Category Archives: Yard birds

Some Local Birds

With a marriage, house sale, move, van repair, and family reunion, it has been a busy late Spring/Summer. The birding has been quite good locally and we continue to see all sorts of avian visitors to our back yard. Here are a few shots I’ve taken of some local birds.

This Chipping Sparrow was singing away like he was in love.

Common Yellowthroats abound and have raised a strong new crop this summer.

Young Indigo Bunting

Tree Swallows with what looks like a Cliff Swallow.

Living on the North Branch of the Winooski River makes us neighbors with both common and hooded mergansers.

We are going to being doing some birding in Virginia in early August and then in southern Spain in September. We are also planning a Southwest trip for early 2019.  Adios, amigos.

Local Rambles

I’ve set up a round-trip bird walk, about 3.2 miles long, that goes up the trail along the North Branch of the Winooski, hooking up with the paths around the North Branch Nature Center. It’s a good way to get a little exercise and see a variety of birds and critters.Two days ago, I saw my first Belted Kingfisher of the year.

Two days ago, I saw my first Belted Kingfisher of the year.

Then, at NBNC, American Tree Swallows with checking out this bluebird nesting box.

Yesterday, I took a little detour up into the woods and saw these guys:

This Hermit Thrush was singing away – such a wonderful spring sound.

Several Brown Creepers were singing and feeding.

Returning home, I met an acquaintance who asked about my birding and told me that a Yellowlegs had been foraging all morning out behind the house. Sure enough – a new yard bird.

I’m calling this a Greater Yellowlegs but could be convinced otherwise. It left just at dusk.

 

Avian Flash Mob

Grabbing some lunch at the kitchen counter today, I noticed a bird silhouetted in the apple tree. I retrieved the camera from the car, took a shot with no clue as to what I was seeing.

 

Mystery bird

Mystery bird

It was only a few seconds before a second one, an Eastern Bluebird, landed by the garden and suddenly, there were about ten more. The bird feeder is in due to a recent bear visit and the pickings are rather slim and they were off in less than a minute. Here’s one of them:

Eastern Bluebird on the way south.

Eastern Bluebird on the way south.

It’s little gifts like this that make being out in nature, or just aware of my natural surroundings, that boost spirits on a grey October day. It’s delightful and they are also an addition to my yard list. Amigos felices del vuelos

An Abrupt Change of Plans

If you follow this blog, you know that we planned an extensive trip to the Southwest and California this winter with our Airstream. We have completely cancelled the trip. Mary has just been preliminarily diagnosed with lymphoma and we are readying ourselves for the final results and the road ahead to recovery. We’ll learn more this week and I’ll likely post something to follow this. I suspect that there won’t be a lot of birding posts or photos here for a while – we have a challenge ahead.

It is comforting to see the local birds at the feeder — the Black-capped Chickadees give us great delight as do the many woodpeckers and nuthatches — even the ravenous Blue Jays that come to our back deck. We’ll soon have juncos, pine siskins, and some of the other winter birds.

Here are a few shots I took this afternoon of our chickadee friends.

ChickadeeW2 ChickadeeW3 Chickadee1W

A Summer Walk in Our Woods

It’s nearly 80 degrees, muggy under a hot sun, mosquitoes everywhere, and trails just soggy with rainwater. It feels like birding in Alabama or Louisiana but I’m hearing Hermit Thrushes and White-throated Sparrows and not worrying about snakes or alligators. We’ve had days of rain, interspersed with sunshine, but the ground is as saturated as I seen in mid-June.

After loading up with insect repellant, I took the dog for a walk this afternoon to do a little mid-day birding. We are loaded with Chestnut-sided Warblers and one was singing away as we headed out. Here’s a guy that hangs out along our driveway.

Distinctive song, easy markings, stays low. My kind of warbler.

Distinctive song, easy markings, stays low. My kind of warbler.

We have several families of Common Yellowthroats living in the brushy areas around our house. This time of year, there is a lot of chipping but few calls. They move fast around the heavy foliage and are hard to photograph. Here’s one with a caterpillar.

You can run but you can't hide, completely.

