Look! A bird!

[mamselle]

Six goldfinches,
Five sparrows, brown
Four swans, two in down...
Three baby ducks
Two loud geese,
And a cardinal loudly cheering from a pole!

(Well...it sorta scans...)

One major coolness: the heron hung out of a log for at least eadt 1/2 hr this AM.

One major nonsense: I have just heard some soft Blue Jay sounds, trying to locate the nest, when a guy walking his dog comes by.

"HEY, WHATCHA DOIN', TAKIN' A PICTURE OF MY HOUSE?" he asks, louldly.

I turned around, quietly said, "There are two blue jays up there..."

"YEAH, WE GOT A FEW OF THEM AROUND. SO LONG AS YOU'RE NOT..."

"They flew away," I said as I turned to go.

AWWW...YOU LIKE BIRDS?

I was halfway down the block, disgusted; saying, "yes," faintly I turned agan to go.

So does my wife," he said, finally quieter.

But the delight had gone, and he knew it...he went and closed the door.

Much better this AM, when another riparene aficionado and I stood talking quietly, taking photos of the heron as it preeened, then taking our leave quietly when he'd done...

Takes all kinds...

M.

[evil_physics_witchcraft]

Some people are just oblivious (or obnoxious, or both) buttheads, mamselle.

One of the ruby-throated humming birds (female I think) just flew up to my kitchen window, hovered and looked at me! If it's the same one, then she has done this in the past. I know I just changed the hummingbird feeder sugar-charged water. Maybe she's telling me that it needs to be refilled?

[mamselle]

They're learning from cats how to train their human servants, it sounds like...!

M.

[Langue_doc]

Bird sightings from a week or so ago.

Cardinals, bluejays, grackles, and a couple of downy woodpeckers flying across the street and in the neighbor's yard when we were having lunch in the yard. More birds at the feeder, including goldfinches. The following day we saw a Least sandpiper poking around in the mud in a marshy area. I thought it was a fortuitous sighting, because according to the Cornell Lab,

Least Sandpipers breed in the tundra of the far north, so most people see them during migration (April to May and July to October) or winter.

A couple of days later, in a different location, there were ospreys aplenty, including a couple of chicks in a nest on one of the platforms. Also great egrets, cormorants, ducks, other waterfowl, and a swan. I saw the partner, deceased, by the shore.

Back in the city, just as I got out of the car near one of the library branches, I heard what sounded like car alarms, and then ambulance sirens. It was only a northern mockingbird, enjoying the morning.

Bird walk schedules, Fall 22-Spring 23, for one of the organizations are now online. The other organization will be posting its walks next Friday. Yippee!

[mamselle]

Construction along the brook has blocked the path, and I'm sure has scared away all the waterfowl that were still braving what was left of the water (the 6-in-deep rivulet is at least a foot lower than usual by my observation of the mud layers and tree roots along the banks.

Past the confluence, along the river, one duck.

...that's it.

Oh, and a couple of goldfinches along the road on the walk home.

it's sad how suddenly and how completely the winged and webbed populations have fled.

M.

[Thursday's_Child]

One of the local barred owls has learned that it can land on my elevated birdbath and get a drink!  I've seen it twice now, in the late afternoon.

[paultuttle]

My husband and I were out driving yesterday evening after supper and saw a juvenile red-tailed hawk on a post in a nearby church's garden. We had to stop, roll down the window, and try to take some pictures.

It perched on the post for a few minutes, then flew down to perch on the edge of a raised planter box. After a moment, it went to the next box and hid among the green Bell peppers. Finally, it took off and landed in a nearby tree.

What a magnificent bird! And its wingspan!

[mamselle]

I think they're photo-mavens; I have probably 20 or more shots of one sitting on a gravestone near a fence just staring at all the people staring at it (and taking pictures as they passed by) several years ago.

A couple of crows tried to flap their wings in its face, but they didn't get very far; it just stared them down, shifted a bit as if to go after them, and they retreated.

It was still sitting there (on a different stone) when I went past about a half-hour later. I have photos of that as well.

It really is amazing how large they get (and how much one presumes they must consume to maintain that size).

M. 

[Langue_doc]

A pair of northern mockingbirds were flying (more like hopping) back and forth across the sidewalk between the fence and the rearview mirror of my car earlier this morning. They were obviously having a good time.

[mamselle]

Goldfinches playing swoop-n-dive between the tall pines on one side of the street and the telephone wires on the opposite side.

A tag game might have also been involved, but my Goldfinch is rusty.

M.

[FishProf]

...but my Goldfinch is rusty.

That's just a female, maybe even a lesser one - See HERE

:)

[mamselle]

...but my Goldfinch is rusty.

That's just a female, maybe even a lesser one - See HERE

:)

Yep, at first I thought it was a sparrow with the beige-grey markings, then a little flick of yellow appeared.

They've been in that area the past 3 years that I know of, they really like that tall pine.

M.

[apl68]

We've had some rain over the past couple of days, and likely more today.  That seems to encourage the herons that used to haunt the pond at the city park to visit again.  This morning I saw a grey heron and a large egret perched by the bank of the pond within a few yards of each other.  They're such beautiful birds!

Then, toward the end of my circuit of the pond, I saw a mother duck leading around two downy chicks.  I didn't know that we had young water fowl at the pond right now.

[mamselle]

Aww--they're so funny.

Did I already mention the day I was walking upriver, saw the 6 baby ducks, that had been swimming around with their mother the day before, all by themselves...and then 10 min. later saw two adult ducks swimming under the bridge doing a staccato 'distress quack,' apparently trying to find them.

The babies were fine, just chirping along by themselves; the adults were clearly upset.

Couldn't figure out anything I could do to help them; I hope they found each other!!

M.

[apl68]

I saw the grey heron and duck family again this morning.  The ducklings are now learning how to swim.  Which is presumably not much of a challenge for them.