Welcome to V. 407, continuing with our summer bird watching!
We came from here http://davesgarden.com/community/forums/t/1193481
Forgive the graininess of this picture, I had lens issues and had to over sharpen. This is a Dickcissel, a grassland bird. They love to sing away!
Common Yellowthroat. I found this one at Nachusa Grasslands. They were all over the wet area.
Meanwhile, back at home… Cue House Wren
Thanks Mrs. Ed for the new thread. Love that Dickcissel, Yellowthroat and the cute House Wren. :)) I found a pair I meant a 'couple' goldfinches visiting the feeder for refueling during their journey yesterday.
May I have a question please. I surmised the goldfinches are in transit, but which direction are they heading at this time of the year? Any input is appreciated.
This is pretty neat, the first four birds on this thread are birds we see around here.
We have the Goldfinches all year long. In the summer, we only see a few as they seem to enjoy dandelion and thistle seeds more than the Nyjer. I read somewhere they nest later than most birds, so maybe this is where they are going.?? I looked at a range map for the birds and they winter in the southern portion of Alabama. I cannot imagine much migration already, but then I am not familiar with the birds' behaviour in other areas. Just a couple ideas, but I could be off.
I hope to have a picture or two soon. I have to get them off the camera.
Would love to see a Dickcissel....Nice start Mrs Ed!
Saw these Baltimore Orioles down the road by a neighbors
one of the juvie....
Those are nice to see Nan. That means they're nesting nearby where you're! How cool! thanks CB for your response. Much migration with regard to Goldfinches is seen. They started to depart during mid. to early spring here. I'm pleased to see an occassional 'traveler'. Mostly lone traveler, it nice to see a pair that decided to have companion during their trip.
Thanks for the start, mrs. ed! Good birds. We took a walk around Sutton Wilderness this a.m. before the temps reach triple digits and were rewarded with a few interesting birds-- a couple of Blue-Gray Gnatcatchers, two Painted Buntings and an Indigo Bunting. I heard a YB Cuckoo calling a couple of times and tried unsuccessfully to call it into view.
One of the Painted Buntings.
Lots of dragon flies around the lake.
And a huge bullfrog.
Some fantastic pics. there Red. Love the Bunting, dragonfly and even the Bullfrog has attractive, colorful eyes. lol
Ooo, I hope to see a Painted Bunting some day. That is a beautiful bird.
This is our most common bird at the moment, a House Finch. I hope to see some birds tomorrow as we will be joining a long time birder for a trek around a nearby nature area.
Great shots in the last thread everyone!
Mrs Ed, thanks for the great new start. Love that Dickcissel is beautiful and love that yellowthroat.
Lily, cute goldfinches.
Nanny, don't you love hearing the orioles? They always sound so cheerful.
Red, great photos.
Chillybean, nothing wrong with the house finches. Yours is sweet.
I haven't had a chance to take many photos of my birds except my hummers so here's a little girl enjoying herself in the fountain.
Love that Hummingbird shot! I saw my female Hummer this morning....going after the Firespike with gusto. I thought she had left the area. No pics though.
Awww, duc, that's one adorable hummer at the fountain. GP I see mine eastern hummers more often at the salvias and other blooms. Gotta love those jewels. Not sure what have I got here.
Thanks Mrs-Ed with a wonderful new start, great bird shots!.
Love the Bunting and critters Red. Would love to see one of those colorful Bunting.
Haven't seen much of the Oriole this year, enjoying yours, Nanny.
Lily, I have no idea where your Goldfinches head off too, but like Chillybean said, They do nest later, then all the other birds here.
Chillybean, wishing you all the best, with your birding tomorrow.
Duc, you take some amazing shot of those Hummers.
An Upside down Chickadee.
Aww, that turned out to be one of my Housefinch juvies, trying her beak out at hunting insects. I'm tappering down the feeding routine. Hopefully making room for the butterflies season.
