A few pics from the yard

Here are a few pics in the yard from the last couple of days. The yard has been getting busier and busier over the last couple of weeks. Lots of Juncos, American Goldfinches, Lesser Goldfinches, House Finches, Black-Capped and Chestnut-Backed Chickadees, Red-Breasted Nuthatch, Yellow-Rumped and Townsend's Warblers, Flickers, Downy Woodpeckers, a Red-Breasted Sapsucker, Scrub and Steller's Jays, Bewick's Wrens, Song, White- and Golden-Crowned Sparrows, Spotted Towhee, Bushtits, Ruby-Crowned Kinglets, Cedar Waxwings, and Anna's Hummingbirds are all common visitors right now. We have heard the Varied Thrush a couple of times, but we haven't spotted him yet.

Wishing everyone a great birding winter season!


We have tried in vain to ID this gull. We think we ID the gull and then we notice a marking that rejects our theory. Any ideas?


A Sharp-Shinned Hawk. Both the Sharpie and the Cooper's hawks are starting to visit the yard more and more.

A Bewick's Wren searching for some good bugs behind the house. Such a great looking bird.

New yard photos!

Here are a few recent photos from our yard. The Rufous Hummingbird still comes around everyday. The Juncos, Pine Siskins, Towhee and Varied Thrush are still hanging around. Pretty late in the year for them to be around, but we'll take them!

Here is a very odd looking Bushtit. Notice how brown his head is and how distinctive the line between his head and body are? Is this normal?



A male Anna's Hummingbird at one of our feeders.



2 male House Finches eating some black-oil Sunflower Seed.

A Yellow-Rumped Warbler through our office window. I wish it was more clear, but the rain and double-pane glass wouldn't afford that.


A Townsend's Warbler feeding on the ground.


One of the many Hawks that come through the yard on a weekly basis. This one is a Sharp-Shinned Hawk.


A Robin getting ready to bathe.


A Robin bathing!


A small flock of Bushtits.

Sharp-Shinned showing off

After a particularly nasty rain storm a couple of days ago, we started seeing a lot of the Sharp-Shinned Hawk again. She probably came through the yard at least 8 times that day. But, while she was here, she was showing off like we have never seen.

We assume that she was trying to dry out a little, but as soon as she landed, she had her wing and tail feathers spread completely out. It was great to see and fun to photograph. Enjoy!


Here she sits in one of our apple trees, right above a very busy feeder.


It wasn't so busy after her arrival.


Then, she flew up into the walnut tree and spread all of her feathers out.


She continued to scan the yard, but seemed more content just to sit and sun herself a little.

Since we didn't go to work...

...we decided to post a whole buncha photos. Today there wasn't any precipitation but it was bitterly cold! We awoke to temps in the teens and wind gusts of up to 45 MPH. Yowza! We finally ventured outside, after getting so bundled up that I'm sure that we looked like large spheres rolling down the street.

They are calling for more snow on Wed. and Thurs. and then again on Sun. The storm on Sun. is supposed to be pretty big. If Portland keeps these low temps for another few days, it will be the coldest stretch of winter in over 30 years. Michelle and I didn't go to work today, so birding was a major part of the day. Here are some more photos and we hope you all enjoy! Good birding and stay WARM!


Our resident male Anna's Hummingbird in for some fresh nectar. We had been swapping feeders out every few hours until we read a wonderful article by NW Nature Nut. You can read it here: http://backyardbirdshop.com/index.php/site/archives/cold_weather_tips_for_hummingbird_feeders/ and it is full of great tips and info on keeping your hummingbirds happy throughout the cold winter months.

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The resident female Anna's on the same feeder a few minutes later.

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The male Anna's attended the feeder every few minutes. The cold weather has taken away a lot of their normal food sources.

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Braving the wind and snow for a little sugar water!

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A male Red/Yellow-Shafted Northern Flicker hybrid. You can tell by the red markings on the back of the neck. A true Red-Shafted doesn't have any red on the back of the neck and a male Yellow-Shafted would have a black mustache instead of a red one. Laura over at http://www.laurawhittemore.blogspot.com/ just caught one of these on her Wingscapes BirdCam. This is the first hybrid that we have seen this fall/winter season.

