Happy New Year!

 Happy New Year!

"I hope you did not get drunk😁."

"I don't like a bitter thing.😉"

"We just like to enjoy a party here😍😋."

Fall Days

Gray Squirrels live in the neighborhood.  Usually 3-5 come and visit my backyard.  Today a couple of them were pesting each other.

"We always have fun here😁."

 

A young American Crow came to have a drink at the bird bath.

"I just grew up in the nest up on the trees in this neighborhood👍👍."

A Downy Woodpecker stopped over after a long absence.   He just returned from the wood.

"I don't know this place well.  I was born this 

summer in the wood.  My mom told me this is a safe place😄😄!"

Rufous Hummingbird came for the last hot days and took off for the south.

"I will miss your flowers😢,  but will be back next spring😙."

Rare Visitors to My Backyard

The other day I saw many birds flying into my backyard.

Here's one of them:   Cedar Waxwing.

"I just saw European Starlings flying around, so 

I stopped over to see what's going on👀."

Surprisingly, a female Western Tanger also showed up here in the midst of all the commotion here😍.

"Me, too👀.   I usually stay in the high canopy."

Lately, an American Crow come here.  Because on the ground they like to eat the suet crumbs that a squirrel have dropped earlier😀.

"No problem.  We like to clean them all up☝☝.  They are delicious😋."

Cold Spring

April is here, but the weather changes so much this spring.  This weekend is very cold with the northern wind blowing our way.  But around the corner in my backyard, the bleeding hearts are in bloom.

 

American Crows sometimes visit here to eat the left-over suets.

"It is delicious.  I saw little birdies coming here all the times."

Chestnut-backed Chickadee:  "Yeah, it is very cold today."

Yellow-rumped Warbler:  "It is windy today."

Return to Backyard

 Cooper's Hawks returned to town from the woods where no food is available now.  On a sunny fall afternoon, I saw one hovering high in the sky.

"I feel so good!😊"

"On a nice day like today, it's ok to fly 

together.  Usually we bully each other, though."

"Who could be a better flyer?"

A Nice Day

When I am out in the backyard, I always listen to crows.  When they are making a lot of noise, there usually is a hawk nearby.  Today was such a day.

"Hi, on a sunny day, I have to hover up high."

But on the way up, he was caught up by a bunch of American Crows.

"Why don't you leave me alone 

today!  I am just enjoying the nice day."

"I guess I have to go somewhere 

else where no crows can chase me.  Ta, ta....."

Meditation

Early in the morning, a couple of crows were  making a commotion.  Do you know what?  

Red-tailed Hawk:
"The sun has risen.  A nice, clear morning."

Red-tailed Hawk to an American Crow:
"Don't bother me.  I am meditating."

A Small Predator

One morning, a small bird was chased by an American Crow.   It turned out to be a falcon,  a Merlin.

"Get out of my territory.  Don't you dare kill my little friend."

"Ready to fight?"

This morning was quiet without a crow.

"Today is a better day for me."

Feeding the Babies

Summer is the busy season for raising the young birds.  American Crow is no exception.  I know where she made a nest this year.

"You're right.  I made my nest up here on the pine tree."

This morning I saw her taking off from the fir tree across the street to deliver the meat(?).

"A beeline to the nest."

"A rush delivery for the hungry ones."

Being Chased

When there is a loud commotion going on in the air, I'm sure there is a hawk in the sky being chased by a flock of crows.

Sure enough, the other day, I heard the stir and soon I found the hawk.  He appeared from behind the tall tree together with the crows.

American Crows can be super aggressive toward the big bird.

  "That's enough.  I'm leaving.  Too much

 to be bothered by those scavengers."

Young Ones

Summer is a busy season for rearing the young.  In my backyard, I see quite a few young birds just born this summer.


The other day several young Western Scrub-Jays were fussing around the big fir tree.   Right in the middle of the circling birds, guess what I found.

"Naughty Scrub-jays are bugging me. 

I am only a month old(?), so help me 

to get rid of these noisy birds."

