A couple of weeks ago, Frank and I went on our first fishing outing of the season. We went to a pond which we visit each spring, and where we usually encounter one of the area's sweetest residents. She's a lovely white and grey feline who has learned to recognize that fishing rods mean she might soon be lucky enough to dine on a fresh fish dinner.On past visits, this feral beauty has been visibly pregnant and she's made it quite clear how urgently she need to obtain nourishment for herself and her growing babies. For all we knew, she may have been expecting another litter this spring, or perhaps she just knew that she needed to get her meals, and to hoard some of them when she could.
Shortly after our arrival, she came out from the shelter of an abandoned building and made sure we were aware of her presence.
The fishing wasn't spectacular where we were so after a while, we crossed the road and made our way behind the building, where we knew we'd be able to catch some chub for her.
She met us out back and waited patiently.
It wasn't long before each of us had several tugs at our respective fishing rods. One by one, we unhooked several small fish, killed them swiftly and brought them to our hungry friend.
At first we couldn't get too close to her and had to toss them her way.
After a few feedings, she decided she would swat them out of our hands and eventually she gently took one chub right out of Frank's hand, as seen in the small inset image at the start of the page.We later moved on to a different area and spent a pleasant afternoon watching birds, clouds and bobbing floats. We went home with no fish, fewer worms and a few fond memories.
Below are a some photos of a few other creatures which we encountered over the next few days. I hope you enjoy them.
Bunnies are beautiful critters but I don't think they rank too high on the intelligence scale. Frank pointed this cutie out to me. It must have figured that standing stock still meant that he was invisible to me. He allowed me to approach fairly closely without twitching a muscle. 
Finally, when I stepped over the too-close line, he hopped a full six feet away, and stood still once more - his back to me this time. Silly wabbit!
Another not-too-bright but beautiful creature is the mourning dove. In his current and very amusing post, Frank agrees with me about this bird's IQ. Go ahead and read his entertaining tale about a mourning dove and a chipmunk. I don't mind waiting till you get back.
A far more intelligent bird is the crow. If you doubt that for one moment, have a look at this video and you'll see what I mean. There's a 30 second commercial before the crow video begins. 
Perhaps this guy was off to his workshop in order to craft the right tool for a job.
These American Goldfinch are still coming into their breeding plumage and appear a bit patchy before sporting their full summer gold.
And speaking of gold, look at the beautiful yellow patch on this white-throated sparrow's head. He has a curious expression rivaled only by...
.. this beautiful male cardinal. Ever watchful and calculating, this guy made sure I didn't come any closer while his partner helped herself to the feeder nearby. A bunny could sure learn from these birdbrains.Back soon with more photos.
