It was an unusual slate colored junco–more commonly called “snow” birds. Usually you only see the white on their tail wings as they flick them but this particular bird had one side of its tail showing white all the time. I noticed this particular bird for weeks. It was about a week until spring and they migrate north so don’t know how much longer that bird will be around. It seemed only a few weeks ago we had a large snow storm and slate colored juncos were all over the yard feeding on the birdseed I put out on the top of the snow.
Tags: bird feeding, bird-watching, birds, birds migrate, birdseed, Slate-colored Junco, snow birds, snow storm, white tail wings
Posted in beauty, birds, local, nature, seasons |
It took another week for a woodpecker to find the new suet cage I filled and placed outside our bathroom window. Our neighbor gave us two wrought iron plant hangers and I stuck one in the ground now visible from the window by looking down. The bathroom is on the second floor. Today she noticed a woodpecker was feeding on the suet. I now have two suet cages which were early Christmas presents. The other one has been up for months. When I realized one suet cake can last for months, I was not hesitant to put up another. It was the squirrels who were eating most of the suet. Now they can’t do that so easily.
Tags: arrival of first woodpecker, bird feeding, bird-watching, birds, Christmas presents, God, my new suet cage, squirrels, suet cages, woodpecker
Posted in animals, birds, knowledge&learning, local, time |
The squirrel found a way to outwit me. I have a “squirrel proof” bird feeder now damaged after squirrels managed at least twice to dump it on the ground. Finally I hung it attached by wire at the top of a nail. It was partially exposed to the elements and I was concerned when it rained moisture would get into the feeder and the sunflower seed would mold. A squirrel was on it this morning totally extended from the top eagerly feeding through the hole. If he put his whole weight on the rest of the feeder, the carriage would go down and shut the openings and he could no longer get at the birdseed. I realized that was the only way he could outwit me and my squirrel proof feeder was no longer squirrel proof. Outwitted by a squirrel. How disgusting.
Tags: bird feeder, bird feeding, birds, birdseed, my squirrel proof bird feeder, outwitted by a squirrel, squirrels, sunflower seed
Posted in animals, humor, local, nature, time |
It was only a week ago our yard was completely snow covered. The temperature then rose. A week ago we would have dozens of birds feeding on the ground, sometimes, at one time several cardinals, and flocks of slate covered juncos among others. Now we don’t see so many. Since most of the snow melted the birds must have more opportunities to find food. We do see many goldfinch come to our feeders. It is that time of year for them. About the beginning of spring they come in flocks. They love sunflower seeds and are now coming to the sock I hung up filled with suet.
Tags: bird feeding, birds, cardinal, cardinals, many goldfinch, melting of the snow, slate covered juncos, snow covered yard, spring, suet, sunflower seeds
Posted in animals, birds, local, nature, seasons, time |
We did have a new bird come to our suet feeder–an hairy woodpecker. An hairy woodpecker looks just like a downy but bigger. We have seen them before but not recently. We got more snow last night. In fact, it was still snowing when I awoke. Spring is less than two weeks away. We have had snow on the ground for months. We are soon going in a spell (eight days) when it will be in the forties every day and even in the fifties one or two days. I wonder whether all the snow will melt during that period. We will see.
Tags: bird feeding, birds, downy woodpecker, hairy woodpecker, snow, snow on the ground, spring, spring two weeks off, suet feeder, warm spell
Posted in birds, local, nature, seasons, time |
I am seeing how long it takes. First I put out slices of orange in the suet cage and then I put out a sock full of thistle. It has been quite long since I saw the last goldfinch. And I am curious what birds, if any, are attracted to the slices of orange. I will keep my eyes open. I like surprises. So we will see.
Tags: bird feeding, birds, goldfinch, slices of oranges for the birds, suet cage, thistle, thistle for the goldfinch
Posted in birds, local, nature |
So far only one bird has gone into the cage inclosing the suet cake–a downy woodpecker. I have seen a number of different birds crawl up and down the trunk of the tree the cage is near but that is what the birds are used to–feeding from the trunk. Let us see how long it takes for other birds to crawl inside the cage and eat the suet cake placed there.
