Tuesday, April 04, 2006

More About Birds



goldfinch & chickadee

American gold finches are beginning to turn a brighter shade of yellow, donning their summer colors.



I love the way they often hang upside down to eat the seeds from the niger feeder.


We’ve had one faithful little nuthatch at the feeders all winter.

I wonder if it will find a mate now that spring is here. I like to watch it scoot up and down the tree trunk, upside down as often as right side up.

Tiny bold Chickadees sometimes land right beside me while I’m filling the feeders. I wonder if they’re being friendly or just impatient.

Little juncos, with their gray suits and white vests are another regular visitor.

Sparrows will begin nesting in our eaves soon, if they haven’t already. I save the lint from the clothes dryer and throw it out on the lawn for the birds to use as nesting material.


Dainty mourning doves feed on the tray or the ground and sit on the electric wires or in the trees, softly cooing their mournful sound.
Brightly colored blue jays squawk noisily from the maple tree and boss each other around at the tray feeder.



Occasionally we are treated to the sight of a beautiful red cardinal (or two) and its mate. They visit from the hedgerow across the road where there are some lovely big trees for them to nest in. One morning a couple of weeks ago a small flock of house finches, showing off their pretty purple breasts, stopped by for a feed.
True harbingers of spring, flocks of red-winged black birds began coming to the feeders about 3 weeks ago.
Close behind them came the grackles with their iridescent jackets. I’ve noticed a few cowbirds lately too. We can’t forget the annoying starlings of course, which usually show up in great numbers and eat everything in sight.
I saw my first robin on Friday, March 24th. I hope they nest in our maple tree again like they did last year. It was such fun to watch them raise their babies and see the babies fledge.


A pair of woodpeckers raised three babies too.

They nest in the Oz trees (developed in Australia, they are a cross between willow and poplar….they grow fast!) we have planted as a wind break on the north side of the house.


My hubby made a feeder that holds pieces of orange or apple, which we hope will attract bright orange and black Baltimore orioles to our yard.

I’m going to try putting out a saucer of grape jelly too. Last year we had a pair nesting in the hedgerow across the road. We would often watch through binoculars as they fearlessly chased the bigger birds (crows and hawks) away from their nest, scolding loudly enough to be heard over here.


And!......(drum roll)......The tiniest and most entertaining of all…..The long-awaited, dear little ruby-throated hummingbirds will be back in our area in May. They are such fun to watch. I can’t wait to see them again!

15 comments:

sonia a. mascaro said...[Reply]

What a gorgeous birds, Terri.
Great photos! I think it's very difficult to take photos of birds, they are always jumping around....
Well done!

sonia a. mascaro said...[Reply]

Me again. Sorry, Kerri, I made a type error when I wrote your name on previous comment. Please, sorry again!

Alice said...[Reply]

What a hive of activity is your yard with so many wonderful birds to observe. That red cardinal is one of the most stunning birds I've ever seen. The colour is amazing.

The birds look lovely but the background looks very bleak. Hope the snow stops soon.

Sigruns German Garden said...[Reply]

What a lot of birds you have on your ground! Wonderful photos, Kerri!

Sigrun

Susie said...[Reply]

Kerri,
I had such fun showing these to my 7 yr old grandson. We have never seen a cardinal here! But..
We have hummingbirds year round at our feeder. They nest in the eucalptus trees in the green belt behind us.
Thanks for sharing your wonderful photos.
PS it's still raining here!

clairesgarden said...[Reply]

what a great variety of birds you attract to your garden, it must be lovely to sit and watch them all, I really like the apple feeder your husband made, what a great idea.

Val said...[Reply]

Awesome photos Kerri, and an education for me. So many colourful birds. I agree with Alice that the background is bleak, I find that fascinating too! Glad that spring is on the way for you though. *goes off to check out chickadee information on the net*

Val said...[Reply]

The red cardinal is such a standout, I'm really enjoying the bird photos.

Oz trees (developed in Australia, they are a cross between willow and poplar….they grow fast!)

I haven't heard of them here, Kerri. Those two trees (willow and poplar)aren't native to here, and are considered pests. Have they been developed for outside Australia?

Shez said...[Reply]

Well now I know why you commented on my little Cockatiel Kerri, Look at all the glorious flying friends you have cultivated, with your inventive,wonderous and numerous feeders. Oh, what a lovely haven you have there, especially in that cold winter climate. Love the colors, and variety, woodpeckers, cardinals, Jays. No wonder they don't want to leave!!! You have spoilt them.....GRAPE JELLY!!!!!.....LOL
PS..come visit...I left you a message.

Shell said...[Reply]

Gosh, I just can't get over the abundance of bird life in your garden - in the freezing snow! They must loving visiting you very much. Lovely photos again.

Tanya said...[Reply]

They're great. Makes me want to head over there and watch the birds myself.

Randi said...[Reply]

I love your pictures! It is so neat to have so many birds in your yard!

Boxwood Cottage said...[Reply]

Oh all the beautiful bird shots! Just wow, love it! And you even get hummingbirds! Lucky you!

Anonymous said...[Reply]

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Anonymous said...[Reply]

I forgot to mention that the CD doesn't bother song birds and also has attracted more song birds to my garden.
Thank you again
Cindy G.