Monday (19-April-2021) — New Jersey

Springtime Backyard Nature in New Jersey.

Visitors backyard and the patio birdfeeder: Mourning Dove, Black Vulture, Turkey Vulture, Hairy Woodpecker, Tufted Titmouse, White-breasted Nuthatch, House Finch, Chipping Sparrow, Brown-headed Cowbird, Northern Cardinal.


Daily backyard visitors. Individual images in the slideshow are available in my PhotoShelter Gallery.


Hairy Woodpecker. Individual images in the slideshow are available in my PhotoShelter Gallery.


Vultures. Individual images in the slideshow are available in my PhotoShelter Gallery.

Early springtime flowers: Daffodil, Dandelion, Grape Hyacinth, Maple Tree, Plum Tree, Tulip, Violet, unidentified Yellow, and unidentified White.


Early Springtime Flowers (landscape mode). Individual images in the slideshow are available in my PhotoShelter Gallery. <


Early Springtime Flowers (portrait mode). Individual images in the slideshow are available in my PhotoShelter Gallery.

Tulip opening time-lapse videos. Two cameras: (Leica SL2 camera with a 50 mm f/1.4 lens) and (Fuji X-H1 with a 50-140 mm OIS lens).

Yardwork — Mowing the Lawn and using the Leaf Vac to move Black Tree Mulch. Time-lapse video using a Garmin VIRB-360 camera.

Daily Electric Energy Used (57.6 kWh) from Sense. Daily Solar Electric Energy Produced (51.5 kWh) from Sense and SolSystems. Sun and clouds. A deficit of 6.1 kWh.

Wednesday (14-April-2021) — New Jersey

Springtime Backyard Nature in New Jersey.

Visitors to the patio birdfeeder: Mourning Dove, Tufted Titmouse, House Finch, American Goldfinch, Chipping Sparrow, Brown-headed Cowbird, Northern Cardinal.


Daily backyard visitors. Individual images in the slideshow are available in my PhotoShelter Gallery.

Early spring flowers blooming: Daffodils, Dandelions, Grape Hyacinth, Tulip, and Violets. Time-lapsed video of the Tulip opening.


Early Spring Flowers. Individual images in the slideshow are available in my PhotoShelter Gallery.

Daily Electric Energy Used (49.4 kWh) from Sense. Daily Solar Electric Energy Produced (42.4 kWh) from Sense and SolSystems. Cloudy. A deficit of 7.0 kWh.

Monday (04-May-2020) — New Jersey

Backyard Springtime Nature in New Jersey.

Afternoon Birds: House Finch, Brown-headed Cowbird, Gray Catbird, and Chipping Sparrow. Afternoon Early May Flowers: Daffodil, Johnny-Jump-Up, Blue Forget me Not, Plum Tree, Dogwood Tree, Siberian Wallflower, Five-Spots, Prunella Vulgaris (also known as Self-Heal, Heal-All, and Woundwort), wild Violet (Viola), Jack in the Pulpit, Lilac (two varieties), California Poppy, Allium, Yellow Tulip, and Italian (red) Clover.


Afternoon Birds. Individual images in the slideshow are available in my PhotoShelter Gallery.


Early May Flowers. Individual images in the slideshow are available in my PhotoShelter Gallery.


Early May Flowers. Individual images in the slideshow are available in my PhotoShelter Gallery.

Daily Electric Energy Used (49.3 kWh) from meter readings the Sense Home Energy Monitor. The daily Solar Electric Energy Produced (72.6 kWh) from SolSystems and Locus Energy. A surplus of 23.3 kWh.


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Saturday (02-May-2020) — New Jersey

Backyard Springtime Nature in New Jersey.

