Extreme weather days
always make for some good birdwatching, and the feeders were buzzing at times yesterday despite the freezing rain. The light was murky, but this just kind of makes their colors pop. Here are some of the visitors. Top left to bottom right: American Goldfinch, Eastern Bluebird, Blue Jay, House Finch, Redbellied Woodpecker, Northern Cardinal.
And a lot of traffic
And a lot of traffic can create quick interactions and surprise gatherings at the feeders. The Blue Jays, Starlings and Goldfinches were exceptionally active. I love these interaction shots but they are often not in focus, so here are three rare examples. I hope you have a pleasant Monday with no bad surprise gatherings 😊
I don't know why,
but for some reason my yard has been flooded with Blue Jays in the last two days. It must be a large family group that is migrating a bit farther south.
Video: “Crowing” Blue Jay
Friday is finally here, and this Blue Jay couldn’t have heralded it
in a more perfect way.
The little man
continues to elude me! Even the Blue Jay pep talk could not convince him to check out the bowl.
When life gives you Blue Jays,
you share some of that blue love with the rest of the world. These guys have learned that the cams provide the goodies, and they will shoot down from the trees whenever I refill. It is good to see that they all seem to grow their feathers back nicely.
The flowery thicket
also seems to be preferred by Blue Jays who do not like to be all out in the open with new feathers exposing their skin. I especially liked the light in the second photo. I know it is not a good photo by photography standards or super focused but thecolors and contrasts are pretty pretty.
Molting birds
can be tough to look at, but these Blue Jays are already growing their new feathers back.
We got a good amount of rain
the other day, so here are some birds with rain drop jewelry.
(Common Grackle, Blue Jay, Mourning Dove)
Teenagers!
The yard is full of teenage birds, so here is a little gallery. In order of appearance: Baltimore Oriole, Rose-breasted Grosbeak, Common Grackle, European Starling, Red-winged Blackbird, Blue Jay and Red-bellied Woodpecker.
Video: two young Blue Jays
These two came for an early breakfast in the morning sun. They are making an announcement call but then went about it pretty peacefully.
We got rain yesterday,
and the birds didn’t stop coming, so here is a gallery of feathered wet mops :D
(Robin, Grackle, Cardinal, Blue Jay)
The penguin babies are here!
Well, technically, they are Blue Jays, but their face markings always remind me of penuins somehow :D They have started to come to the bird bath too, so the livestream should be fun today. I’ve had a lot of work and not enough time to go through the many photos I’ve taken but I will post some more this weekend. Have a wonderful Saturday!
Video: baby Oriole and Blue Jay
The yard is full of baby Orioles today, and like other bird parents, also theirs seem to love "parking" them at the bird bath. This one was brave, went in and stood it's ground against a big Blue Jay.
Power stance.
I know it is a repetitive pose, but I love it because they all have so much individual character.
(MoDo, Rose-breasted Grosbeak, Blue jay, Grackle)
Video: Epic battle at the bird bath
I am loving the new bird bath setup! Ever since I made some adjustments, there has been a constant flow of visitors and some really funny scenes happened. This Cardi lady finally decided to go for a bath after a long inspection of the whole place. But then all of a sudden, a cheeky Blue Jay appeared and spoiled the fun for her. She was not happy. This went on for quite some time, but unfortunately an internet outtage cut the recording short. Nevertheless, a very funny sight.
Feeder activity is down
as you might have noticed too, and that is because everybody is busy building nests or taking care of offspring. The birds do make quick trips to grab beaks full of goodies for the babies. Grackles are especially talented when it comes to taking large quantities :D While it is always odd to have less activity after the spring migration rush, it frees up time, at least for me. I have used it to get my veggie garden in shape, and things are looking very good this year.
A very windy day
created fuzzy portraits of a Blue Jay, a Rose-breasted Grosbeak, and the King of the Yard. The MoDo’s feathers remained flat, so it showed off its wing and smiled for the camera.
Love is in the air...
A Northern Flicker has discovered that our gutter has a nice resonating quality and has drummed to impress the ladies quite a bit. Which prompted us to build an experimental starling-proof Flicker nest box. I am excited to see how that goes. Well, and the Blue Jays are also getting cozy :)