I was feeling adventurous
and put one of the hummer feeders on my photo setup. They are coming but I have not seen one yet and we got snow today. But oh well. I did get a Tufted Titmouse, which I haven’t seen in quite a bit.
A Grack appreciation post.
Because I love them and the week should always end on a good note. If my gut feeling is right, we have a great week ahead. I compared photos of my peach, plum and cherry trees from last year to today, and it turns out that last year, they only started barely blooming by April 27th. But today, they are already blooming. You can see the Serviceberry in the background here a bit too. I think we might see Orioles, Hummingbirds and maybe even Grosbeaks this week! It is just a feeling, don’t take my word for it. But get your feeders ready!
1 part sugar, 4 parts water is the recipe for Hummingbird nectar. Don’t waste your money on the storebought stuff, the red dye is suspected to be harmful to the birds.
Video: Snack time!
The Bluebird babies are growing and developing well, mostly because they get constantly fed by their attentive parents. The parents like to come for a snack at the mealworm bar but the babies get the good stuff. Here, Mandrake brings a huge worm. The baby has quite the beak full but eventually managed to get it all down.
The backyard is starting
to brim with fertility, and love is buzzing all over the place. I saw Grackles mating, Robins collecting nesting material by the bath, and the Cardinals were totally hamming it up today. There is just something so pure and adorable about a Cardi man feeding his lady to woo her. I have seen it several times today, and I am so happy that they even took it to the camera. I hope their nest, wherever it is, is safe and sound, and they will have some babies this year. Come good into Saturday!
Times are boring and busy
at the same time right now, if that makes any sense. And that is part of why I am posting less. There is not a lot happening. Some of the summer crowd has arrived and is settling in but otherwise this is still a boring time with possible frost and snow and whatnot. A good time to focus on my job :) Anyways, here is Dr. Clara, as of today proud momma of five. Mandrake is attentive, and the babies have grown a lot even just today. This bodes well. Happy Friday, world!
Welcome, babies!
Update - it looks now like all five have hatched! Yay!
The poke turned out to be a good signal yesterday, and two babies hatched quickly after it showed. This morning, two more Bluebird babies have hatched. There is one unhatched egg in the nest, and it may or may not hatch. It can happen that eggs are unviable for a number of reasons but it is quite normal and nothing to worry about. Dr. Clara has assisted the babies coming out of the egg and also ate the egg shells for nutrition. Temperatures have fallen quite a bit, and she is warming them with her brood patch, a naked patch on her belly, and only rarely leaves the nest. Mandrake is bringing her and the babies food. They currently look like fuzzy shrimp but will change in appearance almost by the hour now.
I think we have a poker!
Dr. Clara is usually turning the eggs to incubate them evenly but in the last two days she has been checking a bit more thoroughly, and I think I now know why. It looks like one of the babies might be ready to hatch. At least that is what it looks like. I am monitoring this nest 24/7, and the nest was not disturbed by anyone. And the schedule works too 😁 So tomorrow will probably be hatch day!
There is a new kid in town,
a Red-bellied Woodpecker that I have not seen before. I named him Wally, short for Walnut. He has the best eyebrows!
I feel anticipation
on this Sunday night. The Goldfinches are almost fully transitioned, the Grackles come in full mud-geear and Dr. Clara is nearing the end of her incubation schedule. I might be off but I feel like this week, we might see the first Orioles and Hummingbirds. And for sure the Bluebird babies will hatch! Come good into Monday.
I feel a bit like this MoDo today.
The weekend is here, the weather was nice all day but cooled in the evening, and everything is kind of calming down. We had rain last night, and all of a sudden, there are buds all over the place! Dr. Clara sits on her eggs and I cleared my work schedule a bit because today I got my first COVID vaccine dose and I wanted to make sure I have the time to relax and let my body do what it has to do. I hope you all have a pleasant start into the weekend. People are starting to report Hummers in Michigan!
These are strange times,
when bird migration is underway but you can’t see results yet, the weather is spring-like but also still full of frosty surprises, and we are kind of in an in-between. However, there is also a lot of love in the air! House Finches, like many other birds, strengthen their bond during mating season by feeding each other. It is adorable to watch. Come good into Friday!
