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| Last Updated on July 17, 2006 |
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| Our newest visitors are wild turkeys. December 2005 was the first time we had these guys in our yard. I've started throwing out cracked corn for them. |
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| Birds More bird photos here. |
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| The most awesome experience I've had so far with a bird was when I was face to face with this juvenile Sharp-Shinned Hawk. It could also be a Cooper's Hawk since they look so similar, but because of the tail feathers, I believe it is a SSH. One late December day in 2004, I went outside to photograph some birds, but suddenly they were all gone. When I looked more closely, I saw this little guy sitting in the maple tree near the feeders. I walked up to him and snapped several photographs. He did not fly off until I was about 6-7 feet from him. |
| More information on the Sharp-Shinned Hawk can be found here. Also, information on the Cooper's Hawk can be found here. |
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| It can be difficult to get a good picture of a cardinal since they can be so skiddish, but they seem less afraid of me every year, so I hope to get better pics in the future. |
| More information on Northern Cardinals can be found here. |
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| Black-Capped Chickadees must be the friendliest of all birds in this area. I just love watching them fly back and forth and "talk" with each other, and I sware sometimes I think they are talking to me. Like when I'm filling an empty feeder, they chatter away as if to tell me to hurry up. They are not the least bit afraid of me and sit on branches right next to my head as I fill the feeder. Maybe someday I can get one to eat from my hand. For more info click here. |
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| Late spring 2005, we had some Canada Geese stop by for a short time. Glad they didn't stay long, they are messy creatures. |
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| The Downy Woodpeckers really love the peanut feeders and the homemade suet I put out for them I've noticed several juvenile Downy's this past year, which could mean that they are nesting nearby. |
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| The first summer we were here, we noticed a pair of Mallards that would eat the seed dropped to the ground from the hanging bird feeders. That first pair stayed until about July. The next year two pair hung around until August. Each year since, more and more ducks have come into the yard, so many that Gary made a duck feeder for them. This past year, we had as many as 24 in the yard at once and I believe that the original pair is still alive. Each duck seems to have it's own personality and some of the ducks have different plummage so it's easy to tell them apart. We've named several of the regulars. More info on Mallards can be found here. |
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| The Ruby-Throated Hummingbird is a difficult bird to photograph well. These two aren't bad, but I hope to get better ones in the future. The one on the right was actually taken through the screen on the storm door, but still a decent pic in my opinion. |
| Male Ruby-Throated Hummingbird |
| Female Ruby-Throated Hummingbird |
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| The Titmouse is another bird that loves the peanut feeders. This morning I had six Titmouse taking turns at the feeder. It always makes me smile seeing the birds enjoying themselves. |
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| The above are Tree Swallows, which I have never seen in our yard before. They are just amazing to watch and from what I understand eat lots of flying insects like mosquitos. There were three in the yard at one time chasing each other and checking out the birdhouses in our yard and the neighbor's yard. I hope we can get them to nest nearby. More info can be found about Tree Swallows here. |
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| I know that Spring is truly here when the Rose-Breasted Grosbeaks arrive for their Spring visit. They will only be here a few weeks, so I enjoy them as much as I can while they are here. They really seem to like the covered platform feeder we have...last year they ignored that one for some reason. I'm happy they are getting used to it because it is closer to the house and easier to watch them. More info can be found here. |
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| If it wasn't for the fact that the male was feeding the female, I would have never realized that this was the female Grosbeak...she is so plain, like a sparrow. This allows her to blend in well when she is sitting on her nest. |
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| I know that many people don't like Red-Winged Blackbirds because they can be such bullies at the bird feeder, but mine seem to get along very well with all the other birds. You can find more info on them here. |
| I care about gardening for wildlife and certified my yard with the
National Wildlife Federation at www.nwf.org/backyard/. You can too! |
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