Snow tonight?

It has been cold, back to the winter again.  Sensing the cold pressure with wind and rain, birdies know it might snow.  That is why they are busy all day eating as much when they can.

Chickadees are busy with sunflower seeds.  They come in twos or threes sometimes.

This morning the water in the birdbath was frozen; Pine Siskins can only lick the ice or walk on it.

Later in the afternoon, the two brothers are shouting,"You need to have our permission to join!"  (See the blurry one just flying in.)

On the wet lawn, a pair of Lesser Goldfinches were trying to eat new and tender dandelion leaves.

In the sun which comes out once in a while, a Yellow-rumped Warbler looks like a prince.  He just finished eating the suet.

A male Lesser Goldfinch deserves much attention to that bright color.  He likes to eat thistle seeds together with Pine Siskins and American Goldfinches.

I hope everyone got enough to eat today before the cold front comes in tonight.

What a Day!

Today we had all kinds of weather from sunny to cloudy, rainy, and sleet.   The temperature went down to freezing and it has been cold now.

When the weather is miserable, birds have miserable time in finding food unless they know such a good place as my backyard.

See, it is very crowded here.   Today at the most swarmed time, I could count more than 30 Pine Siskins, 8 American Goldfinches, 4 Lesser Goldfinches, more than a dozen Oregon Juncos, several Chickadees, one Yellow-rumped Warbler, and two Nuthatches.   

And one more....
A beautiful, yet formidable Cooper's Hawk who also needs food to survive through a wet western Oregon winter.  He flies around, checking at each bird feeder in the neighborhood.   No catch today and soon flew away to another location.

When the sun was out, it was so sunny and warm.  A Junco male was hiding from me with a branch right in front.

A Northern Flicker came to the suet as usual.   Even when I was out on the patio with a camera, it still came down and began eating.  She now knows that I am a safe person who provides them with food.

Another one who is becoming more brave is a Pine Siskin.  As long as I stay away, it does not fly away and still keeps on eating on a thistle seed bag hanging on the patio. 

Do you know what my wish is?  Someday, some bird will come to me and start eating from my palm. 

Purple Crocus and House Finch

Today I found several purple crocuses already in bloom in my front yard.

In the backyard, I happened to eavesdrop a pair of House Finches.

Mr. Finch:  " These sunflower seeds are scrumptious.  Try one."

Mrs. Finch:  "I already have one in my mouth."

Mrs. Finch:  "Hey, don't steal mine.  Get one yourself!"

The photo sequence is actual.  I think they really talked that way.  Don't you agree?!

Yellow Crocus

A yellow crocus sends us a message: "Spring has sprung."

In spring,  birds are busy singing and hanging around in pairs.  One day three Black-capped Chickadees were busy getting their breakfast.

Once in a while a Cooper's Hawk flies through the air in my backyard  and perches on the fence for food.  Thanks to the hedge rows and bushes for little birds to jump in and hide, there is not many casualties here.

An Eastern Towhee usually stops over for a quick breakfast.

These days Yellow-rumped Warblers live here and eat the suet all day long.  A few days ago, I saw three of them together: two males and one female.

Today, when I looked up with a crow's calling, I saw a Red-tailed Hawk soaring high. 

Regarding the Anna's Hummer, I need to update.  The other day my Anna's returned to the sugar water feeder finally after 3 weeks.  Now it just comes once in a while, not daily yet.

The spring season is a busy one for me, too.  

1)  Need to add peatmoss to my blueberry bushes (I did not do this for a couple of years; maybe that is why I did not get so many berries). 

2)  Like to add a new bush or two for birds and hummers.  

3)  In a few weeks, trim the roses to half the height.

And so on...

I bet a busy season is waiting for you, too. 

Rufous Hummingbird

My bird book tells me the Roufous Hummingbird returns to this area in Oregon on or around March 1.  Since the lunar New Year (Spring Festival in China) occurred early this year, I wonder if it may be a little earlier.

Last year this Roufous male showed up at my feeder in March.  It is the cutest thing there is.  All light brown except around the neck and the head gets shiny orange when light shines.  The little round eyes are very cute.

A female arrived a little later.  Notice that while the head and the back are greenish, the tummy is brownish.

Although the male did not stay around here long (travels to further north even to Alaska), the female stayed all summer long through September.  Look, the hummer is trying to eat a itsy-bitsy spider here.

In summer, I have many flowers they like to drink nectar from.  They especially like a red tubal flower such as this.

But once in a while it can still appreciate my sugar water.

After enjoying the Oregon summer with lots of flowers, bugs, and spiders, they flew to the south where they would spend the winter.  The winter is almost over now, so just keep watching for a Roufous arrival very soon.

Pine Siskin and Eurasian Siskin(?)

Another typical day in Oregon:  rain....

Despite the rain, regular bird members in my backyard come and visit.  More birds have tried the birdbath for a drink; no need to take a bath yet since rain will make them wet and clean most of the times.