Red-winged Blackbirds
have quite the variety when it comes to their plumage and colors. Epaulet intensity and overall feather patterns are depending on their gender as well as their age, and I guess the individual bird too. This speckled specimen is a young adult male. He still shows some of the beautiful baby pattern but is growing into the black, glossy plumage of the adult males. Just what the goofball in the gif is showing off.
Another round of Who's that girl?
Around this time of the year, many people start seeing this kind of bird and wonder what it is. It was certainly one of my “struggle birds” in the beginning, too. However, it is fairly easy - this is a female Brownheaded Cowbird. In size, they are between a Robin and a Cardinal, and they have a soft trilling call. Cowbirds are known and often disliked for their breeding behavior. They are so-called brood parasites, meaning that they lay their eggs into other birds’ nests and let them raise their babies. This is not out of malice. They used to follow cattle around and never stayed anywhere long enough to build nests. This way of breeding ensured their survival as a species. Nowadays, there is less cattle roaming around and humans have taken over lots of habitat. The birds are still the same, and so we might witness one of nature’s oddities in the summer when for example tiny Chipping Sparrows feed one of their own babies but also a ginormous Cowbird baby. The human birdwatcher might feel bad and think about interfering, but remember that Cowbirds are native to the US and protected by law. Read up before you act.
I haven't posted
Blue Jays a lot recently, but they also have made themselves a bit rare lately. Maybe the winter crowd has moved on and the summer crowd has not arrived yet. (Yes, I read that also Blue Jays sort of migrate.) It might of course also be that they are just a bit shy now because there are other large and cheeky birds here as well.
The Grackles
are filling the air with their calls that sound like broken metal toys, and whenever they see another Grack, they turn into the most elegantly shaped birds, only to then mush up into a big puff. This morning, I saw one carrying some dry grass around, so I think they also might be getting ready to nest.
Spring rain
and mild temperatures have started to wake up the garden. Everywhere you look, tiny soft green is finding its way to the surface, and the air is full of promise. I have started some of my veggie seeds and was daring enough to put radish and beet seeds into the ground (while crossing my fingers for no more deep frost). The Robins are enjoying that the ground is more workable for worms, and they are looking for nest sites. In between, they never say no to a good bath. And then proudly come to see if there are any snacks.
Video: Bling for the yard!
I am always exploring new options for feeders to try and keep my videos and photos interesting. Often, feeders are more function than design, so I was delighted when the people from Moore Birdfeeders approached me to try out some of their work. Seen here is their “Diamond”, an absolutely stunning piece of art, made from glass and brass that adds some serious bling to the backyard. The coolest thing is that it can also work as a terrarium. I hung it yesterday, and so far, the Goldfinches have basically started to call it their home. I am also going to try out their Oriole feeder but it is still a bit too early to out that out. The company is Canada-based and can be found on social media as well as at mooredesignbirdfeeders.com Mother’s Day is coming!
The days are getting longer,
the grass is slowly getting greener, but things are off to a slow start with spring still. It feels like Goldfinches, Grackles and Doves are domainating the yard. But today, I had a Titmouse! And Mandrake, the Bluebird, came to the feeder too. He is guarding Dr. Clara in the box and occasionally bringing her snacks. Have a good Easter Sunday!
Migration time is always interesting
because you never know what might visit. Earlier, the sun was out for just a bit, and I got a surprise visitor in this Purple-winged Blackbird. This is a lifer for me and they usually do not roam around here. The storms must have brought some migrating birds off-course. He’s a stunner, and I hope he stays for a bit.
Dr. Clara and Mandrake nesting 2021
I will collect the photos and info I gather for this first nesting here.
April 1, 2021: Little did I know… Dr. Clara spent the night in the box but not for the reasons I thought. She is clearly a weather expert and knew that it was going to be frosty. So in order to protect her eggs, she kept them warm during the night. And added one more this morning. That should be it now. Six would be crazy!
March 31, 2021: Dr. Clara laid her fourth egg this morning and seems to be spending a lot of time in the box. So it could be that she is done and starting to incubate. Incubation means that she sits on her eggs, warming them with a bald patch on her belly and moving and turning them regularly so they stay evenly warm. Bluebirds incubate fpr about two weeks. I keep track with the nest via the Nestwatch app and notes in my calendar. This way I can see if everything is happening according to schedule.
March 30th, 2021: As of today, there are three eggs in the nest. Now it is going to be an interesting guessing game to see how many more she will lay. If she lays more, which looks likely because she is not sitting on the eggs permanently yet.
