I always find it fascinating
when nature does things that we cannot manipulate in any way and that remind us of how magnificent and powerful she is. And the amount of awe it inspires is not related to the size of the event or object. The upcoming solar eclipse is just as amazing as the summer molt of the Goldfinches. The weather is fine, the migratory birds are on their way, and yesterday I did some actual garden work. Yay, spring! Happy Sunday!
(On a sidenote - Squarespace has somehow updated their website, and I am seeing that my website now looks different. I am working on getting everything back to comfy.)
For weeks now,
the Goldfinches have looked like their change to the vibrant yellow summer feathers was about to start, but now, the really adventurous looks are popping up more and more. I thought the first one looked very interesting because he has a lot of features of a Common Redpoll.
The end of November
is usually marked here by plenty of visits from Nuthatches (White and Redbreasted), woodpeckers, Bluebirds, Chickadees and the regulars (MoDo, Blue Jay, Cardi, House Finches), but this year, bird activity is low with mostly the regulars. I guess there’s plenty to eat in the north so less have migrated. But there have been lots of feisty Goldfinches here lately. Come on, winter!
Another week
with mediocre bird activity has passed but there was a lot of sunshine, and it was nice to see the trees do their best to make everything glow before we now get into cooler temperatures. The Goldfinches have returned, now with more drab winter plumage, and the Blue Jays were ruling feeders.
In other news, Birdsy has cameras for pre-order available again, and for the first time will also be available in the UK. I use Birdsy cameras for videos and livestreaming. You can check out their offer on their website birdsy.com.
Last but not least - I seem to only sell calendars when they are on sale this year, so they will be on sale again next week. Come good into the weekend!
April weather
continues to be wild, but nature is unstoppable, and spring is marching on. And it is fabulous to watch the changes and transformations. After showing just some specks of vibrancy, the Goldfinches are now almost completely in summer plumage. They nest the latest of them all so I think they just enjoy being bright and colorful for as long as possible. I do not blame them :)
It is not just
the big birds that are waking up after the winter, the smaller crowd is also singing their heads off and getting into snazzy summer outfits. I loved this very unusually colored House Finch, and the Goldfinches are just adorable with the unpredictable patterns in which their yellow feathers come in.
With every day now,
I see more signs of spring. Also the American Goldfinches that have been looking drab all winter are starting to change into their bright summer plumage. I love this look on them, it is so funny to see where the yellow shoots in on the individual birds.
March is well on its way
into spring, and it is noticeable when you step outside right away. The Redwinged Blackbirds and Grackles have even started to puff up already, and it is glorious to listen to and watch. The Titmice have also become a lot more vocal, and the Goldfinches are turning more and more yellow, changing into summer feathers. It is just so lovely to see the changes.
It is funny how much
my backyard birding reports are sounding like weather reports 😆🤪 But here we go. Today was the last more extremely cold day for a bit. It will still be wintery but not to the point where you have to use face cream to prevent frostbite (my middle German cheeks are still sensitive to extreme cold). The wind was icy and blowing, and there was not a lot going on. A group of Starlings came over and wrecked the bird baths and shooed everybody away, but there was also sun and I got these three beauties. Come good into the weekend!
It was another
dreary day today, and with feeders down, there was of course not a lot going on. I did notice that squirrels really do not like the hot bark butter but scraped the remains off the tree for the night so the Flying Squirrel is happy. And I dug into my folders of photos from the past. These are from a year ago today, and I have never published them. The BBs were visiting a lot because it was cold for a long time. Sigh. Come good into Friday!
As someone from the middle of Germany,
I have always loved having four seasons, and Michigan is a great place to be with that. I can see beauty in all four of them, and it is lovely to have them all here. Snow days are fun because there is a bit more activity at feeders, and I love the pale background for photos too. The birds are all slightly more agitated as well, which can produce some fun shots. Here are some from today. It is wonderful to see more of the Titmouse again. The Goldfinches are still quite vibrant, and having the King of the Yard over is always a treat.
November is an odd month in Michigan
because sometimes it can feel like summer still but it can also quickly turn to winter. This year, the trees took their good time to turn, and the backyard looked lovely, all dipped in reds, orange, gold and green. For the calendar, I first looked at the small birds, so the two Chickadees and the Goldfinch were potential choices. But then my eyes fell on the Redbellied Woodpecker lady, and I thought her size, the colors and detail would work a lot better. So that is why she is Miss November. My calendars are on sale this week, you can get yours here. Come good into the weekend!
These are weird times.
