Siggy’s Blurbs

I believe it was last Saturday.  We were driving down our road and we spotted a hawk perched high on a tree on our left.  My wife wanted a second look so we turned around and stopped our car at that spot.  The hawk soon after flew away.  It could not tolerate our presence.  My wife saw the red on its tail as it flew away.  It was a red tailed hawk and a juvenile (less than a year old according to my bird book).  Then we got on the main high way along the River and my wife saw two bald eagles soaring high in the sky.  I was disappointed.  I had never seen two at once but only spotted one.  It was a fruitful day birdwatching.  I like surprises and new bird discoveries.

Tags: bald eagle, bird book, bird-watching, birds, fruitful day, red-tailed hawk, river
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All I want to do is hibernate today:  it is 23 degrees out.  I am trying to think positive.  A month of winter is gone–almost.  No snowstorms yet.  Meanwhile I glance out my large living room window periodically and watch the multitude of birds feeding on the sunflower seed I have strewn on the ground and placed elsewhere.  Soon night fall will come and in two days a person will check our chimney (and clean it if it is necessary) and it will be safe to heat our house with coal and wood and it will be toasty, again, in our house.

Tags: bird feeding, bird-watching, birds, chimney, coal stove, heat, hibernate, snow, sunflower seed, winter, wood stove
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I was thrilled when one of my neighbors said two bald eagles have a nest only three miles away on the mountain across the River.  He said that a man with a telescope keeps an eye on them and also sometimes they can be seen soaring over the valley.  Now I am going to see if I can spot them with my binoculars.  I can’t wait to see if I have any luck.  I have only seen bald eagles a few times in this area.  Now I will have my eyes open viewing the sky every time I go in that area.

Tags: bald eagle, binoculars, bird nest, bird-watching, mountain, river, telescope, valley, view the sky
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I made a few discoveries today.  When I drove to the post office and passed the meadow nearby I spotted two male red winged blackbirds dive bombing each other.  I am not sure what they were doing except they may have been fighting for their own territory.

To see two at one time was a real treat and so close to home.  Then when I was driving to Newport along the Juniata River I saw what appeared to be a blue heron perched on a branch on this side of the river.

Later in the distance at the mouth of a tributary a great egret was wading in the water.  I also used to see a blue heron always in the same pond, same spot.

I realized last winter something was wrong when it was still in the same spot after the pond froze over.  To my chagrin I was looking at a statue of one all along.

Those were a few of my bird discoveries today.  A turkey vulture reluctantly left the road and his prey when I came across it.  I watched it fly away slowly.  I never know what bird I will see and always have my eyes open for the next discovery.

Tags: bird statue, bird-watching, birds, blue heron, discoveries, great egret, Juniata River, meadow, nature, Newport, pond, post office, red-winged blackbird, river, territory, tributary, turkey vulture, water, winter
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There were certain birds I never saw before I started feeding them.  A red bellied woodpecker was one.  I never saw a Carolina wren before.  Those are two birds that quickly come to mind.

There are others like a white breasted nuthatch who likes feeding on the suet I put out for the woodpeckers.  I never had a large living room window facing the yard before from where I can watch the birds come to and fro several bird feeders.

Our window faces a large white pine and there are bushes on the edge of the porch.  When the frost is ended I will put out sugar water and watch the daily parade and antics of the ruby throated hummingbirds feeding on them.

I consider myself lucky to have this situation.  I have always loved birds and I get a lot of pleasure of watching the steady stream of them.

Tags: bird feeding, bird-feeders, bird-watching, birds, Carolina wren, frost, hummingbirds, living room window, nature, red bellied woodpecker, ruby-throated hummingbird, spring, suet, sugar water for birds, white pine tree, white-breasted nuthatch, winter, woodpeckers
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This is the second day in a row I heard the distinct wild cackle of a piliated woodpecker.  I strained to spot it in the woods across from me but no luck.  In eight years I have only seen one three or four times.

The first time I spotted a really large bird alight on a stump eighty yards away.  I quickly ran in the house too grab my binoculars and then was able to identify it.  It is an over twelve inch high exotic looking bird with a red crest.

They have somewhat come back for the woods have grown back.  I don’t know why it was so important for me to actually see the bird but it was.  Nevertheless, I was thrilled to hear its call and know it was in the neighborhood again.