More birds at the feeder today. In the morning: Blue Jay, Northern Cardinal, and Chipping Sparrow. In the afternoon: Northern Cardinal, Brown-headed Cowbird, and Carolina Wren. The Carolina Wren actually was on the roof with a grub in its mouth. It was also calling out letting folks know it had a grub. I’m not sure if it was trying to attract a mate, or to get a young bird to fledge and get out of the nest. In the afternoon, I mowed the lawn for the first time this year. The grass was getting to be ankle high. I hadn’t mowed earlier because a tire on the lawn tractor was flat. While mowing, I noticed a number of small wildflowers already blooming. I haven’t planted andy wildflower seeds yet this spring, so these are either native, or have self-seeded from last year. Later in the afternoon, I went for a walkabout in the yard to document the early May flowers: Johnny-Jump-Up, Blue Forget me Not, Grape Hyacinth, Plum Tree, Siberian Wallflower, Five-Spots, Prunella Vulgaris (also known as Self-Heal, Heal-All, and Woundwort), Baby Blue Eyes, wild Violet (Viola), Jack in the Pulpit, Lilac, California Poppy, Allium bud, Star of Bethlehem, Strawberry, Yellow Tulip.


Birds in the Morning. Individual images in the slideshow are available in my PhotoShelter Gallery.


Birds in the Afternoon and Early Evening. Individual images in the slideshow are available in my PhotoShelter Gallery.

Carolina Wren with a slug. Image taken with a Fuji X-T3 camera and 80 mm f/2.8 macro lens (ISO 320, 80 mm, f/5.6, 1/1250 sec) (DAVID J MATHRE)
Carolina Wren with a grub. Image taken with a Fuji X-T3 camera and 80 mm f/2.8 macro lens (ISO 320, 80 mm, f/5.6, 1/1250 sec) (DAVID J MATHRE)


Early May Backyard Flowers. Individual images in the slideshow are available in my PhotoShelter Gallery.


Early May Backyard Flowers. Individual images in the slideshow are available in my PhotoShelter Gallery.

Daily Electric Energy Used (45.9 kWh) from meter readings the Sense Home Energy Monitor. The daily Solar Electric Energy Produced (69.5 kWh) from SolSystems and Locus Energy. Sunny, but the power was out for a couple of hours in the afternoon. A surplus of 23.6 kWh.


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Wednesday (15-April-2020) — New Jersey

Backyard Springtime Nature in New Jersey.

Daily walkabout. Lots of Spring flowers: Grape Hyacinth, Daffodil, Dandelion, Violet, Plum Tree, Maple Tree, Pear Tree, and Tulips. The Grape Hyacinth bulbs were planted last spring — supposed to have been planted the previous fall. I thought the deer were nibbling the plants as they started to emerge this spring, but now are in full bloom. The section of Daffodils along the street on the west side of the house is now four years old, and keeps getting better. Only about half of the Tulips from last year on the patio remain. Deer nibbled on the accessible plants as they emerged.

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Row of Purple Grape Hyacinth flowers. Image taken with a Fuji X-T2 camera and 100-400 mm OIS lens (ISO 200, 100 mm, f/6.4, 1/850 sec). (David J Mathre)
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Daffodills in bloom. Image taken with a Fuji X-T2 camera and 100-400 mm OIS lens (ISO 200, 100 mm, f/6.4, 1/1000 sec). (David J Mathre)
alt_title. (David J Mathre)
Dandelion and wild Violet flowers. Image taken with a Fuji X-T2 camera and 100-400 mm OIS lens (ISO 200, 400 mm, f/6.4, 1/680 sec). (David J Mathre)


Tree Flowers. Images taken with a Fuji X-T2 camera and 100-400 mm OIS lens. Individual images in the slideshow can be viewed in my PhotoShelter Gallery.


Tulips. Images taken with a Fuji X-T2 camera and 100-400 mm OIS lens. Individual images in the slideshow can be viewed in my PhotoShelter Gallery. (David J Mathre)

Daily Electric Energy Used (53.8 kWh) from Sense Home Energy Monitor and Daily Solar Electric Energy Produced (74.3 kWh) from SolSystems and Locus Energy. Lots of sun (some clouds). A surplus of 20.5 kWh.



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