A Pine Siskin was just taking off after having a drink.  Notice a very pointed beak in comparison with other finches such as House Finch, American Goldfinches, Lesser Goldfinches, etc.

Another clear portrait of a Pine Siskin (a pointed beak).  How good-looking it is.

Today I made a bit of an interesting discovery.  I am not sure what bird it is:

The one on the left is neither a Pine Siskin (not yellow) nor American Goldfinch (not a pointed beak).  So is it Eurasian Siskin, a rare bird around here?  If anyone knows, let me know. 

Once in a while I can still add up a new bird visitor even in this small backyard.

Happy Valentine's Day

The bright sun came out during the morning.  All the birds were flying in to eat the Valentine's meals.  Here are their Valentine's greetings to you:

From Pine Siskins at the top of a wisteria vine, "Happy Valentine!!"

A message from American Goldfinches: 

"I got a smudgy head today.  Because we are in the process of changing colors from the winter coat to the summer one.   I will be bright yellow with black head and my wife will be a little more yellowish by summer.  Happy Valentine's Day to you all."

"In conclusion, I, a House Finch, will serenade to you, "la la la....... "

(Hope next one will be a better recording.)

A Cold Day Still

It is still cold around here.  I still wear a winter coat, a muffler, a hat, and a pair of gloves, especially when I am watching birds around my backyard in the morning.

A couple of days ago, my hummer showed up while I was out on the patio.  It did not come for the sugar water, but instead came to me, hovering and saying, "I am still busy with catching bugs and getting ready for an early nesting." 

These days, I see a hummer on and off, sweeping across the neighbor's hedge row searching for bugs, or perched on a branch zooming in for a bug.

Last Saturday I moved a birdbath out on the lawn.  Who could be the first to check on it?

Without a question, it was the chickadee as I predicted.  Any new thing around the backyard, the Black-capped Chickadee can find and has the curiosity to try it first before anyone else does. 

A Townsend's Warbler stopped over quickly before a bossy Yellow-rumped Warbler chased it out.

"This is my suet.  Don't you ever come back!", repeated the Yellow-rumped Warbler.

When the warblers were out, a Bewick's Wren stopped over, too.  Mr. Wren was so friendly today that he flew right over me when I came out in the afternoon. 

Amazingly many birds know me by now, although they are still careful of any human.

White-crowned Sparrow

Continued sparrow tales....

This is a White-crowned Sparrow.   It is different from the Golden-crowned or the White-throated.  This one has a black-and-white striped crown.

From the side view, you can tell the rest of the body is similar to the other sparrows.

Even with Golden-crowned Sparrows (3 of them), a White-crowned Sparrow seems to get along OK.

On the birdbath,  I have not seen any fight between the left (Golden-crowned) and the right (White-crowned). 

"A mild mannered, chubby bird, just say cheese."

A male and a female of the White-crowned Sparrow look the same; a juvenile has brown stripes on the head.  They are around all the year in the milder climate of  the western half of Oregon.

To figure out which is which in a big family of sparrows, you need to have a pair of binoculars handy, be it in your backyard or for your outing.

Song Sparrow

In a bird book, you can find many kinds of sparrows, from the most common, House Sparrow,  to many others such as the Song Sparrow.

One day, I went to a park not far from here.   There I bumped into a Song Sparrow which was singing to its heart's content.  

Even when I came near, it kept on singing.   Probably because the park provided a comfortable home for them and there was nothing to worry about.

In my backyard, only a couple of times so far I noticed a Song Sparrow.  On a wintry day one landed on a bare rose bush. 

Early spring when violets were in bloom, another one stopped over.

Song Sparrows have a long, rounded tail and a broad grayish eyebrow.  They like insects and seeds, but rarely come for a feeder.  Their shades and streaking vary among the subspecies.  For example, large Alaskan races on the Aleutians are very gray-brown, whereas the Pacific Northwest (Oregon) ones are the darker and redder.

When you hear a bird singing away as happy as can be, it may be a Song Sparrow.  Just look for the prominent grayish eyebrow.

Sunny and Warm Day

Yesterday was sunny and warm.  People were walking in the neighborhood here and there.  Let's see how birdies thought about it.

At the dawn, a crow was announcing a beautiful day.

Pretty soon, a Bewick's wren began to sing a song.   It was my first time to hear him.  How pretty he can sing!

Later, someone came to the suet.   Someone with a LONG beak....

Pick-a-boo ....

You guessed it.  It was a Northern Flicker (female).  They have been around many times.

"Yeah, That's me.  Early morning, I have to make lots of squawking noise to make sure everyone is out of my way."

Someone with a SHORT beak and dark feathers.  Who could it be?

"It's me. Remember my name?"

"I am Ms. Junco. I am one of the resident birds here." 

"We are two brothers and one sister.  Who could we be?"

"We are Lesser Goldfinches.  I just saw a white thistle seed bag hanging out on a  wisteria branch.  I like it, 'cause it is soft and easy-to-hang onto."

Well, everyone surely enjoyed yesterday's warm weather.