I cannot believe
that April is almost here now. Temperatures are looking very nice for the coming days, as well as the migration monitors online (this is a fantastic and fascinating source: https://birdcast.info/). The backyard is still slowly revocering from winter, and there has been a nice steady activity all week. Here are a couple of the current regulars. Have a wonderful Easter weekend!
(Titmouse, Pine Siskin, Redwinged Blackbird, Goldfinch, Goldfinch, Downy Woodpecker)
There is a leucistic Junco around,
and Birdsy has captured it on video (you can watch on my Youtube and my social mediachannels, video uploads are always a bit of a pain here) but so far I was not lucky with photos. I have set a camera on the ground in the thicket for that, and even if it did not lure in the Junco yet, it has still gotten some visitors. It almost feels like the birds need to learn to not be shy with my cameras again, it’s been so long since a Downy has visited. The Cardinal is one of several that are hanging around.
Winter is back,
this time with an ice storm that covered everything in frozen magic over night. I find it beautiful and fascinating but I am also aware that it can be hazardous. Nevertheless, I was excited to venture out this morning with the big cam to explore everything (because this does not happen often). Here are some of the trees, and a frosted feeder, as well as a hilarious food fight at the high in demand tree cam.
There are two woodpecker species
visiting Michigan backyards that can be hard to tell apart, the Downy and the Hairy Woodpecker. They look very similar from afar, and if you don’t see them next to each other, identification can be really tough. I have both visiting, and this week, they both came to the camera too. Both are females, having no red spot on the head. Apart from the size difference, the length of their beaks is a great ID marker. The Hairy Woodpecker in the second photo has a much longer beak. (I know the Hairy photo is not super focused but it showed the beak so well that I decided to use it.) As a bonus, there is a pretty Redbellied Woodpecker from a foggy morning.
Woodpeckers are regulars here
but in the winter, some of them have made themselves rare. Now, the males are coming out and visit more frequently (apparently they love the sunshine as much as I do). Here are a Red-bellied Woodpecker and a Downy Woodpecker. Downy Woodpeckers look very similar to Hairy Woodpeckers, but they are noticeably smaller and have a shorter beak (there are other ID features but these are the most obvious). The Redbellied is named so for his red patch on the belly. There is also a Redheaded Woodpecker, but I only had one one time here. I love Woodpeckers and am happy to have them around.
There have been some
visits of birds I have not seen a lot recently, and some of them are the woodpecker guys. Suddenly, a male Redbellied and a Downy have been coming to the camera bowls. They are beautiful and have interesting patterns and textures that make their visits even more special.
Video: Spa day for "Owlie"
I hung this feeder yesterday, it is made of sunflower seeds, peanuts, some fruit and I think thistle. It is a crowd pleaser, and it was hilarious to watch them give the "owl" a wellness treatment on this beautiful snow morning. The Birdsy camera got a bit confused over night because it thought there was an actual owl there too 😄
Sharing is caring,
and I hope that just like this Goldfinch and Downy are peacefully sharing a meal, you will too. In company that you like and choose. A Happy Thanksgiving to all who celebrate it tomorrow. Be safe out there and enjoy the food!
As I mentioned the other day,
a Downy Woodpecker lady had started to roost in the Bluebird box. This happens every other year, and they will stay for a while but never have all winter. She goes to bed at around 6.30 pm every evening and gets up at around 7.40 in the morning. Like clockwork, day after day. Here she is coming for dinner before going to rest for the night. The male is still checking out the other box but has not spent a night yet.
Have a sweet night!
Video: Peck, peck, peck
The Woodpeckers are slowly returning to feeders, which of course makes me happy because any bird that is not a Dove right now does :P I find it fascinating how many different feeder styles for these birds are out there and while I generally only rarely put out suet, I am always interested to see what else is possible. This is where this “sandwich feeder” came in that can be filled with bark putter or other speadable bird food. Now it is supposed to also be Starling proof but only if you spread the food inside so that it does not come all the way to the edges. I didn’t do that here because I wanted the birds to find the feeder first. It is easy to clean and easy to hang, but the birds have been pretty much ignoring it for weeks. Until today. Patience pays off, and with that, have a great Friday!
Woodpeckers.
Different species and size, same pose. The large one is a Red-bellied Woodpecker (recognizable as a male by his all-red head cap) and a male Downy Woodpecker (recognizable by the red spot on his head). Have a great Thursday!
And a Downy Woodpecker.
For some reason he has been loving the nut feeder all winter, rarely checked the suet and is now regularly going to the bowls. Funny little guy. He is also always the last bird I see before night falls. Happy Saturday!
The Woodpeckers
were happy today. I thought it was funny that the Downy came to the camera feeder. And I am crossing my fingers that one Woodpecker species will choose to nest in my bos this year.
During these dull winter days
it is very exciting when a bird that usually does not come to the camera shows up in the photos. This is the case with these Downy Woodpeckers. The one with the red on the head is a male. I am not sure if it is the same bird in the other photo. One of these used my Bluebird house for roosting for a couple of weeks but has not been back in a while.
I loved this Downy Woodpecker.
Apparently, he has a cavity home somewhere because he has some wood chips under his “mustache” :D
The cold temperatures
have also brought the Downy Woodpeckers out. Usually, I barely ever see them right now, since I had to take the nut cylinders and suet in because of the Starlings. This is why it is a nice treat to see them checking out the camera bowls. This male (recognizable as such because of the red spot on the head) has been coming a lot today. I have heard Flickers call (and seen one too) recently too, but haven’t heard any drumming yet, and I always wonder where these guys are nesting.
Downy Woodpeckers
always look so gentle and elegant, but they move in a way that made me jokingly give them the nickname “hostage birb” because they move as if their feet are tied. It is funny to see them lowering themselves down a pole and jump to a suet cake or seed cylinder. I have neither out right now because the Starlings like them too much and I don’t want them to linger. So the Downies have to come to the feeder cam.
