Mom's Feeders

We headed over to Mom's to sort through Dad's clothing and other belongings to see if we could recycle stuff before getting the rest to Goodwill. A somber 4 days but we managed to have some enjoyable times here and there. One of the last things Dad did before weeding and passing away was filling the feeders. If we visited and I noticed that they were empty I would head out to fill them and get water in the bird bath.

Mom mentioned that she had not filled the feeders since because she never saw any birds out there so it was not really worth it. Besides, she is busy enough. I figured I had to fill them as the rains approached to see what would show up. It rained for 4 solid days afterwards.

It didn't take long for birds to start returning to the feeders after they were loaded. Kinda like, "Where was that old guy who fed us? Yay! Food!!". House Sparrows and other birds began streaming into the yard. I enjoyed trying to examine the sparrows to see how many were juveniles like this one who was picking at grasses in between feeder visits.



Blue Jays were soon to follow and there was an entire family. Juveniles were everywhere of many species but the Jay kids were super hungry for most days.



House Sparrows have never been uncommon at the house when the feeders are full but I was amazed by the numbers on this visit. At one point of the last day there were at least 50 flocking through and perching everywhere.



Out front at feeder #2, a juvenile Mourning Dove stayed on the ground picking up the spilled food. You can tell young doves with their feathers looking more like scales instead of a smooth, uniform brown.



Even juvenile Boat-tailed Grackles joined in at a couple of times. It was difficult to get that iridescent shine in the rain but this one works for me.



Another juvenile House Sparrow perches on the feeder pole waiting for a turn to grab more food.



A female Ruby-throated Hummingbird was seen many times but I never had the camera in my hands when she was out in the open. I had to settle for a blurry shot through the window as she rested in the Crepe Myrtle.



Despite the heavy bands of rain, once we had a small break the House Sparrows decided they needed a more thorough washing in the bird bath.



There were several other species that flew through. There were Eurasian collared doves, Red-winged Blackbirds, Red-bellied Woodpeckers, and Starlings. On the final day, a Tufted Titmouse braved the mass of birds and took a chance at getting to the feeder.



When things got too crazy, it would retreat to the Crepe Myrtle and wait for the next opportunity.



We were packing the car to head home and I put the camera in the front seat. I decided to look out back once more and a juvenile Cooper's Hawk flew in to try for a birds meal and landed in the yard. I headed back to the car to retrieve the camera hoping for the raptor to still be around. It did stay but flew up to the power lines to keep watch.



The fun part about juvenile Cooper's Hawks is that they are not afraid of much. Too inexperienced. I got 30 close-up shots before we headed back to Orlando.



So, we got through the first wave of help to clean out Dad's stuff. We also got some good birding in the yard and saw Star Trek (I recommend it). I told Mom not to worry about keeping the feeders filled. They went through 3 fillings while we were there but they are fine on their own. Clearly.

By the way, I call it 'bird bait' and not bird seed. We only use it to bring bird to us. They are just fine on their own.

Birding While Doing Yardwork

Spring is here and finally time to do a little yard work We are fortunate enough to be a bit of a more native plant people so we don't have to waste water on lawns and we can often make it for about 6 month before doing real maintenance. Once the rains return, however, everything erupts before your eyes. Most of these shots are not great but just observations as I was busy out back and watching the birds flow in as I cleared the front and back yards.

I took down the growth in the front yard first as that is the first to get strong sunlight and then moved to the back. Once I mowed down the random weeds, I filled the bird baths and filled the feeders for the first time in quiet a while. I also tossed out a few raw peanuts for our Blue Jays and it didn't take long for them to take advantage of the spoils.



So ya know, I have the camera out there in the back just in case I can capture something as I work after the dust settles. Comes in handy when a secretive Carolina Wren sneaks out to grab some new food from a feeder.



As I took a break to down some water, a Mourning Dove hurried in for a bite.



When I first filled the ground bird bath, a Brown Thrashers quickly flew in to take a bath. I missed that photo op but soon a Gray Catbird decided to take its place and then spend some time picking at things from the newly mowed yard.



