Take 2 - Photographs Through a Window – November 2016

To many birds stuck around for me to photograph them from my office window…I decided to do a second post this month of ‘photographs through a window.’ So – here goes. The first juncos have returned from the far north. They aren’t quite at the numbers from last winter so there may be more on the way.

A red bellied woodpecker investigated the gutter on our covered deck – calmly surveyed our yard. It was long enough for me to get two reasonably good pictures.

The white breasted nuthatch is around as well – contorting itself to get seed from our feeder. They are easy to identify at the feeder since they are one of the few that are head down at the feeder.

One morning the birdbath was frozen and a very frustrated blue jay was thirsty.

The chickadee had the same problem a few seconds later. It's time to put the heated bird bath out - avoid this problem for the birds.

Photographs through a Window – June 2016

The wildlife has been active at the bird feeder and bath on or deck this month. The squirrels empty the seed bowl so quickly that I am not filling it very often. They still come to sniff around periodically – looking for the small windfall from the birds dropping seeds to the deck as the feed at the squirrel-proof hanging feeder.

I like the chipmunks better and cheer when they find the seed first when I fill the bowl. I think the chipmunks have their home under our deck since I see them in that area almost every time I am in the back yard.

The gold finches made a few appearances.

But the house finches are the frequent visitors

As are the chipping sharrows.

I had to be quick to catch the Carolina Wren. This was one was looking for nesting materials so there may be a second brood starting.

There was an occasional white breasted nuthatch on the roof and at the feeder. They are easy to identify at the feeder because they almost always are head down – not on the usually perch.

Not filling the bowl means that the cardinals and the mourning doves don’t get seed as much either since they are too big for the feeder. That caused a particular problem for the cardinal parents. Their baby was very demanding. The male brought it to the deck under the feeder first.

He was looking frazzled from the constant begging by the time they flew away.

The female brought the young bird as well.

The chick was as big as the parents – looked bigger with the fluffiness of the down that had not been quite replaced with ‘grown up’ feathers.

Finally – the young bird appeared on his own under the feeder just yesterday. Do you think it is a male of female? It will become recognizable in the coming weeks. I’ll include the follow up pictures of the bird next month – assuming the young bird keeps coming to our deck.