Wilds
Last updated on
May 30, 2021
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I've always enjoyed nature. Not everyone has the opportunity to do so though or not enjoy what is in my region. Maybe they have health, financial or numerous other reasons for not getting out and enjoying nature. Though I have always been sensitive to other's plights in life, I've always shared my life likes freely and this web site, more specifically these web pages on nature, is my way to help allow those that can;t get out to enjoy nature, enjoy nature.
So click around and enjoy some of God's creation; and if you can, get out and do it in person.
Unless otherwise noted, all pictures were taken by me (Roger L Waldrip)
Unless otherwise noted, all pictures were taken by me (Roger L Waldrip).
The species listed here are all things that are common and local to me and where I hang out (like the Waldrip Family Camp Ground) and represent those that are in central Indiana. Not all species are present at my house.
All images can be enlarged by clicking on them (at least that was my intent though I may have missed a couple).
Click around and enjoy the beauty of some of God's creation!
These birds are familiar to my back yard. This is not a complete or exhaustive list of Central Indiana backyard birds but I did capture all of these myself with my cameras. I'm sure that I have snapped others but if I have I haven't located them in my many hundreds of album pictures. Stay tuned for more.
Bluejay
The Bluejay is a year round resident of Indiana. I find that it mostly feeds off of the ground around my feeders but will occasionally get in my suet and sunflower feeders. They are noisy and a bully bird, often chasing other birds off and destroying the eggs or young of other species of birds while in their nests. Unless the male and female are together, I can not tell them apart as they are very close in appearance; the female is a little blander.
Brown Thrasher
Info coming soon.
(Above) Sitting above my roses, a male cardinal surveys the area before swooping into one of my sunflowers feeders.
Cardinal
Besides being the state bird of Indiana, the male really stands out especially in a snow. The female is quite a bit less colorful. Cardinals are here year round and prefer my sunflower feeders but will occasionally get on the others. They will nest in some pretty unusual locations (right now, one is nesting on a hanging planter on my parents patio) and have 2 to 4 eggs. They don;t look openness to much, preferring brush and light wooded areas.
Bald Eagle
Info coming soon.
Peregrine Falcon
They're around me but they are fast and I never seem to have a camera in my hand when I can get their picture.
Info and picture coming soon.
(Above) A pair of male goldfinchs on one of my sunflower feeders.
Goldfinch
My goldfinches prefer my thistle seed and sunflower feeders. The male is golden while the female is a much paler yellow. They are year round residents of Indiana.
Grosbeak
Info coming soon.
Cooper Hawk
They're around me but I never seem to have a camera in hand when I can get their picture.
Info coming soon.
Red Tail Hawk
These beautiful birds can be found almost anywhere in Indiana. When I was a child, they were not uncommon to be seen but their population numbers have really exploded in the last 10 years. This is a mixed blessing because as cool as it is to see them they also wreak havoc on the local rabbit population.
They are often seen sitting on the utility lines watching for a meal. Their white breasts stick out when they are in the tree branches along the road ways.
Small mammals such as mice, and rabbits, are their primary food source.
**Fun Fact** - Secondary food sources are moles on top of fence posts. Dad places the moles he catches out of the yard on top of our fence posts to feed the hawks.
I was able to capture these pictures by luck (most wildlife pictures are luck though you can hedge your bets by scouting and being ready). I had just parked Lil' Red (my truck) and grabbed my camera to head into the house (I almost always have one of my cameras with me) when I looked around and saw this beauty siting on my fence post. It is also one of the few times that I actually acted instead of just taking in the view and was able to capture these images as it looked me over and then flew off (to it;s better judgement) to a nearby tree.
Ruby-throated Hummingbird
I have several pictures of these. Just need to locate and get them in here.
Info coming soon.
Indigo Bunting
Info coming soon.
Morningdove
A Hoosier calls these docile birds turtledoves. Their not very colorful but have distinctive, almost regal, markings. They come to my feeders and glean whats on the ground. They are also often roaming around on the ground for bugs. They make a funny sound when they flap their wings while flying, especially on take off. As they aren't very maneuverable and feed on the ground int he open, they often fall victim to birds of prey.
They are almost never alone and if I remember correctly, they mate for life.
Nuthatch
Info coming soon.
(Above) A pair of robins have built a nest under Dad's lean-to and have young ones in it.
Robin
When I was younger the Robins was a good sign that spring was nearly here. However, I have seen robins year round the last several years at my house, though their numbers are substantially lower in the winter months. They don;t generally come up to my feeder area but do sometimes to glean for worms; earthworms are apparently their favorite food though bugs are not out of the question. Since they usually forage for worms that usually keeps them ion the open on the ground and that makes them vulnerable victims of hawks sometimes.
Sparrow
House
Info coming soon.
(Above) They are quick and hard to photograph.
Swallow
Info coming soon.
Titmouse
Tufted
Info coming soon.
Turkey Vulture
Info coming soon.
Downy Woodpecker
Info coming soon.
Flicker Woodpecker
Also known as the Northern Flicker.
Info coming soon.
Hairy Woodpecker
Info coming soon.
Pileated Woodpecker
Info coming soon.
Red Bellied Woodpecker
Info coming soon.
Red Headed Woodpecker
Info coming soon.
Don't let this bug you but here you'll see what kind of bugs live in and around my house. Hopefully, you won't find to many of them in my house though.
Some day, I'll start the photo collection of fishes that are found in and around the waters of Central Indiana; in it's streams, rivers, ponds and lakes. There's a pretty good chance that I have caught most if not all of them when I have been fishing over the years.
Though most of my other stuff will be mostly native around me Indiana stuff, this area will be about flowers that I plant or tend and may not be native to Indiana.
Again, I doubt that this will be an exhaustive list of mammals that can be found in and around Central Indiana. Especially since I'll likely never get a Bigfoot or mountain lion on film. They're there though. If they frequent where you live, please invite me over to attempt to film them.
(Above) Though not uncommon to come up close to my kitchen window gardens, they generally stay further away.
Rabbit
Bunny
Sometimes called a bunny rabbit, because they are cute. Their numbers have been decimated over the years (I didn't shoo t that many when I was younger) because their habitat has been eradicated, coyotes eat them and with the return of the hawk population, the rabbits have suffered. I sometimes wonder if I would rather have the hawks here at the house or the rabbits. I like them both. Rabbits like brushy areas and eat a lot of low nutrient roughage.
OK, I sometimes call them bunbuns.
Squirrel
Fox Squirrel
Info coming soon.
Plants
Unlike flowers, I'm defining plants as pretty much anything not planted, cultivated or wanted. This will include weeds. Basically anything that is natural and native to Central Indiana.
Surely you guessed it. Trees around me. Mostly native but perhaps some that are familiar but not originally from Central Indiana.
The live web cams have been moved to Wilds - Live Web Cams.
I moved and divided them into categories as they were taking a long time to load (and edit).