One of the other birds that take advantage of when I fill the peanut feeder is the Red-bellied Woodpecker that is, for the second year, nesting just outside our bedroom window. There are several holes now in the tree but it was quite busy with one particular one.



It was taking peanuts from the feeders a flying back to deposit them one at a time. Again, not a great shot, but I love seeing the Red-bellied Woodpeckers dropping in throughout the days.



Still trying to see if the Barred Owls are successful in raising a new brood this year but I have yet to see them. Always checking.

LaCosta Wetlands Finally Has Something Fun

So, it is Monday and was trying to figure out where to check after dropping of the youngest at school. I decided to give LaCosta Wetlands one more try even though it has been fairly boring of late. I t was very quiet when I first walked the main trek out to the fields and I was about to call it quits when I took one last look over the far pond just because. I saw a yellow flash. I had to walk to the back.

When I got to the far side where I saw the yellow I only found larger birds. Most of them were feeding on the berries of a Virginia Creeper which was topping a Cypress tree. I was pleased to see a Brown Thrasher emerge, though.



Northern Mockingbirds and Blue Jays soon joined the Thrasher and grabbed a snack before doing their vigil to chase off a possible enemy.



That enemy would be a pair of Red-shouldered Hawks that were cruising the area.



Suddenly, a few birds bolted to the Cypress tree behind me. I followed and discovered that there were several Yellow Warblers feeding on the backside of the tree. My first Yellows of the season. A couple of female Prairie Warblers were in there, too.



I waited for a long time but they would never move to my side of the tree so I only got a couple of shots through the branches before they headed out later.



Making matters worse, a juvenile Northern Mockingbird was forcing the warblers away from the tree when it could. Grrrrr...



I gave up after 15 minutes and headed back to the van. Next to the main bridge, several Northern Mockingbirds were hanging out in the Muscadine Grapes draping several trees.



I counted at least 16 Northern Mockingbirds at this spot, adding to the 16 over by the warblers, and they were popping in and out of the vines and picking berries as they went along.



I was most surprised at the number of juveniles in this flock. They were everywhere.



The young birds were chasing one another around and would sometimes stop for a cute, sunlit pose.



Ihave no idea what is wrong with this youngsters feet. Some weird growth going on.



Yet another Northern Mockingbird juvenile checks me out through the leaves.



Out of nowhere, a new Brown Thrasher arrived and began exploring the grapes.



On the tree to my left, an adult Northern Mockingbird serves as sentry.



One of the other kids pops out below the sentry to assess the situation.



Back at the grape vines, I got my favorite shot of the morning as an adult seemed to warn me off from getting too much closer.



Time to head home. When I got back to the parking area I saw a bird up on the wires. A juvenile European Starling was perched in full view. My first photo of a juvenile. I only saw my first one on a web cam a month ago.



Finally, some action at the wetlands. I was about to give up on this area after a year of checking but perhaps it will get more interesting this year as migrants return.

La Costa Wetlands Stroll

I keep trying to give La Costa Wetlands a chance. I was told by some locals that there would be ducks on the water last Winter. Nope. I go by for some sort of influx of anything and just keep getting a few local birds but not much else. Such was the case, again, today.

Sure, there were a few locals. A Mockingbird was fighting with a Cardinal off in the distance. A couple of herons and egrets waded through the grass in the center of the first pond but the rest of the place was pretty quiet. It took me several minutes before I even found a bird to consider photographing. A Blue Jay was searching through the cypress for anything to nibble on.



I continued most of the way around the area until I saw some sketchy individual huddled under a tree and decided I was done. Especially since there were no birds. In fact, I didn't see another until I got back to where the Jay was. Now, the tree was occupied by a lone juvenile Northern Mockingbird just hanging out.



I am sure I will return in peak migration or later for yet another check but until I start seeing any real bird activity I don't see the point. Sigh. Such high hopes.

