Keith Roeller

One of the first birds I learned to identify, and still a favorite!

Orange and white cat on a wood deck, backlit by the afternoon sun, walking toward the camera.

My handsome boy Tora, looking sharp in the late afternoon sun.
#Caturday

Sunset with pink and orange clouds, shadows of trees, and the roofs of a few houses.

Beautiful evening

Today (Sep 30) is International Translation Day, the Feast Day of Saint Jerome. This Bible translator is known to have had a fierce temper and was prone to biting sarcasm. Yep, that’s what being a translator does to you.
#translation #translationday

Male Eurasian bullfinch perched atop a pine branch against a blue sky, looking regal.

Feeling proud!

Small robin-like bird perched on a branch, looking disheveled because it has just had a bath. A male red-flanked bluetail, it has a blue tail and rump, and orange-red flanks, with a white throat and greyish-white underparts, and a small, thin black bill and slender black legs.

Red-flanked bluetail basking in the sun after a bath. Maybe not his most impressive moment.
#birds #Red-flanked_bluetail #ルリビタキ

Eurasian bullfinch perched on a branch in dappled sunlight, partially obscured by the pale colored tree, with prominent shadows of a branch and leaves across its body.

On rare occasions, shadows and branches actually add something to a bird photo. Eurasian bullfinch in dappled sunlight.
#bullfinch #ウソ #birds

Praying mantis half hidden behind a cucumber leaf stares intently and hungrily at a brown moth perched on a gardening pole.

Summer morning drama as a praying mantis eyes up breakfast. Thanks for protecting our cucumbers, little stormtrooper.

Orange and white cat on a gray blanket, curled up in someone’s lap.

I should be cooking dinner right now, but…

Fun fact: The Japanese name for the short-tailed albatross is ahōdori, which literally means "idiot bird" owing to their complete lack of fear toward predators, especially humans. There is a movement to change this derogatory name to the more elegant okinotayū (“grand master of the seas”).
#オキノタユウ

Your Donation for Albatross Restoration｜Yamashina Institute for Ornithology Would you like to join the albatross conservation project conducted by the Yamashina Institute for Ornithology through your donation? Seventy years after being declared extinct, the albatross populati...

Also, a shameless plug for the organization that is working to help these birds survive and thrive.
www.yamashina.or.jp/albatross_e/...

Juvenile short-tailed albatross soaring over a calm ocean

Today (June 19) is World Albatross Day. In honor of one of my favorite birds, here’s a bad photo of a young short-tailed albatross, a species that was believed extinct by the mid-20th century, but has been making a miraculous recovery thanks to focused conservation efforts.
#birds
#albatross
#アホウドリ

Pelagic birding trip a few weeks ago, when short-tailed shearwaters were passing through this part of the Pacific.

Field horsetail amid grass

Field horsetail. A common plant, but one of my favorite understated signs of spring.
#horsetail #つくし #スギナ

Bull-headed shrike perched on a branch.

A bull-headed shrike in my backyard today. Picture through a dirty window, but still a striking bird in his spring finest.
#birds #モズ

Black-headed gulls squabbling over sardines.
#birds
#ユリカモメ

(´-ω-`)

An Alphabet for Gourmets (1949), “F is for Family” if you’re curious.

This conversation prompted me to go find and reread MFK Fisher’s joyous ode to the pleasures of spaghetti with butter (and Parmesan), which is probably the definitive word on the subject. So thank you for that, but now I’m hungry.

This is the face of a cat who knows he’s cool.

Persimmon fruit on a branch

Persimmon — orange and tasty

I managed to catch a glimpse of the #ISS overhead tonight. It always amazes me to think that there are people on that rapidly moving speck of light.

Hi! Yes, I would love that. I’m hoping to post more bird-related content. Thank you!

Thirty finches (mostly) on a wire. I love the variety of silhouettes in this backlit pic from my afternoon walk.
#Birdonawire

謹賀新年🎍
My local shrine does a wonderful celebration at midnight.

Team Amber. It always felt more classy. The Matrix would have been much more inviting in amber.

There are no pumpkins to be found in my suburb of Tokyo, but the persimmons give a lovely orange accent to the season.

Cosmos after the rain. One of my favorite signs of fall.