Tags: bird feeding, birds, downy woodpecker, suet cage, the birds and the cage enclosing the suet cake, tree trunk
Posted in birds, local, nature, time |
I am waiting to see how long it takes for the birds to find the suet, again. For years I put some up right next to the trunk of the large white pine outside our window. I got tired of sharing the suet with the squirrels. Sometimes I would have to put up new suet once a day. My wife surprised me with not one but two cages to enclose suet cakes. It was a Christmas present she gave me before the holidays. The cages are supposed to be squirrel proof. I put up the one that had largest holes. I wanted bigger woodpeckers to be able to reach the suet. The suet I put near the trunk of the tree was finally gone. I want to see how long it would take the birds to find the suet in the cages. Today I saw a chickadee alight on the outside of the cage briefly. That is the closest I got to seeing a bird go in the cage. It might take weeks before a woodpecker goes into the cage. And they seemed to like that the suet near the trunk of the tree. Let us see how many weeks go by. Birds are creatures of habit.
Tags: a cage enclosing suet cakes, bird feeding, birds, birds are creatures of habit, chickadee, Christmas present, my wife, squirrel proof, suet cage, the birds are competing with the squirrels for suet, the suet placed near the trunk of the tree, woodpeckers
Posted in animals, birds, local, marriage, nature, time |
Today I saw an hairy and a red bellied woodpecker at the same time travelling up and down on the trunk of our white pine we put a suet cake on. The hairy woodpecker was an unusual visitor. A hairy woodpecker looks just like a downy woodpecker–just bigger. For months we stopped putting out birdseed because a bear visited our property one time too often destroying our gate during one visit. Our dogs were no help: they slept right through all the bear’s visits. My wife once saw the bear standing in the yard at night munching on birdseed on the ground.
Tags: a bear raided our birdseed at night, bird feeding, bird-watching, birds, birdseed, downy woodpecker, hairy woodpecker, my wife, our encounter with a bear, red bellied woodpecker, suet cake, the dogs slept through several bear visits, white pine tree
Posted in animals, birds, local, nature, time |
I have been putting out birdseed again for several months. I had stopped for a few months. We had several visits from a bear who was tearing down all the bird feeders helping himself. The last week was the first time I saw a red bellied woodpecker (several times) and a Carolina wren. I could have sworn I saw a brown creeper and the first flock of slate covered juncos feeding on the ground. These were all first sighting of these birds since I put back the feeders.
Tags: bear raiding and tearing down our birdfeeders, bird feeding, bird-feeders, bird-watching, birds, birdseed, brown creeper bird, first sightings of red bellied woodpeckers and a Carolina wren, slate covered juncos, visit from bear
Posted in animals, birds, local, nature, seasons, time |
Last night a hummingbird was looking for my nectar I usually put out for him/her. I spotted the bird alighting on a branch of the pine tree ten feet from where the feeder used to be. Since the bear tore that feeder down, I had not put any up, again. I felt so bad that I immediately made some more and filled my feeder for him and put it up again. Within fifteen minutes. I am hoping the hummingbird tries, again. I know it will take time for the hummingbirds to realize there is nectar there for them again. I felt so disheartened when a bear came in our yard twice and raided all our bird feeders. I felt helpless.
Tags: bird feeding, birds, discouraged by the bear who tore down all our bird feeders twice, hummingbirds, nectar, nectar for the hummingbirds, pine tree, ruby-throated hummingbird, the bear raids
Posted in animals, birds, local, nature, time |
It is a mystery to me when birds come to my feeders. Sometimes the dogs chase them away. Other times I don’t know why they don’t come. There is birdseed there. I just don’t know. It is always puzzling to me that I can put out a new suet cake and the birds find it almost right away. And that is after I have been out for awhile. The birds provide such pleasure. In the spring I noted we have quite a few goldfinch. Sometimes there are so many I see them at two different feeders–the sunflower and thistle feeder. It always amazes me that one will sit on the thistle feeder for five minutes at a time feeding. The males are reverting to yellow, again. We have been having three different kinds of woodpeckers come to eat the suet: downy, red bellied and now hairy. The hairy woodpecker has become a regular visitor. In the past, we hardly ever saw one. At least one knows about the suet. The hairy woodpecker is twice the size of the downy. Though somewhat similar in markings.
Tags: bird feeding, bird-watching, birds, birdseed, dogs, downy woodpecker, goldfinch, goldfinch in spring, hairy woodpecker, pets, red bellied woodpecker, suet cake, sunflower feeder, thistle feeder, woodpeckers
Posted in birds, local, nature, seasons, time |