Baby Titmice are Here

I have been waiting for a chance to get some shots of our new baby Northern Cardinals this Spring but this batch have been hiding in the shrubs most of the time. They are heard all the time and seen flying briefly for half a second every now and then but they seem to rarely sit out in the open at all. Better for their survival especially since the neighborhood cats do prowl through every now and again. Plus, the parents are very busy flying food in.

They seemed a bit more active today some I decided to sneak around the side of the backyard in hopes of getting a new angle on them and it also gave me a chance to check if the owls were around. It seems the owls have decided on the wetlands this year. Not a sound of them. While I was scanning the branches, the young male Cardinal actually flew up on the fence just 6 feet away from me. Don't think he meant to as he spotted me and quickly flew over to the oak tree to check me out from a safer distance.



A new sound suddenly joined the den as I walked on the side of the house. Seems that a new species have brought their young out to feed. Tufted Titmice were up in the branches and a couple youngsters were loudly calling and begging for food.



I hurried in the backyard and took a seat and watched for any other birds to come out of hiding. The Titmice seemed to have plenty of food in the trees but they soon began coming to the sunflower seeds right in front of me.



The female juvenile Northern Cardinal never would come out into the sunshine but I finally got her in an open spot in the shade. A second female made her presents known after a while and it seemed to be even younger than this one in the photo.



The Blue Jays were flying in almost constantly but moving so quickly that I could barely get them in focus.



The Tufted Titmouse family kept feeding from several sources and the adults always had a young one close behind.



Later, I headed off to the store and was sidetracked (as usual) by another sighting around the corner. Northern Mockingbirds have been everywhere this Spring and the young are finally coming out of the nests. I tried to get a shot of one of this family the other day but they dashed back to the nest shrub. I stayed in the van and could get a shot of one calling for Mom who was on the wire overhead with bugs ready to deliver.



While I did this, a dragonfly flew into the van, bounced around the windshield before seemingly sucumming to the heat on the dash. I got a photo before releasing the stunned insect. My friend Paul IDs it as a male Eastern Amberwing.



Babies all over! Ah, Spring.

Fun in the Backyard

Yesterday was chock full of yard work. Today I got to relax a bit so I decided once I heard the Titmice heading our way I would sit in the yard and see what I could see. It got pretty busy for an hour.

On the way out of the house I encountered the Titmice as they hit the feeders. This family lives in our yard a lot and I got photos and posted about the babies when they first arrived. They show little fear. Seems like they know me, even this younger bird hanging out at the peanut station.



I soon settled into my chair and watched. The younger Northern Parulas are having fun chasing the young Cardinals all over the yard. So many baby Cardinals this year. One of my favorite shots was of one of the adult Parula searching in the shade.



Even now and then, the baby Blue Jays would venture in to grab a shelled peanut.



Round and round they flew and ate and flew. It is always fun when they perch right next to me to see what I am up to. Usually so close I can't get a shot with the zoom, but sometimes...



Joining in on the feeding was a male Downy Woodpecker. He was circling the tree trunks so I had to wait for him to find a branch facing me for better views.



A Red-bellied Woodpecker flew in but too close for a focused shot. I was hoping the Parulas would settle down for me but they were zipping by like crazy. Finally, something slowed one of the younger birds down.



I still haven't ID'd the species of spider. I don't recognize them when I am out in the yard. I don't think the warbler really cares as it gulps it down. Protein. Yum.



I rigged the hose to drip out into the cement bird bath to create some inviting splashes. However, the Cardinals and Titmice preferred to sit on the faucet handle and sip from the leaking bits.



Speaking of Cardinals, I managed to capture them on the other bird bath as one of the first brood birds flew in (on left) to join the latest brood birds. You can tell the older bird by the more orange bill but it still shows black streaks so it is not yet an adult. When Northern Cardinals are first fledged they have black bills.



As I was trying for those Cardinal shots, I noticed a flicker of movement closer to my seat. I refocused my eyes and was totally surprised. A Black and White Warbler had dropped down to attend the party! It had its back to me and I feared I would be left with some boring pictures. Then I had one last chance before it flew off.



Yes! A great way to end this photo session. Just proves that you don't always have to make a trip to find some good birding. Birds are all around. You just need to look.