A couple of House Sparrow families live around here.   They are one of the early risers.   This young one came to eat seeds and suet with her dad.

"I was born this summer, too. 

See I still have the yellowish corner

on the mouth."

Here is a young Scrub-Jay who has mastered bathing.

"It's fun to take a bath."

Majestic Birds

Whenever the blue sky returns, I look up standing still in my backyard for a while.  Soon, I begin to see birds crisscross in front of me and sometimes a majestic bird soaring up above.  Today was such a day.


Do you know a big bird with the white head and tail?  It's the Bald Eagle shown on American coins and paper money.  There are a couple of their nests in the nearby wildlife reserve, so on a nice day they show up above my backyard.

"Hello, there.  I couldn't soar up much today due to the cold temperature.  

So much for soaring.  Ready for home now."

Then, soon after, I heard a lot of commotion in my neighborhood.  There came a band of American Crows.  There were a dozen of them, cawing, cahing all over here and there.  But unfortunately I could not spot any hawk this time.

Crow #1:  "I'm gonna hop around here."

Crow #2:  "Skipping here."

Crow#3:  "Now ready to fly away."

"Bye for now."

A Smarty Pants, American Crow

An American Crow is much smarter than we think.  The other day I found an interesting article on the National Wildlife Federation's magazine.

 This article said that studies at UW in Seattle showed that American Crows could recognize the people's faces.  During the studies,  the researchers wore assorted masks and recorded how the crows behaved.   Later when the crows spotted a person wearing the mask worn during the banding process, they formed small mobs and scolded that person severely.

Amazingly even seven years afterwards, the crows clung to the memory and those born afterwards without actually experiencing the banding recognize the notorious face (the old ones must have taught young ones).  In addition, they can also recognize the faces associated with a good behaviour such as offering food. 

Wow, I have to behave good!!!  You, too.

" That's why I remember you and your backyard."

"It's nice to be at a safe ground."

Backyard Owner:  "I pledge to be good everytime you and your buddies are around.  I only feed birds and take pictures.  No harm."

Another Battle? - Red-tailed Hawk with a Crow

During the warm months, hawks are out of town, avoiding the heat probably migrating to Canada or even Alaska.  Come winter, I will see them fairly often flying around here and looking around for prey.  

Recently I saw one landing onto the top of a tall sycamore tree.  As soon as it saw me, it fled in a westerly direction.

 

 

 

 

As I turned around to see the opposite direction,   I saw another one on a fir tree!!

 

 

Then here comes a crow.   Whenever a hawk is around, a crow is near.

"Hi, big brother.  You do not belong here!!"

"Get out of here....  You are not allowed to feed on my little friends.  I am a protector of little birds."

American Crow

Everyday I see American Crows flying around or cawing loud from the top of a tall tree.  But only on a rare occasion I see them on my backyard.  The other morning  a couple of American Crows landed here. They are huge compared with little birds that I usually see.

"From up high, I saw some food out here ."

"Hey buddy, watch out!! Somebody is already mad at us!!"

"I just wanted to clean up this fallen suet, not stealing anything from anyone.  Munch, munch...."

After that, they are quickly off to another errand.  I see them often up in the sky protecting little birds from predators such as hawks.  A benevolent bird in the bird world.

American Crow

Early in the morning when I look around outside, often I can spot one or two crows on top of a tall tree.   They are said to be one of the smartest of all the birds.  

Often I see them acting as goodwill police by spotting a hawk, giving a warning call loud and clear, and chasing the predator out of the way. 

Per National Geographic's Field Guide, adults are readily identified by familiar CAW call whereas juveniles give a higher-pitched, nasal CAH begging call. 

Last year a few crows came down to my backyard to wander around.    A male, a female, and a juvenile all look alike: All-black bird with black bill, legs, and feet.  They eat fruit, insects, mammals, fish, seed, and the suet.  Some can live up to 20 years.

So next time when you hear a crow, just listen.  Is it an adult or a juvenile?