This morning,
it really felt like spring outside. The Cardinals and House Finches were singing, the snarls of the Grackles and Redwinged Blackbirds filled the air, and it was so warm that I did not have to wear a coat. Variety and activity is still down but I am enjoying these sure signs of spring. I also serviced the nestbox the Chickadees used last year, it needed a new roof and some other repairs. The BB house is next. And here are some visitors. Wonderfully enough, the Grackle with the white dot on the neck has returned!
We are now
in a nice stretch of very cold winter weather, with temperatures that make the inside of your nose feel funny when you go outside. It won’t be for long, so I am thoroughly enjoying. The snow makes for a great background, and there are lots of birds visiting. Each coping in their own way with the cold. A couple of Cowbirds have arrived, and yesterday I also saw a Grackle!
We didn't get
any snow today but there is a lot of rain and temperatures are forecasted to go to freezing. The bird avalanche I was hoping for did not come but the week is not over yet. A good time to show off some Blue Jays from a couple of days ago. I love their expressions and patterns.
The summer months
are one of my favorite times for birding because it is the height of variety, and there are so many baby birds too. For July and August, I had a hard time choosing photos, so here you see some of the alternatives I considered, along with the two final choices, the Red-bellied Woodpecker and the dramatic Blue Jay (taking a sun bath). The immature Orchard Oriole was a fabulous surprise, and I always love the look of the immature Red-winged Blackbirds. Well, and I love Blue Jay babies in all their loud, demanding and adorable glory.
Slim pickings still
this week but the Christmas deco is up and temps are going to go down soon. Here are some of the recent visitors. My calendars are all on sale this week, by the way - they are 15 % off and you can get them at the link on my home page and in my shop here.
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!
As November marches on,
it definitely feels like fall now but some of the trees still have leaves on, and temperatures are also still not really cold. The yard still is slim pickings when it comes to birds, but there are several Juncos around, I have seen Goldfinches again, and the Blue Jays continue to provide entertainment. I am ready for some snow.
Bird activity
has picked up a bit, and the Juncos are definitely here but today, temps were like spring again, so generally, things are still very slow. I did get some lovely portraits in the sunshine yesterday and the leaves are finally starting to turn here too. If you are watching my livestreams, please note that the ones not active right now will be back soon, there have been some technical issues.
So there are
native sparrows migrating through my yard, namely White-throated, and I have seen and heard them and tried to get pictures. Cam on the ground. Here is my best effort, they are very skittish and camera shy, and other beings are also interested in the offerings. And a nice Blue Jay. Juncos are here, but activity is still low.
This is the high time
of molting, and there is a good bunch of Blue Jays are are looking a bit rough right now. However, new feathers are emerging, and I always love to see the different individual ways in which they do. I love this rugged beauty, and I find it fantastic in photos.
I try to avoid
being anthropomorphic when it comes to the birds but sometimes you cannot help but noticing something that could be seen as a character trait. Both Blue Jays and MoDos are really good at posing and drama. Alone as well as together 😂 (The first Blue Jay is sunbathing, the one in photo 3 has been eating mulberries). Come good into Friday!
Molting season is here,
and many birds are shedding part of their feathers in various spots to grow new ones. They do this now because their skin gets exposed, and warm weather makes being partially naked a lot easier. I always love this part of the year because nobody molts in the same way and the textures and colors are pretty cool to see. Yes, those awkward holes are their ears!
Summer is well under way,
and the garden is going crazy this year. The Blue Jays had a really good nesting season, and their youngsters are all around right now. In my efforts to capture baby birds, I also get some critters, and this squirrel was especially cheeky. Live streams will be down for the next couple of days for maintenance but back late Tuesday.
The evenings are getting cooler
but the garden still thrives, and there are sill many many baby birds around. This is the time where I like to put a camera to the ground to try and capture some of the more camera-shy visitors. The Blue Jays are very entertaining and all over the yard, the Grackle youngster are getting teen feathers, the Redwinged Blackbirds are bringing their peachy-faced babies, there are still Grosbeaks around, and today, a teen Cardinal visited too. As always when a cam is on the ground, some furries have access too.
Baby Blue Jays
are all over the backyard right now, and I love to watch them. This is fun time because they are all kinds of ages, some already quite independent while others look like fresh out the nest. What they all have in common is that they are super adorable and they all look like they came just out of the laundry.
This week,
the Blue Jay, Grosbeak and Oriole babies have started to come out, creating a beautifully chaotic symphony and fun behavior to watch. All babies seem to love the pond, so it is worth checking out the stream.
It was hard narrowing things down, so I am posting a larger selection here and smaller numbers on social media. I hope you enjoy the fluffy cuteness of these baby birds. (species names in ALT text)
There are bird babies
all over the yard right now. The Chickadees and Bluebirds have fledged (I have posted videos on all my social media platforms and Youtube and may make a separate post here soon too), and it is the most wonderful yet funny to listen to when outside. Most of them you can see at the pond livestream (babies of Orioles, Grosbeaks, Robins, Grackles, Starlings love to hang out there), and the others are starting to find the feeders. Today the first baby Blue Jay visited, along with a cute Grack. You can tell them by behavior and cuteness but also by their unusually colored gapes, the soft edges of the beaks. I love the color combinations of these youngsters! A funny Grosbeak and MoDo shot in the middle. Have a lovely 4th of July weekend and be easy on the fireworks - I cannot imagine all the young wildlife being super thrilled about it.
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.
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!
