Still trying for Hummers!

If you remember from my post last spring, I was on a mission to attract Hummers. I first put a feeder out in mid April to get them but had no luck so I finally took my feeder down early July. About two weeks ago my local bird store said the hummers were coming down from the mountains and being seen in record numbers. I put my feeder back up but this time I moved it to my front yard ( that faces west) by my Zinnias and petunias.   Well a few days later, I was in my backyard and a hummer showed up for about 2 seconds to investigate the red rim of my basketball hoop then headed toward my front yard. I quickly ran to look out my front window and the hummer was nowhere to be found and my feeder was swarming with bees. I did some research and found that hummers won't visit a feeder with all the bees so I decided to move the feeder farther away from the flowers while the bees weren't looking  to see if that would help and it didn't. Next day, I was in my backyard again and once more a hummer flew near a colorful umbrella I have very close to the basketball hoop. I also have a pot with some zinnias there too but only a few. Once again, the visit was so brief like 5 seconds or less. So, I decided to go to the bird feeding store and buy a new hummer feeder that is less attractive to bees...

I moved it to the backyard near the location the hummer has been visiting. I made a fresh new batch of sugar water, hung the feeder and waited. On the fourth day, a hummer came right up to the feeder and hovered above it for about 3 seconds ( not drinking from it) and flew away. The next morning, I changed to sugar water thinking 4 days may have been too long but the hummer has not been seen again and that was 3 days ago. Here is a photo of the current location of the feeder now in my backyard where he has been spotted...

American Robin with Cherries!

I have a Nanking Cherry shrub in my yard and this year it was loaded with cherries. We picked a bunch to eat (very sour!) and left the rest for the birds!

The Chickadees Have Fledged!

Within a day or two of leaving the nest at the beginning of June, the whole family showed up to my feeders for food! I didn't realize baby Chickadees look just like adult Chickadees until I saw them together. They sure make their presence known when they come to the feeders with those demanding babies! I think there are 4 but it's hard to count these fast-moving critters!!

Black-capped Chickadees Building a Nest!

My neighbor has had this birdhouse hanging in their tree for a few years and this spring the Chickadees have decided to use it! I really enjoyed watching them bringing nesting material and getting it all ready! I wish I could see the entrance from my yard but this will have to do!

I'm on a mission...

...to attract hummingbirds to my yard!

I hung this feeder in mid April to try and get the migrating ones on their way up to the mountains just West of me but no such luck and now it's June.  I hear they will start heading down from the mountains to my area again in August so I will try again. We are doing some landscaping in our front yard and I'm hoping to plant some Hummingbird-friendly plants there, soon!

Hawks!

This, I'm taking a guess and calling it a Red-tailed Hawk (please correct me if I'm wrong), was flying over my house when I was returning from a walk.

It appears the Cooper's Hawks are nesting in the same spot as last year. Their nest didn't last through the winter so they had to build a new one! I'm keeping my distance from them this year so this will likely be the only photos I post :)

American Robin

Still, my all-time favorite bird!

Red-winged Blackbirds!

The Mr. and Mrs. !

My Squirrel

We have an understanding. As long as he doesn't destroy my feeders and eat all the food...

then he and his wife and children can stay in my yard...

and I'll even let you drink from the birdbath :)

Project FeederWatch Kicks off 25th Season Today!

....and I made a little movie to pay tribute. Enjoy!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=afms284xnig

Water Wiggler

I found an interesting gadget at my local Wild Birds Unlimited store called the Water Wiggler. It's main purpose is to discourage mosquitoes from laying eggs in the bird bath but that's not why I bought it. I bought it because the rippling water effect is supposed to attract more birds to your yard. Since winter is approaching, I now have my bird bath heater going at night and rippling water. I'm hoping that winter birds will visit my yard while searching for a refreshing drink or a nice warm bath.
I would eventually like to get a larger birdbath since this gadget doesn't really leave room for bigger birds to bathe, but for now I would say most of the birds that visit my bath drink from it rather than bathe. It took about 7 days for the birds to get used to it...but I think they've finally accepted it as something safe to go near and are starting to visit the bath again!

Here's a little video:

Blue Jay

This isn't the first time I've seen these vibrant Blue Jays in my backyard, but I see them so rarely that I welcome their beautiful blue color!

Bushtits!