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They (the hybrids) seem to be more protective/defensive of their food source than the "regular" Red-Shafted Flicker.

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The hybrid chasing of Starlings from his suet feeder. The pure Red-Shafted Northern Flickers will often leave the feeder without much of a fight. But not this guy.

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A White-Crowned Sparrow searching for some tasty treats in the snow.

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The Sharp-Shinned Hawks have, again, started coming back into the yard more often.

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Their visits had decreased dramatically over the last couple of weeks.

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We thought it might be in part to a juvenile Cooper's Hawk that we have been seeing more of. The Cooper's will not allow a Sharp-Shinned to live in the same area.

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However, this Sharp-Shinned was more than happy to stop by for a visit and pose for a few shots.

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2 Lessers waiting their turn for one of the thistle sacks in the grapevine.

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Water is extremely important to our feathered friends during the icy months. They need fresh water now more than ever!

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Juncos, Junco everywhere!

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Taken through our living room window. Just sitting on the lights, trying to figure out what sounds good for dinner. Nyjer? Black-Oil Sunflower Seed? Suet? Hmmmm.

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This Junco absolutely loves the homemade suet. He'll sit there forever just eating away.

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This bush sits right outside our bathroom window. A Junco waiting for a good seat to open up at the "Ground Feeding" restaurant.

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A Junco just outside our backdoor on the grapevine that grows there.

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The House Finch and the Junco out for a little stroll and some lunch.

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2 female House Finches enjoying a newly filled feeder.

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A House Finch, Pine Siskin and a Junco snacking on the seed underneath our bedroom window.

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We have seen very, very few Robins this fall. But this morning, just down the street from us, we found about 20 Robins eating cotoneaster and holly berries! I think the frigid temps might have something to do with the big flock.

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Before our walk today, I filled this feeder with mounds of mixed seed. After our return, only 2 hours later, we found the feeder empty. This poor little Black-Capped Chickadee was not very impressed with our empty feeder.

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As annoying as the Starlings can be, they really are gorgeous birds.

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Chestnut-Backed Chickadees sharing a little suet.

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A Chestnut-Backed Chickadee on a "nutball" purchased from The Backyard Bird Shop. The Chickadees, Nuthatches and even the Finches like these tasty treats!

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Our birdbath this morning about 7:30 am. We purchased a birdbath heating element today. The water flow can not keep up with the sub-freezing temps on it's own.

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We walked up to the store today to get some appropriate weather-wear and as we were walking back, we were somewhat struck by our shadows. We have a tradition in our household that we do not leave the house during the month of December without wearing antlers on our heads. We have many fuzzy sets of antlers (even a set that we put on the car) that we have picked up over time and I hope we continue this tradition for a long, long time!

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Such an odd year. Roses still blooming and half of our trees have new buds on them as if they assume that it is spring again. Little did they know...

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Gem, our indoor kitty, stares longingly at the Juncos just outside the window.

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One of our pups, Ashley, enjoying the snow!

Happy Thanksgiving!

Well, it's been a busy week with Thanksgiving coming up so we haven't been doing too much birding. And, with the days getting shorter, we have almost no time during the week. We always scan the backyard when we get home but usually there's not a lot of activity (or daylight). But, we still see signs of birdie visits (empty feeders, no suet) so we know they are still with us. Tomorrow, we will give them a little extra so that they can enjoy a feast, too!

Here are a few photos that we have been lucky enough to grab this week. We hope you enjoy the picture and wish wish everyone a great Thanksgiving!



The Black-Capped Chickadees are visiting more and more.


The are coming in bigger groups, too.


The Sharp-Shinned Hawks are still visiting frequently. We see signs of them, too. After one of their visits there are sometimes feeders laying on the ground (we assume this is because they are using their "bumping" technique).


The Cooper's Hawks still like to swing by, too.


Waiting ever so patiently for a bird to happen by.


The Pine Siskin numbers have dwarfed all the other finches we get, but there is still quite a few Lesser and American Goldfinches hanging around. The Lessers stay with us all year long!

Siskins and Lessers sharing a dinner table.


The Squirrel and the Scrub-Jay.