Crimson duel

Then there were none

First there were three...

Joined by another...

Two more stopped by...

And all left with a flutter.

Potato-chip

The next time I see a goldfinch painting imaginary scalloped trails through the air during his dipping flight, I will have to pay attention to his song which my bird book describes as "a cheery potato-chip." 

Silhouette

Feather

Found in the front yard. It's at least 3" longer than my hand from tip to tip. 

Cedar Waxwings

Baltimore Oriole

A flash of orange moving quickly through the oak tree. And here he is (the best photos I could get):

"Eeeee!"

This family of geese lives at the zoo and when we pointed them out to Linnea she squealed with glee. 

Date Night

As we celebrate our anniversary, the ducks were out for a romantic date of their own.

Rose-breasted Grosbeak

Came by as thunder began to roll, about 10 minutes before the rain hit. 

Injured Cowbird?

We noticed this female cowbird in the backyard, hobbling along with a possible injury on her right wing. While watching her, a male cowbird came up and did a little dance for her, and at one point she had a male and female sparrow on either side of her like they were all friends. I have no idea what was going on with this and I eventually lost sight of her.

Flighty Finches

Feeding Baby

Sparrow: A Rare Find!!!

I used to think that if you saw one sparrow, you saw them all. The majority of the birds we have at the feeder is a typical house sparrow. Plain brown and tan birds hopping around in the grass are mostly unnoticed when one more colorful is in their midst. Fat sparrows sluggishly bob along the outdoor patios at any eatery. Every now and then I see a tiny chipping sparrow. I've always thought sparrows are nothing spectacular.

Tonight as three rabbits engaged in some sort of mating hide-and-seek game (menage a trois?) the birds nearby tried to stay out of their way, and I noticed one who did not look like the others. Along with markings and color typical to sparrows, its head had striking white and black stripes. A White-crowned Sparrow, most likely on a layover of its migration north to Canada.

There are close to 10 varieties of sparrows that spend the summer in this area, and several more who are simply passing through on their way to summer or winter homes. This little bird is encouraging me to have a bigger appreciation for them all.

A Blue Jay Kind of Day

A gray and brown "Mourning"

I saw these mourning doves out on the deck and they were so calm they let me poke my camera out the patio door to snap a few photos without startling. I've never paid attention to the difference between the males and females, but having these two so close together I can see the Mister has gray on his head with a pinkish tinge to his breast while the Missus is a beautiful soft brown.

Mr. Dove

Mrs. Dove

Look at his lovely blue eyelids.

She's watching me.

Blush

Ducks

The birds have been busier than this blog so I'm just going to post a picture every day or so of the happenings in our yard.

I spotted this female mallard in the backyard, and wondered what she was doing there. When she flew off I noticed a male followed her, and he must have been at the feeder. I didn't know ducks visited bird feeders but a friend had also seen some around theirs a few days later.

Love is in the air....

I'll let these pictures speak for themselves....

Teensy foot prints

Now that the snow is gone, I thought I'd post what I found last week before it had all melted. So long, winter!

Happy Birthday to Me!

What a beautiful day! A few years ago on my grandpa's birthday I saw a flock of cedar waxwings, and now today on my birthday here they are again, like Grandpa Lambert was sending his good wishes to me.

And even an ordinary sparrow can look sweet on a day like today. 

Other birthday callers include chickadees, a goldfinch, a woodpecker, robins, a female cardinal, and a bluejay calling in the distance. 

Finally!

The chickadees have finally found the suet. 

The Evil Eye

Eating happily. Alone. Unbothered.

Flaring crest! Sparrow beware!

Sparrow, seeing her flaring crest, raising her an Evil Eye. 

Homemade Suet

Our last order of beef from the butcher came with two chunks of beef suet. We melted it down (a very stinky process), added cornmeal, rolled oats, peanut butter, seeds, and nuts, then let it cool and harden in the fridge.

And voila!

In flight