The weather has been less than stellar
and activity remains low, but I was happy to see the Grosbeak female, a frequently visiting female Red-winged Blackbird, and the ever so beautiful wet Blue Jays. The forecast is very summery, though, and I am expecting lots of baby birds to show up soon. Dr. Clara and Mandrake’s babies are due to hatch in a few days as well.
You may have heard them
and seen them on my livestream - the Starlings have started to bring their young to the yard. I won’t let them nest on my property but I guess they are finding spots nearby. While they can be annoying with their noise and the mess they leave behind, I still find their babies adorable and it is funny to see the interactions with the seemingly bothered parents. The camera captures their spirit perfectly 😆
More rain yesterday,
and more drenched birds. The Orioles have returned for very sporadic visits, and I think I might only have one pair this year. I also spotted a couple of Grosbeaks at the feeders yesterday, but also here, far from the numbers of previous years. It remains a sad season so far, but I am thankful to have at least some summer visitors. The good thing today is, the rain has finally stopped and the sun is out. However, it is rather windy and still cold. I am ready for some more summery weather. Have a safe Memorial Day weekend, everyone!
Yesterday,
we finally got a good amount of rain. It cooled the premature summer heat down and made the garden happy. The birds looked a bit pitiful and drenched but you know I love a good wet birb because the textures are so interesting. And interesting things are welcome right now because this is a very boring season so far. And I don’t seem to be alone in my observations, the local birdwatching groups are full of people stating that they don’t see as much activity as in previous years. This is concerning, and one can only hope that populations will bounce back. If you are inclined, this article from the Smithsonian Magazine is shedding some light on things. It is from last December but seems to be appropriate now.
Wet birbs* pictured: my current favorite House Finch with the orange patch, a Blue Jay, an American Robin, Dr. Clara the Bluebird, a Starling and a MoDo.
(*I use this spelling on purpose and as a term of endearment, it is not a typo. Audubon is in agreement 🤓)
Nesting season
is pretty much in full bloom right now. I still see some birds gathering nesting material, but many others are either coming a lot less to the feeders or when they come quickly stuff their beaks and take off. Funnily enough, during this rather slow time at the feeders, sometimes birds make it to the bowl that usually don’t go there, like this female Redwinged Blackbird. They are a rather shy and humble bird, kind of in the shadow of their vibrant male counterparts, but I love their kind faces and their subtle colors.
Bluebird nest #2 - 2021
Dr. Clara and Mandrake's second brood is underway. I am very excited about this and hope to get some cool videos with the new cam. The sparrow spooker is also installed now and Dr. Clara accepted it right away. If you want to know what a sparrow spooker is and how you can help Bluebirds and other native cavity nesting birds succeed, I recommend visiting sialis.org, a website that covers nearly every aspect of the topic. I will collect photos of the egg laying here.
May 26, 2021: Dr. Clara spent another night in the box. We finally got some rain last night, and it stormed for quite a bit. Temperatures have dropped a lot too, and today it is a lot more bearable outside. she is in the box a lot but I am not entirely sure if she is already starting to incubate or if she will lay another egg tomorrow. I guess we wil lsee then.
May 25, 2021: Like clockwork, Dr. Clara laid another egg this morning. She also spent most of the night in the nestbox which I found a bit unusual. Now it will be interesting to see how many more eggs she will lay. I had a clutch of six one year, and this is the “main season” brood with the best amount of bugs around and the mildest temperatures.
May 24, 2021: On time, egg three was laid this morning. Temperatures have fallen after a hot couple of days, and it is a bit rainy out. Dr. Clara has not spent a lot of time in the box yesterday but I was happy to see her coming right back this morning.
May 23, 2021: The second egg is laid, at around the same time, between 8:30 and 9 AM. Temperatures outside are very mild in the morning and turn hot in the afternoon, so the female is not visiting a lot. Both adults and the babies are hanging around.
May 22, 2021: Dr. Clara lays the first egg early in the morning.
Things have slowed down
quite a bit right now because everybody seems to be nesting. Some are already done with the first batch, like the Bluebirds, and today I also heard the haunting voices of young Starlings and then eventually also saw one popping up at the bird bath. The smaller amount of visitors made me feel more easy about going out to plant my veggie garden. It was a hot day, and everybody wanted to go to the bird bath badly. The Robins did not care about me being out and about and enjoyed the relatively empty feeding stations. Dr. Clara is pretty much done with her nest, and I expect her to start laying eggs any day now. The one oddball thing right now is there are no Hummingbirds around. After having had a pretty good start of the season with them about ten days ago, none have showed up again. Same for the Catbird. I know that migration is still going on, so I hope to see some more new visitors soon.
It has rained
Bluebird babies yesterday while I was gardening in the evening. I am happy to report that it now looks like all four have made it. They are seemingly different characters, some more enthusiastic and brave than others. They are still focused on the parents and follow them around but they will become more independent in the coming weeks. Hopefully, they stick around and will help the parents defending the nestbox. It was absolutely wonderful to sit in the yard last night and just listen and watch. My favorite time of the year is here.