You can run but you can’t hide, completely.

The mosquitoes attacked in force as we entered the woods – Deep Woods Off kept them from landing but they were hovering about an inch away from eyes, ears, nose etc. I remembered that birds need insects for food so tried to spin it positively, but it was not fun. I could hear Blackburnians way up high in the pines and Hermit Thrushes far off, and then Penny flushed this little guy who sat, hidden by branches, and finally flew off. I took a photo and believe it is a young Ovenbird. There was no call — I did hear several later on — but I’m basing it on the fact that it was on the ground, and then sat on a low branch, like Ovenbirds do — but the lack of striped chest or chestnut crown make me think it is a juvenile. Any thoughts — feel free to comment.

OvenbirdW

Of course, Penny, having been cooped up with rain all day, was ready to rock and roll. The red squirrels were out in force and she felt she had to tree and bark at each one.

Maybe if I stand here and bark you'll come down and play.

Maybe if I stand here and bark you’ll come down and play.

As we came back up toward the house, I spotted the three deer that we’ve had around all year. They have their red summer coats and were glowing in the afternoon sunset, but deep in the foliage, watching us carefully. There may be a fourth one — I’m hoping that there is a fawn among them. They’ll be out and about tomorrow.

Approaching the house from our pines, I noted once again how lush everything is. I thought for a moment about the times when we’ve been on these trails, now squishy with water, when my fingers were too frozen to operate the camera. Seems like a long time off but this is Vermont, hang a month or two.

As we approached the house, one of our resident Purple Finches was singing away from the top of our maple.

As we approached the house, one of our resident Purple Finches was singing away from the top of our maple.

We have several families of Purple Finches that provide us with flashes of color and wonderful music.

We have several families of Purple Finches that provide us with flashes of color and wonderful music.

The dog and I came home thirsty — I was sweating, she was panting. She’d seen a lot of squirrels, I had heard and seen a nice mix of birds. I’ll try to remember these days when I’m on out snowshoes with hand warmers not doing their job, with only chickadees and nuthatches in sight, and wonder why I whined about a little mud and bugs and heat. Good summer birding to you.

 

More iPhone Practice

I went up to Lamoille County yesterday to see if any waterfowl had shown up. Nothing new but a nice assortment of birds, many of which I couldn’t catch in the scope. Best birds were a Sharp-shinned Hawk right overhead and several handsome White-Crowned Sparrows. The lighting was not great but I did some more shooting with the scope and iPhone. (I’m not going to put every practice session up – this is it except for special birds or great shots.)

A Great Blue Heron hunting while a Mallard cruises by in poor early light.

A Great Blue Heron hunting while a Mallard cruises by in poor early light.

A White-Crowned Sparrow moving through the shrubbery.

A White-Crowned Sparrow feeding on the shrubbery.

There were dozens of sparrows moving here and there. Can you find the three in this bush?

There were dozens of sparrows moving here and there. Can you find the three in this bush?

When we returned home, I set up in the back yard for a while to get some feeder birds.

This Blue Jay, one of the eight or ten who hang out here, is giving me and my scope the hairy eyeball.

This Blue Jay, one of the eight or ten who hang out here, is giving me and my scope the hairy eyeball.

What's not to love about White-breasted Nuthatches?

What’s not to love about White-breasted Nuthatches?

And through it all, the Viszla was in stealth mode, watching the parade of birds as well as a foraging chipmunk. If her nose looks a little browner than usual, it’s the result of some major Fall excavation projects she has underway.

PennyW

Some July Birds

The woods are lush and green and many birds have stopped singing as they nest and tend to offspring and the deer flies and no-see-ums abound — yet it’s a great time to get out and bird.  There’s a lot to see: White-throated Sparrows trying out their new songs and getting part of it; the crop of house wrens that fledged out of our bluebird house that scold me and Penny as we walk by; the half dozen new Blue Jays that have discovered and are hogging our suet.  Ever present to me in the muggy mornings is the thought that most of these birds will be out of here in a month or so — which gives this time of year a poignancy.