Mama and her young. Downy woodpeckers
Time for a Song Sparrow's bath.
Purple Finch
Song Sparrow at the stream.
Burn, love all those. Mama and baby Downy especially. Song Sparrow in the creek is sweet. Pretty finch!
A thirsty female Purple Finch.
Thanks Kim.
I haven't been able to catch many pix, here is one partially hidden Great Blue Heron.
Beautiful start to the new thread with the Dickcissel, Mrs Ed. I'm glad you're getting out to Nachusa. Love the Common Yellowthroat.Good luck with the examination of your lens. From experience, I know how dreadfully disappointing it is to be getting shots back that aren't their usual quality because of a dodgy lens.
Burn, your Grand Falls certainly attracts the birds. Beautiful.
That's a sweet little House Finch, Chillybean.
Duc, that's a priceless shot of the Hummingbird with its tiny feet lightly touching the fountain head.
Beautiful shot of the Painted Bunting, red.
The Orioles are stunning birds, nanny.
Pretty Goldfinches, Kim.
Two shots of Black Cockatoos way up the top of the huge eucalyptus in our yard. These birds are becoming increasingly endangered because of habitat loss. I read recently that they will possibly be extinct within 10 years. They fly around in flocks of up to 50 birds and people mistakenly think there are lots of them, but it's a case of what you see is what there is.
Just leaving
Wonderful shots guys!
Enjoyed all of the great shots folks.
Guess what happens to all my sunflowers here!
Just because it eats from the bird feeder, is it OK to call it a bird?
Burn, your little dee looks cute with the yellow background. Great shots of all your birds-love the wps and that bath time is sweet.
Lily, enjoy the herons, they sure are pretty.
Margaret, love your cockatoos. Such a shame they're losing habitat. I do hope someone is trying to fix that before it's too late.
Chicochi3 cute goldfinch. My sunflowers haven't started to bloom yet-hoping for photos like yours. My deer have learned to stand on their hind feet and dip the seed feeder too! Cute photo of your doe.
This Brown-headed Cowbird was heading for the birdbath.
This sweet juvenile House Finch was watching a parent eat the chopped nuts at the feeder box.
It is frightful how fast we may lose so many birds around the world in the next few years....when will mankind learn?
Enjoying all the photos being posted!
I really do enjoy hearing the orioles singing their sweet song. And the juvies sitting up in the tree making their little crying sound. I always miss it for a spell after they leave.
a series of Baltimore Oriole shots taken on July 3 & 4.
As of this last week we were still getting new ones to the feeder & being fed by the adults!
This message was edited Jul 9, 2011 1:45 PM
It is not always peaceful out on the platform!
This message was edited Jul 9, 2011 1:46 PM
But they do get along most of the time....
Waiting for a turn....
Oh my gosh . . .way too many pictures to even try to comment on, but I absolutely LOVE every last one of them!!!
Lily_love - Our Goldfinches stay all year, but there are areas of the South where they spend only the Winter. Because you are very near those areas, it's possible you're seeing activity heading South. They may be coming from way North where they spend only the Summer or from all around you heading toward their Winter destinations. Do you have any around in the Winter?
They also nest much later than most birds, generally from late Summer to early Autumn.
I have no real clue why they stay all year in areas like mine since it gets quite cold. I see them at the feeders more in Autumn, Winter & Spring. In the Summer they much prefer the natural food they can get from flowers, although they use our birdbaths constantly & I have one pair that drinks almost exclusively from the "ant moat" of one of my hummingbird feeders. We have a heated birdbath for the winter & the Goldfinches are one of the most frequent visitors. (The Squirrels probably spend more time there than anybody.)
They will sometimes congregate on my Coneflowers (which are just starting to bloom). They love the seeds and will spend long periods pulling them out . . . makes kind of a mess of the Coneflowers, but that's okay, I love watching them.
This message was edited Jul 9, 2011 3:03 PM