I watched and waited,
but the BBs would not attempt to get into the new box. time feels of the essence right now, so I caved. I did what I wanted to do for a while now anyways and updated the old box. Made a new roof with a camera housing. It is all mounted now, and I hope it is not too late and the BBs will return and find it again to their liking. And I got such a kick out of the new and improved view into the box. How befitting for today, it is the release anniversay of Binaural too 😊 (one of my favorite albums that has a nebula on the cover).
Couples.
I always find it fascinating to see the differences in the appearance of birds. Here is a little selection.
(top two rows: Rose-breasted Grosbeak, Red-bellied Woodpecker, Northern Cardinal, Red-winged Blackbird - ladies in row 1, gents in row 2
third row: Mourning Doves and House Finches, they wanted to be in the same photo with their partners :D)
Dr. Clara and Mandrake
and me have had a rough couple of days. After they sucessfully fledged four babies, the couple disappeared as usual to show the babies the world. They did come back occasionally to feed and check on the box. One day, however, a House Sparrow took a liking to the box. This was a first, it has never happened in five years. I use a Gilbertson box, which they usually do not like, with fishing line around the entrance, and the sparrow spooker also was still up. Shooing and spooking the sparrow did not deter him and his lady. One day, I was not home for one hour, and the sparrows had started a nest in the Bluebird box. House sparrows are invasive to the US and can have negative effects on the breeding success of native species like the Bluebirds. I will not let them nest in my boxes.
Eventually, I took the Gilbertson down. After one day, the sparrows moved on. I was very upset about this whole situation and decided to be proactive. I researched and built another box, a slotted style called Troyer. The slot and its relatively small volume are something that HOSP are usually not fond of. The slot lets in lots of light, and they like it dark and deep. The slot opening also enables the female to escape if a House sparrow should go in there to attack her. I also updated the camera in the same step. Now the BBs have brought their baby (it looks like possibly one one of the four has survived this far) to the backyard yesterday, and they have been checking out the new box already too. I hope this all works out, I did not like changing things like that mid-season but I did not want to keep the old box up that the sparrows ended up liking. This is a weird spring.
For more information on how to help Bluebirds and other native cavity nesting birds, check out sialis.org.
Oriole activity
has been off to a comparatively slow start, and I am a bit bummed that I haven’t seen an Orchard Oriole or a Catbird yet. But the season is also young, and there is plenty of time for them to show up. Migration is still ongoing, and right now is a great time for surprise visitors to the backyards and feeders. As far as Oriole feeding goes, I find it interesting that some years, they seem to prefer oranges while in others, they are all in for the grape jelly and hummingbird nectar. Here are three beautiful males.
Grackle appreciation post
I have been so busy with work this week that I did not have a lot of time to process photos. But I have a selection ready and will post that in the morning. For now, please enjoy these goofy beauties and sleep tight.
(PS - the Grack in number 6 shows it’s nictitating membrane, a third kind of eyelid.)
First glimpse
at the class of ‘21 (well, one of them). It was once again mostly overcast today but I love that I saw several Rubythroated Hummingbirds. As probably many birdwatchers do, I have a very special spot for these minature warriors in my heart, first of all because I still cannot believe they come to my garden (where I grew up, in Germany, we don’t get Hummingbirds and they have alwqays been like an exotic miracle to me). These photos are not optimal but I hope you enjoy them as much as I did. More to come, it looks already like this year has more Hummingbird action than 2020!
I put the jelly feeder on the cam
to see how Oriole frequency is, and here is who hit it today. I also saw a female Hummingbird. However, this is Michigan. We have a frost warning tonight, and I hope everybody has a warm spot. The week should be warmer, and hopefully, May finally has a chance to really show off. Happy Monday!
(I realize the lens was dirty but I did not see it at the time.)
When you put out grape jelly,
it’s not just the Orioles who go for it. Many birds seem to have a sweet tooth, amongst them House Finches, Grosbeaks, Woodpeckers and these guys - American Robins. For a short time today, the sun came out, and I am happy it was when the Michigan state bird was there for portrait time. When I first saw Robins, I thought they were interesting, but in close-ups they reveal all these really cool details like eyebrows, rictal bristles, eyerings and throat feathers. I personally also love their song. I am always happy to have them around.
His lady was there the other day,
now here’s her man. I love Rose-breasted Grosbeaks, and today, several more have arrived. They are very easy bird guests, they are happy with black oil sunflower seeds and safflower.
Nesting season has really begun,
and one way to tell that is birds coming to the feeders getting their beaks full or even bringing stuff while on the way. This is why we don’t use chemicals in our yard. The birds collect insects and feed them to their wee ones. I always find it interesting what they bring, it gives me insights into the secret bug life of my garden.
This beautiful lady
was new at the feeders today. She is a Rose-breasted Grosbeak, and I find it funny how she had a fabulous portrait on her first day while the male was messing up, being not properly in the frame. I love these birds, they have a calming and badass presence at the same time. I have seen them sitting on the feeder through tunderstorms, gobbling away calmly. Welcome back, beauties!