Yesterday, we took the expensive drive up the toll road at Mt. Mansfield (no connection, unfortunately) to show our son and grandson some more of Vermont.  Of course, I did a little birding, hearing Bicknell’s Thrushes and seeing Swainson’s Thrushes.  I also ran into the guys from Vermont Center for Ecostudies who band birds on the summit each summer.  Here is a photo of one of the Blackpoll Warblers I saw and heard.

A Blackpoll Warbler at the summit parking lot, Mt. Mansfield.

A Blackpoll Warbler at the summit parking lot, Mt. Mansfield.

Today, I took a few shots of some of the birds in our woods as I walked the dog on our series of trails.

We have had a family of Rose-breasted Grosbeaks nesting on our property with at least two young males.

We have had a family of Rose-breasted Grosbeaks nesting on our property with at least two young males.

Eastern Phoebes seem to be silent this time of year and this one did not bob its tail.

Eastern Phoebes seem to be silent this time of year and this one did not bob its tail.

EPhoebe1W

We seem to have dozens of new Song Sparrows. This one has caught a little treat.

We seem to have dozens of new Song Sparrows. This one has caught a little treat.

White-throated Sparrows a practicing their songs and chipping at the dog and me as we move by them. This guy was about ten feet away, holding his ground.

White-throated Sparrows are practicing their songs and chipping at the dog and me as we move by them. This guy was about ten feet away, holding his ground.

So, while it is frustrating to search for warblers in fully-leaved maple trees, there’s a lot going on lower down with all the “newbies” learning the ropes.  Slap on the bug dope and enjoy summer birds.  Most will be gone pretty soon.  Good birding

Out of the Blue — There’s Blue!

All Spring we’ve had a great variety of feathered visitors to our feeder and back yard but today was special.  This morning we’d seen the hummer, the grosbeak, the purple finches along with chipping and white-throated sparrows but just before lunch, I glanced out a the apple tree and saw a blue blob that can only be one thing up here: an Indigo Bunting.  What a special treat — I think it’s the first here since we’ve been keeping records.

First Indigo Bunting we've seen on our property.

First Indigo Bunting we’ve seen on our property.

I got Mary to the window as another one showed up.  The camera and binoculars were out in the truck so I scooted to get those while Mary watched our visitors move about the tree.

Two boys in blue looking for love.

Two boys in blue looking for love.

Just as I was trying to capture a couple of shots, a third male showed up.  I grabbed this photo of all three in the tree.

Can you see the third one?

Can you see the third one?

They soon flew off together to a White Pine and then departed.  I figured that was it.  However, later this afternoon, two showed up in the tree and one came to the thistle feeder, to the dismay of the American Goldfinches who consider that their restaurant.

We did not see any females and I doubt that buntings will stay since most of our land is very wooded and they like more open spaces but you never know.

It was such a surprise and such a delight to see these handsome dudes.   Unlike the brown flycatchers and sparrows that can drive me nuts, these guys are my kind of bird: flashy and unmistakeable.

Leg 1 — North Middlesex to Merrimac, MA

After a burst of snow Wednesday night making our driveway interesting to negotiate, I checked weather forecasts and went ahead with my plan to move the Airstream to MA where we can launch after Christmas.  It was a blustery chilly morning as I hooked the rig up in 6 degree temperatures.  The electrical connection, normally supple, was stiff and everything took longer than normal.  The chocks were frozen into the ground as was the front jack plate.

Hooked up and about ready to go -- once the driver's fingers thaw.

Hooked up and about ready to go — once the driver’s fingers thaw.

I used low 4WD for the first time to crawl down the driveway about 8 AM and soon, was wending my way past parked trucks and backing-out cars in downtown Montpelier.  The roads were marginal but the interstate had a good clear lane and a slippery passing lane.  Of course, the windshield washer fluid was blocked by ice so the first stretch featured a windshield streaked with salt.  I got everything cleaned up and working at the first rest stop.

The truck felt a little squirrelly on the road, like the front end was floating a bit.  It could be a balance issue with the new rig, it could have been the tail-wind pushing the trailer, or it could have been just me not used to the feel of towing, after a two year layoff.  I did tighten a sway damper at that first stop and things either got better, or I just got used to things.  It’s something to work on.