Tags: binoculars, bird-watching, exotic looking bird, large bird, piliated woodpecker, red crest, tree stump, wild bird cackle, woods
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The birds must be hungry.  There is a flurry of activity outside our front window.  I did sprinkle some handfuls of birdseed on the snow earlier in the morning.  I have seen many mourning doves and slate covered junco feeding  on the ground.

We are getting a steady stream of downy woodpeckers feeding on the suet placed by the trunk of the large pine tree.  I am still waiting for the entrance of the red bellied woodpecker.  I am always awed by its sight.

There are usually a few tufted titmouse at one time coming to and fro the feeder just outside the window.  They like the sunflower seed I put out for them.  Once in awhile I see a chickadee or a cardinal.  I love watching them.

Maybe, today I will see an unusual species.  You never know.  Today I will have more time to watch the birds.  It is snowing and there is no where else to go.

Tags: bird feeder, bird seed, bird-watching, birds, cardinal, chickadee, downy woodpecker, it is snowing, living room window, mourning dove, pine tree, red bellied woodpecker, slate covered junco, snow, snow covered ground, suet, sunflower seed, tufted titmouse, winter
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I still watch birds after all these years.  I love identifying them and seeing a new species for the first time.  I have four feeders which I can view from my large living room window.

The one filled with suet is placed near the trunk of my large white pine tree.  I still get a kick out of watching the downy woodpeckers come and go up and down the trunk of the tree seemingly at attention.

The beauty of the larger red bellied woodpecker still takes my breath away.  Other species of woodpeckers have come but usually it is only the downy woodpecker and the occasional red bellied.

I spotted a grosbeak feeding on the ground the last two days but I am still trying to pin down the exact species.  I had never seen one before.

I was driving once on a major highway and a ruffed grouse literally “exploded” in front of me missing my windshield by inches.

Every time I visit a friend there is the same blue heron wading in the same spot in the same pond as if it had not moved an inch in weeks.

It was not until I had moved to this state did I see a great egret, a big majestic white bird.  Now I search for a glimpse of him every time as I travel along the Susquehanna River.  They migrate South in the Fall.  The egrets usually can be found wading at the perimeter of the islands.  Usually I see the smaller white snowy egret, though.

God has made so many types of birds and I glory in his creations.  When I least expect it I see a new species.  I still love watching and identifying birds after more than a half of century.  I feel old now.

Tags: bird-feeders, bird-watching, birds, blue heron, downy woodpecker, Fall, God made birds, great egret, grosbeak, His creations, identifying birds, love watching birds, migrate south, new species, pond, red bellied woodpecker, ruffled grouse, suet, Susquehanna River, view feeders from living room window, wading near islands, white bird, white pine tree, white snowy egret
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The sky is dimly lit just before the dawn.  The birds are in song in full crescendo.  I am wondering when I will see the first chickadees, tufted titmouse and downy woodpeckers come to my feeders.

I am thinking about that Carolina wren that built a nest in the large pansy pot hanging from my garage door.  Yesterday before it became light I shined a flashlight into the nest–flushing the poor frightened bird who high tailed it for parts unknown–and peered into the nest spotting three tiny speckled eggs.  My wife reprimanded me for scaring the bird.  I will leave her alone now.  I want the mother to successfully raise its young and I do not want to scare it out of its wits further, possibly abandoning her eggs.

Two years in a row (the last two) an eastern phoebe built a nest just outside our front door on top of the right lamp but I guess there was too much traffic in and out the house so it abandoned the nest and raised its young somewhere else.

This year a pair of robins have built a nest in the right corner in the gigantic bush.  At least twice I looked inside it but I could not spot the nest.  A few times when I walked nearby I flushed one of them.  Two robins keep feeding under our large pine tree which is somewhat unusual.  Several time I saw a robin extract a worm from the earth, toss it above its head, then gobble it down.

I love to observe the natural world around me especially the birds that come to our four feeders.  I am expectantly waiting for the first hummingbirds to come to our two feeders I have set up for them.  One is hanging from the pine tree mentioned and the other is hanging close to the window.

According to my bird journal I have kept for over five years the first one usually appears the end of April.  It is the twenty-second of April so my eyes have been continually sweeping the area outside our large living room window.  It was over a month ago the local nature columnist reported someone spotted one passing the Mason Dixon line and they would be here any day.  I put out nectar immediately after that announcement.  Well I am still waiting to spot one and already had to replace the nectar I set up and clean the feeder immediately after I noticed black mold in the feeder.  I guess they must have turned around or taken an extended stay along the way.

