so and you know it was happy to visit us with our clean water and fresh birdseed!
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Chas is going though treatments for cancer just now and has had to cancel some tour dates in England. (Chas is the one singing lead on the song, Dave is the one wearing a hat and singing harmony.) Please say a prayer for Chas.
So many are battling cancer and other serious illnesses just now.
I pray for them all.
What a cute little bird, and I can just see a flash of yellow down the side. I only heard of a hickory stick through reading American novels like Tom Sawyer and Little Women, but we had the same thing at our schools - it was The Cane!
ReplyDeleteI also know of the cane from England, it is mentioned in all the books about the public schools!
DeleteI am glad you can see a bit of the yellow, it was such a pretty bird, I had other photos but they were all blurry with the bird moving so much!
First, Happy Birthday to your Dad! He sounds like a spunky and fun guy...canning his own veggies is amazing! I don't know the type of tree pictured but I wouldn't want that stick on my bum! We have a little nest of wrens in one of my herb pots on the deck. We've been watching the comings and goings all weekend. So cute. Have a good week and I hope the weather is good since I just heard about all the tornadoes in Texas and the south.
ReplyDeleteThanks very much for the birthday wishes for my Dad!!
DeleteNo, I never liked getting "whippings" when I was a kid, but it seemed I got them fairly often. The worse thing, having to cut your own "hickory"!
Love the wrens too, they will build in anything!
I've heard of things that have been 'hickory smoked' but have no idea what the tree looks like. And now you're telling me there's more than one type??! Yeh - we had the cane at school - one headmaster of my acquaintance had a special cupboard full of different types. "Ah, Binns Minor, trouble with those verbs again, I see. Now, I think the No3, 'swisher' will do just nicely today...".
ReplyDeleteDidn't know about Chas; keeping everything crossed.
OH yes, hickory smoked BBQ is a big thing here! And yes, there is one more than one!
DeleteI can't imagine you ever having trouble with your verbs!
Keep Chas in your thoughts and prayers, they say that they noticed his cancer in the early stages and that it should respond well to treatment.
Can't help you with the identification thing but I can help with a prayer for Chas. How awful!!! Blessings- xo Diana
ReplyDeleteI know that you have prayers for so many, dear Diana. Thank you and thanks for all that you call to our attention.
DeleteSo many birds and even animals from the USA I've never seen before and I watch a lot of wildlife programmes from all over the world. For some reason America and its smaller wildlife are never shown here but that would be the creatures that would interest me most, including fish and unusual insects. Didn't know Alligator Gar in Texas rivers or Bull Sharks swimming in the Great Lakes existed until a few years ago.
ReplyDeleteThey are trying to keep the Asian carp out of the Great Lakes, they are native here but they look horrible to me, they will jump right into a boat. Look them up, you won't believe it!
DeleteYou should see South Georgia in the summer, you would see and hear enough insects to last a lifetime! LOL.
'Readin' an' 'ritin' an' 'rithmetic, taught to the tune of a hick'ry stick!" That's the song i think of when i think of hickory. Prayers for Chas and all who are battling that dread disease, including one of our relatives.
ReplyDeletePraying for your relative with cancer, Mimi.
DeleteIt was the cane at my school though thankfully I new experienced it! It's funny looking back at all the things teachers used to hit pupils with - rulers, ping pong bats, board rubbers! Definitely not the good old days. The warbler is so pretty. We've been entertained by the sparrows lately who love nothing more than a dust bath in our garden before they bed down for the night - so cute. X
ReplyDeleteYes, the teachers would use whatever they could! Also, a trip to the Principal's office was a huge thing! I bet kids could care less now.
DeleteI love the sparrows in England! We have the same ones here, some idiot released sparrows and starlings into Central Park in NYC in the late 1800's, I think. They have been here ever since! x
That bird is gorgeous, even if we can't quite see the full splendour of it. It's great it got so close to you. The only birds that get that close to me are pigeons. I like them fine but, there's just so many of them. It kind of loses its lustre after a while.
ReplyDeleteI too wish for Chas to have a speedy recovery, and that everyone with cancer can do the same. It's a horrible disease.
Wish I could have gotten a better photo of this great looking bird but it was a bit skittish, it was only visiting and not one of our "regulars"!
DeleteOnce at our church, someone stood up and asked the congregation how many had lost a close relative or friend to cancer, almost everyone raised their hands.
Prayers for all battling cancer. Love that you found some thing to brighten the day like that delightful bird. Everyday may not be a good one but there is something good to be found in every day !
ReplyDeleteWhen we have a bird that is migrating and stops to drink our water, we are so thrilled! Can't tell you how much it pleases us!
DeleteSpring is trying to arrive. We had snow today for goodness sake!
ReplyDeleteSnow! You can keep it! :-)
DeleteOf course you already knew that I wasn't going to be able to help with the identifying of the plant or the bird, as neither is native to my part of the planet. But I do enjoy seeing what you see at home and during your wonderful walks!
ReplyDeleteJust wanting to know: Did you get my email with the photo?
Oh no, don't tell me I didn't reply to your email?
DeleteI was so tickled when I saw it, you should have heard my squeal of delight! (Ask Richard!)
Going over now to look at my emails.
Good pictures again!
ReplyDeleteYou might guess that the only one that I took was the one with the bird. Richard's would have been better!
DeleteI don't think it is a shagbark hickory because we have them around here and the bark is really shaggy, though that does not happen until the tree is pretty big. I'm not familiar with the other two types, nor with the pretty little warbler. Saying a prayer for Chas. I know too many people who are sick right now.
ReplyDeleteDoes this help:
ReplyDeletehttp://www.wikihow.com/Identify-Hickory-Trees
Thanks! I did see that but did not have the time to study it properly. After spending...ahem...QUITE a bit more time looking at info, I THINK it is a mockernut hickory. Will let you know in future post!
DeleteThanks again, I might be able to see the shaggy bark of a shagbark hickory one day! Hope you don't have too much flooding where you are. xx
I love your blog, Kay G. Great pics.
ReplyDeleteThank you very much and thanks for your visit!
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