Driving I-89 in New Hampshire is easy most days — the traffic is light, there are very few trucks, and the hills seem easier than those in Vermont.  There’s one thing that, if I let it, drives me crazy.  There are mile markers every two/tenths of a mile so if you are not careful, you note mile 11.2, 11.0. 10.8 until it feels like you’ll never get there.  Someone, likely a friend of a Congressman, got themselves a pretty lucrative signage project — talk about overkill.  Fortunately, I’ve pretty much trained myself to ignore them.

When we stopped in NH, I noticed how much salt we had picked up on the truck and trailer. Wash time may have to wait until Tennessee.

When we stopped in NH, I noticed how much salt we had picked up on the truck and trailer. Wash time may have to wait until Tennessee.

Mid-day on a Thursday is a good time to travel: the traffic on I-93 was moving well as drove south from Concord.  I remembered to put the EZ-Pass for the truck/trailer on so we flew through the high speed toll booth and soon were negotiating Route 101 and then down to Merrimac.  I called Jennifer and she met me to help me get the trailer parked.

Her driveway is right off a fairly-busy road, which quiets down after rush hour, but it is a tricky backing up situation.  Not only is it 90 degrees but it then curves and is rather narrow.  You have a stonewall on one side and a split rail on the other.  Yesterday, things went very smoothly — the luck of one who hasn’t done much backing up for a while.  I soon had the Airstream parked in the wooded area we have cleared out and she took the dog while I buttoned things up and unhitched.

Airstream at rest in MA, badly needing a rinsing to remove road salt. Hopefully, temperatures will rise a bit in the weeks ahead.

Airstream at rest in MA, badly needing a rinsing to remove road salt. Hopefully, temperatures will rise a bit in the weeks ahead.

Jennifer and her family live in a nice “birdy” area and they have a number of feeders.  A bonus to the trip was some lunchtime birding I did walking down the driveway and watching a few moments from the house.  I saw a large bird fly low from her lawn — it looked too big for a robin but I just got a glance.  Then, as I approached the area, I saw a hawk under the trees on the ground and it immediately flew off, low through the trees carrying a bird or critter.  The tail gave it away — a Cooper’s Hawk.  I also heard a Carolina Wren, saw a Tufted Titmouse and several woodpeckers, and had a brief but neat birding experience for the day.

The dog and I launched for Vermont right after lunch, starting about one.  The truck, without the trailer, reminded me of the feeling in my road racing days when I shed my trainers for racing flats.  Same engine but more pep due to less weight.

After stopping for gas,  ($3.39 looks good, boy are we conditioned to high gas pricing.) we set the cruise control and made it home in under three hours — by far a new record.  Both Jen and Mary have said that there’s no way that happens with them in the truck!

So, we will see how this plan to launch from Massachusetts goes.  We’ll finish stocking the trailer after Christmas and head out on Saturday, the 28th if the weather cooperates.

Two New Bird Cams to Get You Ready for FeederWatch

Watch our two FeederWatch cams - live on allaboutbirds.org

A heaping helping of Evening Grosbeaks from the FeederWatch Cam in Ontario.
Project FeederWatch starts its new season this Saturday, November 9. To get ready, check out our two new live-streaming Bird Cams—set up at feeders in Manitouwadge, Ontario, and right here outside our Visitor Center. Check out the great winter birds already on display in Canada, including Evening Grosbeaks, Purple Finches, and Gray Jays. You’ll also see goldfinches, woodpeckers, and the last of the fall colors outside our offices here in Ithaca, New York. Watch the cams.

Project FeederWatch common birds toolGreat New FeederWatch Website: Our team just relaunched the Project FeederWatch website with some great new features: a nifty Common Feeder Birds tool to help you find out which birds to expect and what foods they like; revamped Tricky Bird ID pages; a better way to send us photos; and cool ways to look at your data.

Project FeederWatch is a fun and easy citizen-science project. Participants watch their feeders roughly two days per week and report their counts online. See the sidebar for more details on how to join.

From Cornell Lab eNews