First Snow of the Season

It was cold around the freezing point.  First it was rain, then slush, and became snow for a while. The front lawn was covered with a bit of snow.

Oregon Juncos like the cold weather, especially snow.

"Everyone makes a fuss of the snow, but I like it."

"I live here all the time.  I don't mind the snow."

Christmas Visit

In western Oregon, we had a nice Christmas Day without a bit of rain.  Since the majority of people were taking the day off, it was quiet around the neighborhood.  Birds could sense the calmness of the day, which meant a safe day for them.  They came in a bunch and many birds showed up quite a few times during the day.

Anna's Hummingbird, male:  "How was your holiday?"

Downy Woodpecker:  "Pretty good.  I now come here for three meals a day!"

Red-breasted Nuthatch:  "Me, too."

Ruby-crowned Kinglet:  "Yum, yum, yum....delicious suet."

How to Jump in My Way

Winter birds like to eat the suet.  A Yellow-rumped Warbler is one of them.  Instead of hanging onto the feeder, it often likes to jump and nibble.

"Let me show you my beautiful jump!"

"Then nibble a bit of chow."

"Here is another approach in case only a wee little bit is left."

"You need to try it."

More Food Available

Too much rain has caused a lot of flooding around Oregon.  Many rivers have overflowed and people had to evacuate.  Along I-5 major interstate highway, a landslide occurred blocking one lane.

It's been cold, wet, and dark close to 12/21,  the winter solstice.  I see a Mountain Chickadee visiting here every day now that he can certainly find some food in my backyard.

"Today I found the suet!"

"Here I got a roasted sunflower seed.  This is yummy, too."

"I am swift to avoid a mean Junco who can jump on me."

A Winter Scene

Now that food is scare out in the field, a predator returned to town for food.  Everyday I look out my patio sliding door to see what birds are here.  There it was, a bold, familiar predator, Cooper's Hawk.

"Bad weather brought me here today.   A hungry day."

"Did I hear someone out there?"

He stayed on the feeder iron for sometime.  When the large rain drops started pounding on the ground all of sudden, he took off toward a neighbor's huge Sycamore tree to get a cover.

Who Is Chased?

Rainy days continue, but once in a while a sunny spot will appear with a rainbow on a lucky day.

Later I heard a crow making a commotion.  Sure enough I found a hawk being chased.

Who is it being chased?    It does not have a light-colored tail like Red-tailed Hawk.  It seems to be too big to be a Cooper's Hawk which frequents around here.  So I am not sure.  Besides the photos do not show much of the characteristics for identification.

Just remember if you hear a loud commotion in the air, you may find a hawk being chased by a group of crows.

Drilling is My Task.

Early afternoon on my magnolia tree, I have seen a Red-breasted Sapsucker a few times.   This time it came and started drilling onto the magnolia tree.

Can you see the drilled holes going around the tree trunk?  Was the bird drinking the sap or eating the bugs below the bark?

As you can see, the light is not ideal for a photo shooting.  The bird likes to come here when the sun is behind the other trees to hide him better.

"I have made all these holes!"

"I am stuck close to the tree so that you can not see me well."

Wetland Revisited

After a week's rain, we grabbed a chance to see birds at the wetland on a sunny day.   As always, a Great Blue Heron silently stood observing the activities of other birds.

From the far right corner of the water, a Great Egret just splashed out to come flying into my view.

As I turned the corner of the trail, I saw a flock of Canada Goose taking off.

Up above,  swans were making a formation to head to another feeding spot nearby.  Too far to identify whether they were Tundra Swan or Trumpeter Swan.

It was a busy day at the reservoir.  A nice walk for us.

One of Many Cousins

In the dark morning, someone sneaked into my backyard.   A couple of years ago I saw one up on my pine tree, but that one  never came to the feeder.   This one was brave enough to let me take a picture.

In the shade:

"Hi,  I am a Fox Sparrow.  On my chest/tummy I have triangular spots."

