We went to an natural preserve where the endangered red cockaded woodpecker frequents. I got tired of walking. Every step I took would be one more step back. There was no loop on the trail. My friend kept walking and when he came back, he reported seeing a pair. The board walk went through swamp land. The woodpeckers like long leafed pine. To me, the trees were odd because most of them went fifty feet up until they had branches. My friend said they were common in this area. I kept looking but did not see any of those woodpeckers although I was happy he saw a pair. I was glad when he returned to the car and we returned. I was ready for a nap.
Tags: board walk, everything appears new, long leafed pine, my friend, natural preserve, new area, ready for a nap, red-cockaded woodpecker, swamp land, tired of walking, trail, woodpeckers
Posted in birds, knowledge&learning, life, nature, relationships, time |
In a short time–twenty seconds–I saw a Carolina wren, a brown creeper, the ubiquitous titmouse and a red bellied woodpecker–all from my window. They were feeding on the birdseed I put out on the ground plus the suet cake placed next to the trunk of my large white pine tree. The woodpecker took a chunk of fat from the suet cake and disappeared. I could never understand why it is called a red bellied woodpecker. The red is on its head not its belly. It is a big magnificent woodpecker I never saw before I started putting out suet cakes regularly.
The small sized downy woodpeckers are more frequent visitors than the red bellied woodpeckers. Sometimes you can see two or three downy woodpeckers at one time although they maintain their space between each other. They march up and down the pine tree stiffly like they are at attention. The Carolina wren is a big wren as far as wrens goes–maybe the biggest and feeds on the ground as well at the suet.
The brown creeper is a nondescript little brown bird with a curved beak that does just that creep up and down the trunk of the pine tree. It occasionally can be found on the ground but usually is found on the trunk of the tree going up and down the tree. Of the four birds, it comes here the least. These birds mentioned can be found here all year around.
Every once in awhile I spot a new bird and become excited. The latest was a red-cockaded woodpecker that came every day for a few days although I saw no red on it. It took several visits before I could make a positive identification. It is a midsized woodpecker between the size of a downy and red bellied woodpecker. I had never seen one before. Watching birds from my large living room window gives me much pleasure.
Tags: bird feeding, bird seed, bird-watching, birds, brown creeper, Carolina wren, downy woodpecker, large window, red bellied woodpecker, red-cockaded woodpecker, suet cake, titmouse, white pine tree, woodpeckers
Posted in beauty, birds, knowledge&learning, local, nature, seasons, time |