Things have been on the slow side with bird variety and fun photos but at the same time it feels like a lot more work because of the chaos on social media with all the different platforms that people are currently trying to figure out. It will all sort itself out in time, I hope. In the meantime, I am enjoying the few visitors that are coming right now, on the photo setup as well as on my Birdsy cameras. You can see all the ones I am sharing publicly on their BirdsyTV platform at birdsy.com. Here are some of the small crowd, super busy all day filling their cache or getting into berries (that purple haze on the BB is not a photo error, there must be some berries around here somewhere.) I present: Tufted Titmouse, Eastern Bluebird, Redbreasted Nuthatch, Eastern Bluebird, American Goldfinch and Dark-eyed Junco (I love this one in particular, he also comes to the branch cam a lot - it looks like he has a kitty stache!)
I have set up an Ostdrossel account on Mastodon too, you can find me here: @Ostdrossel@mindly.social
It is very interesting
how different things are this November, compared to all the other years I have been here. Temperatures are more than mild, which I think is responsible for the relative quiet in the yard right now. Nature provides an abundance of food, there are still insects around too, so the birds seek feeders less. The Grackle and Redwinged Blackbird are still around too, and today I saw in a local birding group that someone had a Hummingbird on their feeder in Michigan. I am enjoying this mild weather but I really hope we will get some cold too. Anyways, here are some of the current residents, most of which are very busy taking nuts and seeds and hiding them for snowy days.
(Redbreasted Nuthatch, American Goldfinch, Blackcapped Chickadee, Tufted Titmouse and House Finch)
According to the Winter Finch Forecast,
(see here) there may be another irruption of Purple Finches and Evening Grosbeaks going on this winter, and looking at the numerous reports of sightings in the local birding groups, it appears to be true. I heard one the other day (ID’d by Merlin) but have not been blessed with a visitor thus far. I am crossing my fingers. For the time being, here are some Goldfinches, they almost have the same colors 😆 Enjoy the rest of the weekend!
The molting continues.
There are still flocks of adventurous looking Cowbirds passing through, along with Grackles and Starlings. Many of the Blue Jays are also still looking rather rough, but the weather is nice enough so they will not be cold. The Goldfinches have come back, bringing their adorable and excited youngsters, and they are beginning to molt into their winter feathers. The resident Cardi family also has made it through the summer fine, they have at least two young ones but except for this female, they are all camera shy. Hopefully in the coming weeks I can get one of the babies to check a camera out. Come good into Saturday!
And since things are calmer now,
with many of the summer guests gone, the regulars and smaller birds are starting to return to feeders. As sad as fall migration makes me, it is also nice that things are calming down a bit. There is still lovely weather ahead of us and of course the migration may still hold surprises too. This is also a good time to see the Goldfinches in their bright summer colors before they start to dull for the cold season.
Video: Feeder choice
can determine what crowd comes to visit a backyard, and this summer, I have been a bit overrun by larger birds. As you know I love the Grackles, and they usually keep to themselves and eventually migrate, but Blue Jays and MoDos have been particularly dominating this summer. The other day I realized that I haven’t seen a Chickadee or Nuthatch or even Downy Woodpecker in a long time, and they used to be regulars here and I miss them. Usually, I have a big platform feeder and then several smaller stations in different spots and some food on the ground. They are fun for watching but once the MoDos feel comfortable, they will just hang out there and let noone else in. The same goes for my camera feeders. The small bowls hold about two Doves, and that has been most of what I have been getting in photos lately. So in an effort to bring back diversity, I pulled out the smaller, more restrictive feeders, like this one from Kingsyard, that especially Doves cannot access. They try, the rumble you hear here is the MoDo landing on the nut container I placed over this camera for poop protection. The Blue Jays are not happy but they are less clumsy and will still find ways to enter a feeder. And lo and behold - these Goldfinches came yesterday, and this morning I heard Chickadees. I thought this clip was funny because there is also so much going on in the back with Groundhog and Gracks.
Have a great Sunday!
Finches are so peaceful,
and Goldfinches even more so… Not. Hormones are raging in the backyard right now, and there are lots of colorful wing displays during the daily fight for territory, dominance and food. It’s gotta be stressful. As you can see, the Goldfinches are transitioning to their summer feathers, and they look adventurously patchy right now too. These tinies lead a stressful life!
I keep saying
that this is a boring part of the season but it is not like nothing is happening, I guess I am just too excited for the migrants to arrive. However things are changing around here too. A Chickadee has checked out my other nestbox, there are several Robins patrolling the yard now, the Blue Jays have started to come in pairs, the Goldfinches are sporting a very adventurous look, the Juncos are still having fun here and the MoDos are beginning to flirt. The crocuses and narcisus are coming out and trees are starting to bud. I’d say spring has sprung.