In the sun:

"I am a sooty colored subspecies of the Pacific Northwest.  

I have a lot of cousins.  Some in Alaska can be reddish; 

others in western mountains are slate colored."

Returned for Winter

It's been dark and rainy for a few days.  A typical Northwest winter weather.  When the weather gets cold, a nice photo is difficult to take due to lack of sufficient light.  But on the other hand, I can see winter birds returning.  Close to the noon one day, I was checking on birds out in the backyard, I noticed the familiar fretting movements amongst the branches.  As I stared into the area, there it was a very tiny winter bird, Ruby-crowned Kinglet.

"I'm eating bugs on the fruit tree leaves."

As it disappeared from my view, to my surprise it flew even closer to me.

"Also I like your suet here."

"I'm in rush as usual.  I will be back."

On a Wet Day

Cedar Waxwings like to eat berries.  I have seen them munching my blueberries in June and other berries out at the nearby wetland during the warm months.  Now that the weather has changed to cold and most of berries are gone, one Cedar Waxwing stopped over  here to dine on some not so sweet beauty berries.

"I just saw these pretty purple berries."

"When food gets scarce,  even sour berries can taste good."

Neon Blue

The sky around here is a territory for Scrub Jays.  Rarely did another Jay venture into here.

But last week was different.  I saw a Stellar Jay who proudly squawked loud and returned a few more times and seemed to hang around here for several days.

"I like it here.  Water and seeds, everything I need is here."

"I am here to stay.  Understood, guys....  "

As the bird warned, I saw him often for a week.  The bright neon blue feathers really showed up in my backyard.

A New Bird on the Block

The weather is now wet.  A typical Oregon autumn/winter weather.  Between the rain, the sun sometimes shows up.

I thought I saw a chickadee, which is a resident here.  But with the help of a zoom lens, I discovered I saw someone new.

"Hi, I come here once in a while, but you never noticed me before."

As I looked closely, he/she had the black marking covering the eye.  It is not the black-capped Chickadee which I always see in my backyard.

"I am "Mountain Chickadee".  Nice to meet you."

Welcome to my backyard!  I hope to see you more often.

Autumn Scene in Japan #3

Last day of the trip, we saw a zeppelin.  MetLife is safe and sound up in the autumn sky.

On the wire, a Brown-eared Bulbul was chattering loud.

"Are you going home tomorrow?"

In the evening, we observed the pretty sunset along the mighty Arakawa River that meanders along Tokyo.  Time to go home after a pleasant visit in Japan.

Autumn Scene in Japan #2

A wild flower decorates the edge of the canal.

A butterfly enjoys a remaining warm day in October.

A city dove (oriental turtle dove) oversees people in action from up above.

"Just making sure everyone is doing well."

Autumn Scene in Japan

Being close to the ocean, Tokyo was still humid in October.  Butterflies still visit flowers at a canal near where I was staying.

At the canal which has been cleaned, now lives a Kingfisher.  One late afternoon, I was crossing a bridge, when I saw a Kingfisher just landed on a small branch hanging onto the  water.  From up above, I was able to take a few photos.

After checking right and left for a while, he/she was ready to buzz on along the canal.

"Ready to catch my supper."

Returned for Autumn

Now that autumn is here, I see a couple of Golden-crowned Sparrows returned to my backyard.

Here is Mr. Golden-crowned Sparrow with the crown not so bright as in the spring.

"I am back."

Here is Mrs. Golden-crowned Sparrow.

"I remember this place.  There are enough seeds for us to nibble in the fall."

"And clean bird bath water!"

Bathe Before the Rainy Season

It is cold in the morning, but on a sunny day it can warm up by noon.  Here are friends who enjoy the bath time before the rainy season starts in October.  Can you count how many birds there are here?

Out in the shady area, two young Scrub Jays are washing, too.

"Splash, splash,.... I didn't know it was so fun to bathe."

Here is a wise bird who comes early to enjoy the clean water.

"It's a little cold, but it is not crowded."