This was a first sighting for me! I thought they were baby Chickadees until I learned that they were, in fact a group of Bushtits! Cute little things and I've only had them visit this one time that I'm aware of. Sort of a "now you see us, now you don't" kind of visit!!

Molting Northern Flicker

Birds can look so scraggly when they molt! I just want to go pluck all those feathers out for her!

Chipping Sparrow

This photo was taken in my backyard on Sept. 30, 2011. About the same time every afternoon for about a week, a fairly good size group of Chipping Sparrows fluttered to and fro amongst the trees, chittering and chattering a happy tune. Little buggers were difficult to get a photo of, though. This was the best I could do, considering the rapid movement of my target. Not a great focus but at least enough I could figure out what kinds of birds I was listening to!

Common Grackle

About mid September, I had a whole large flock of common Grackles race through my yard like a motorcycle gang! There must have been a hundred of them. In that last photo above, I can count over 20 and the rest were in my trees. They didn't stay long but they sure made a lot of noise while they were here!

American Robin with Crossed Beak

I noticed this little fella amongst my Elderberry bushes. I didn't notice his crossed beak until I got close look at him. I sure hope he can learn to grab worms with that beak. He seemed to be able to eat the berries and he certainly looks like a well-fed bird. He may still be getting food from his parents at this point but I'll keep an eye out for him next summer to see if he makes it through the winter.

Unfortunate House Finch with Avian Pox?

Howdy!!! If you still follow this blog, you're in for a treat because I have lots of pics to post ans will be getting to it very soon I promise!!! I will start with the most recent and eventually work my way through them all for you to enjoy.
This unfortunate female House Finch showed up at my feeder a couple of days ago (Oct 4th) and I immediately noticed something different about her behavior. First, she was alone and this time of year the finches are starting to really gather in flocks for protection but this gal was sitting on my feeder, not eating, just sitting. OK, she did eat a seed or two but not much. I sat and watched her for the longest time. I got out my camera to see if I could see signs of eye disease but I think her eyes look fine (maybe not? ). Eventually, I moved a little closer and she flew to the fence where I spotted her ailment...a bad foot. She then flew up into the tree where she stayed, perched with one foot and sleeping at times, for at least another half-hour. I had to leave for a bit and when I cam back she was gone. In general, just by her behavior, I don't think she was a well bird. She seemed to be in pain but there was nothing I could do. I called a bird rehab and they said if she can fly away, there's nothing they could do and the hope it that she will eventually heal. I hope so!!!!
Edited to add that according to some opinions on my Flickr page, this bird seems to be suffering from Avian Pox. The best thing for me to do is disinfect my feeders to discourage spreading of this contagious disease.

On another note....the squirrell is still trying to figure out how to get the seed out of that feeder. He gets his fair share of dropped seed and suet plus the corn and apples I give him. He's a well fed squirrel!!!

House Finch Nest and Farewell To a Tree

Looking out my front window, I used to see a tree. A little pine tree that was planted by me in a poor spot. We received a free pine tree many years ago (maybe 12-15) from TCI Cable Co. I transplanted it into a coffee can and had it on my kitchen windowsill for awhile. I finally transplanted it into a whiskey barrel in front of this window. There it stayed for the next many years. It's roots eventually busted through the bottom and this little tree thrived and became quite large. To my enjoyment, the birds came to love this tree. In the picture above, a wintering bird (House Sparrow I think) stopped by for a nibble on the pine cones.

In May of this year, this House Finch built a nest in our little tree. I wondered if this was the same House Finch that made a nest in this tree 2 years ago.

I really enjoyed watching her work on her nest for a few days from inside my window!



I decided not to invade the nest with my camera to see how many eggs were laid but after I heard nestlings, I snuck this photo from a distance with my zoom lens. Eventually the nest was empty and we had to make the tough decision to remove the tree for our landscaping project.

We had the hardest time parting with this tree, but because of the roots being in the whiskey barrel, it had a low chance of being transplanted and it was smashed up against our house. After waiting a few weeks to make sure the nest wasn't going to be re-used, we said farewell to our tree.


And a few days later, we went to the nursery, bought a new tree and planted it (further from our house this time). This Autumn Blaze Maple will turn red in the fall and it will be a joy to watch it grow. I hope the birds find some enjoyment from it, also!