Watching birds give me such pleasure.  The money I spend on feed for them is worth every cent.  I love observing their antics:  they are all different.  This has been a lifetime hobby.

Tags: bird-watching, birds, Carolina wren, chickadee, dawn, downy woodpecker, eastern phoebe, hummingbird, nectar, pansy, robin, tuftet titmouse
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I make sure my two large bird house totems face outward, one on each side of my front door.  I want the birds in my neighborhood to feel welcome.  There are a multitude of birds that come to our five feeders, which I keep well supplied with anything from sunflower seed to thistle to suet and when the warm weather arrives I put out nectar I make especially for the hummingbirds.  That does not even include the birdseed I scatter on the ground for the birds who prefer to feed there.

Last year there were three birds nesting in our vicinity.  An eastern phoebe built a nest above the right front door light although there might have been too much traffic there for her to be successful in raising her young.  A nest was built there two years in a row.

A scarlet tanager raised a family in a bird box stationed at a large white pine a foot higher feet than my head less than an hundred feet away from our entrance although I never spotted the brightly colored male.  I had never seen one before.

A catbird made a nest in the thicket of one gigantic bush in the corner of our yard.  One of our cats found the nest and flushed the young catbird out of the bush and we shooed the cat away immediately.  The frightened baby bird  hopped into the open garage chirping in fright.  My son who happened to be at my house first had to move a table and a filing cabinet out of the garage to reach the scared little bird who had hopped deep into the cluttered garage.  He trapped the baby bird carefully scooped up into a little box without touching it and safely released it back into the overgrown bush where its nest lay.

I want all the birds in our neighborhood to know they are welcome to visit our premises and raise their young.  Every day I watch them come to and fro our feeders.  Soon I will put out nectar for our hummingbird feeders and watch the miniature  “helicopters” come back and forth and jostle for position at their feeders.  We will have one feeder at the window just so we can watch them closeup.

There is such a variety of birds that come to our feeders.  The magnificent ten inch long red bellied woodpecker with its gorgeously marked red head occasionally feeds on our suet feeder (which I have placed right next to the trunk of the large white pine tree) and there is his companion–the smaller downy woodpecker which stands at attention as it climbs up and down the trunk of the same tree also feeding on the suet.  Then there is the diminutive brown creeper who is aptly named who also feeds on the suet and my favorite–the fearless chickadee whose antics I always love watching.

This is, of course, an incomplete list.  I want them all to feel welcome and the birds continue to come here  in a constant stream.  I joyously greet them each morning and watch them all day and never know when an odd bird makes its appearance like the indigo buntings that seem to come through here once or twice a year in flocks.  I never know for sure what I will see outside my window.  I want the birds to always feel welcome.

Tags: bird-watching, birds, brown creeper, catbird, chickadee, downy woodpecker, eastern phoebe, hummingbird, indigo bunting, red bellied woodpecker, scarlet tanager, suet, woodpecker
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The dawn is only an hour away.  I can not wait to see the first chickadees come to my feeders.  They never fail to delight me.  I am always thrilled by the magnificent red-bellied woodpeckers who come to feed on the suet I have put out near the trunk of the large pine tree outside my large living room window.

The downy woodpeckers come during the day.  They seem to stand at attention as they feed and go around the trunk of the tree.  The occasional cardinals who feed on the ground are very wary.  The beautiful bright red male cardinal never fails to delight me, too.

Every once in awhile I see a brown creeper.  And the many goldfinch who love the thistle I put out for them.  They will sit at the feeder for five minutes  eating the thistle.  Often there will be a dozen feeding on the ground.  I can not wait for the males to turn yellow again.  Before, I rarely saw them.  Now they have become commonplace.  Maybe, now I take them for granted.  The slate covered junco come in flocks and might have gone away.

These are the more common birds I see out of my window every day but I never know when I will be surprised.  I am waiting to see if I see any flocks of indigo buntings.  They are such beautiful birds who I only see a few times a year.

There are also the piliated woodpeckers.  I usually hear them not see them.  Their wild cackle is unmistakable and when I am lucky I actually spot one with its large long red crown.  It is such an exotic looking bird over a foot long.  I never forgot the first one I spotted outside my house.  I had to run into the house to grab my binoculars to get a good look at it.  It was over a hundred feet away perched on a stump.  I absolutely love birds.  I have all my life.  I guess you got that idea.

Tags: animals, bird-watching, birds, nature
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