Backyard Birds (28 January 2019)

Our yard was absolutely filled with birds today!  At one point I counted five male/female pairs of Northern Cardinals, more than fifty birds in a mixed flock of finches and sparrows, and eight Black-capped Chickadees.  I also saw several Mourning Doves, Dark-eyed Juncos, a Hairy Woodpecker, several White-breasted Nuthatches, and a single Red-Breasted Nuthatch over the course of the day.  A pair of Fox Squirrels appeared for a short time this morning, but didn't stay long. 

The birds were busy feeding on suet cakes and black oil sunflower seeds both in hanging feeders and on the ground.  Even though the birds don't really need us to provide food to get through the winter, when heavy now or ice makes it difficult to find natural foods they sure do appreciate the food that we provide.  These birds were so intent on feeding that some of them let me photograph them from about ten feet away as they went to and from the feeder.

White-breasted Nuthatch (female) - note grey cap

White-breasted Nuthatch (male) - note black cap

White-breasted Nuthatch (male)

House Finch (male)

House Finch (male)

Black-capped Chickadee eating a sunflower seed

Northern Cardinal (male)

Dark-eyed Junco

American Goldfinch

White-breasted Nuthatch (female)

Northern Cardinal (male)

Backyard wildlife

The mild winter (so far) means that my backyard bird feeders have seen very little activity.  We have the usual suspects visiting on a semi-regular basis: nuthatches, goldfinches, sparrows, house finches, downy woodpeckers, cardinals, chickadees, etc.. The most exotic birds to visit the feeders have been a pair of Pine Siskins - which seem to be rare in the state right now.

The most dedicated visitor to our feeders?

We have a group of three to five (or more) Fox Squirrels that spend a lot of time depleting our supply of sunflower seeds.  I don't worry too much about them.  They need to eat just like the birds and so far we have only bought a single bag of sunflower seeds this season. 

Mrs. LeValley's Woodpeckers

Part of a phone conversation that I had yesterday...

Shara (Mrs. LeValley):  "There's a giant thingy... a giant woodpecker... on one of the thingies!"

Me: "A Pileated Woodpecker?"

Shara:  "Yeah!"

Me:  "Well, go take a picture."

Shara:  "Okay, I have to put the phone down."

            a minute or so of silence

            " Okay, I got it."

(In her defense, Shara is a 2nd grade teacher and it was a very long day...)

Pileated Woodpecker outside a classroom window (#1) - photo by Shara LeValley

Pileated Woodpecker outside a classroom window (#2) - photo by Shara LeValley

Backyard Bird Watching

I am currently home sick with a horrible head cold.  That doesn't mean that I am completely separated from all things natural.  The backyard is full of birds (and squirrels) gorging on sunflower seeds.  We have recently had a huge flock of mixed finches (American Goldfinches, House Finches, and Pine Siskins) attending to our feeders.  A few of them are shown in the pictures below, along with at least one Downy Woodpecker and a Fox Squirrel.

Squirrels - More Than Meets the Eye

Normally when I post pictures of squirrels, they are cute and cuddly - like this one.

Occasionally, squirrels are not so cute and cuddly - such as in this photograph from January 2009.

What is that squirrel doing?

It's eating a female American Goldfinch, of course!

But, aren't squirrels herbivores?

No, even though their teeth would indicate that they are herbivores - squirrels have big incisors and flat, ridged molars and they lack the sharp canine teeth found in carnivores and most omnivores.

But, like most rodents, squirrels are opportunistic omnivores that will readily consume meat if it is available.  This squirrel happened to catch a goldfinch that strayed too close at the bird feeder.  Other items on their diet include insects, mice and other small mammals, and bird eggs.

Not quite so cute and cuddly now, are they?

Feeding Birds in Winter - A Cartoon from 1961

I love old science and nature magazines and books.  Although some of the information in them is outdated, the illustrations are often better than those found in newer magazine.  Among my collection of old books and magazines are several issues of Michigan Conservation from the 1950s and 60s.  One of the best things about the old issues of Michigan Conservation are the cartoons by Oscar "Ozz" Warbach.  Ozz was a trained biologist who used his cartoons to teach people about nature and wildlife.  Among other positions, he worked as a "conservation illustrator" for the Michigan Department of Conservation from 1954 to 1977.  The Michigan Department of Natural Resources still sells a book of Ozz's illustrations titled Mother Nature's Michigan.

This cartoon about feeding birds appeared in the January-February 1961 issue of Michigan Conservation.