I'M full , time to roost
MidAtlantic bird watching for spring
OH MY word.
I was tossing and turning around 2 am and heard 2 or 3 barred owls hooting in the pine trees behind the yard, for about ten minutes! Way cool.....don't think we have ever had barred owls here.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fppKGJD3Y6c
Rarely we have heard great horned, but we have lost a lot of woods in the last five years.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eWVvwMFKEvI
Neat links, Thanks Sally.
sally---
I have NEVER seen an owl in the nature...only in Zoos or stuffed...
What a treat ti hear one--and more to see one....G.
I have seen the great horned owl a few times. Sometimes little owl can be heard in the summer around here ,They are little AND referred to as hoot owls .
There use to be Barn owls near here , only I have not seen one for nearly thirty years as to now ,, Use to see them at sunrise on my way fishing , sitting in the farm fields , in the big shade tree in the middle of the farm fields , Never saw one until my twenties that was not "stuffed" or in a zoo .either ....Some I have seen taxidermed are rare now and I have seen a few around ,
Great links , don;t hink I have seen a Barred Owl before ..
I've never seen any of the owls we have around here, but have definitely heard them. The Barred Owls sound pretty cool (or they might be Great Horned, they sound pretty similar to me), but my favorite to listen to is the Eastern Screech Owl. My husband and I jokingly call them "snorry owls", as they sound like an exaggerated whistly snore you'd demonstrate while reading a bedtime story to your little one. It is a whinny, though, as the Audubon Society describes it. I just love summer nights with the windows wide open~
I'm jealous!!!!!!!!!!!!
I heard those three plus one more , the first time I camped at Catoctin Forest. Ooh a saw whet owl, so cute.
http://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/northern_saw-whet_owl/sounds
You are right Sally they are cute.
Think the flock of Starlings have moved on.
Cool, Sally! Mom & I heard something last night, turned out to be a screech owl... a little different than calls we've heard & ID'd before. Sounded pretty close, too. :-)
Strange! But my Gold Finches are nowhere to be seen!
Full tube feeder--just hanging there....Maybe they finally found JB's yard???
Seriously! They were always there--and now are gone.....
Gita....:o(
Now you know how I feel woman. No I do not have any either. The other little birds are eating the finch food. The starlings, blackbirds, cardinals, chickadees and purple finches, are eating the other food. The blackbirds have red and yellow wings......so pretty. The hawk is gone today but the crows are here. I cleaned my hummingbird feeder with vinegar water and scrubbed it and got all the black crap out of it, put some red ribbon on the bottom and put it on the pink dogwood tree beside my deck hoping when they come, if they come, they will like it there and stay. My friend, who is a birder and a butterfly person told me what to do , how to do it and when. So. I did. I love birds of all kinds but I have so few. We have a little grey one with a white body that I must look up and try and see what it is. Must get back to work. Hugs to all you fine feathered friend freaks.....luv you. JB
JB--
Sent you some of the pink CC cuttings monday. Look for a small, bubble envie.
Is your little grey bird with a white belly ALL gray? solid--all over except for the belly?
If it is--it is most likely a "Slate Colored Junko". I have loads and loads of them!
G.
YEP! More pink babies. Yahoo. I am full of cuttings. Please no more after this for now. You wait until those new ones grow and you will have something to brag about. I must send you the names of them. I am trying to collect the entire series but I know that will not happen. Too many and I have so little space left. Can not afford to expand the greenhouse. LOL
Awww, JB!
I thought you SOOO wanted some cuttings of the pink one I have.
We have been talking about it.......
You sending ME more?????? Like--I have room.....when?
Gita
There's some drama going on this week on our front porch, where an old robins' nest sits on top of one of the columns. For once, the robins built a strong nest (lots of mud, so it's like adobe). The past 2 winters, a pair of carolina wrens has claimed it as a roosting spot. Now a pair of house finches really really wants it, but the wrens restake their claim every evening. We'll see how it plays out!
New reality show. "Bird Wars"
lol^_^ to sallyg!! Oven birds here , to fast to pic,,
Hi Ju, you old bird. How are you? We are muddling through our bird watching this Spring with some birds acting as strangly as the weather.
Gita, of course I want some pink. They are beautiful. Do not worry anything coming your direction from here will not be for some time. They are still trying to survive the trip here. They got really cold.
My little hummingbird feeder looks so cute under the dogwood tree with the little red ribbons flying from under it. It is early to put it out but they come in April and I want them to notice it when they fly by to go to someone elses house. LOL.
:o) You're going to grab 'em before they follow your goldfinches, aren't you, JB? Smart! You need a sign for the gf's: Eat at JB'S!
Still waiting for warmth , most of the time , I would like immensely ,one day , without saying I am cold to myself .Taking care of lots of plants . Not a lot of birds here yet this year , or I am not seeing them .
Keeping it together to keep on ,keeping on , i guess so far .
Tomorrow near 60 with lots of sunshine , then ,back to hardening off plants , setting up poles , and such. Flower beds to clean of grass invading ,springtime things .. Thanks for asking !
How be a you ?
Barb, you got that right. : 0
Ju, I am really busy just now.....watching and feeding birds, planting cuttings, house stuff and unfortunately the sales are slowing down, but people are buying yard and garden things, not houseplants.
I think most of my birds are trying to find a place out of the wind. Today the wind is so strong again it is annoying. I can not believe it is like this. It is a cold wind also.
See you tomorrow with my birdie report. Oh yes, half of the sugar water blew out of the hummer feeder. LOL. I can't win. : )
I have just posted a thread here in the Mid=Atlantic forum, called "Scenes from the river..."
It is just photos that I am taking along the Rappahannock River near Fredericksburg, while the Hickory Shad make their annual spawning run.
http://davesgarden.com/community/forums/t/1305687/
Thanks for looking!
Karen
Hi to everyone Hope you don't mind me entering here, but Honest--JB invited me. I love the stories. Miles City is a small (8000+) people., We have an area that is like an oasis and have watched an eagle nesting for the last few years, each year she has babies what fun to watch them. It has tall trees, and her nest is kinda open so fairly easy to see. Hope she comes back this year, missed her last year, so don't know what happened.
JB, glad to see you have posted here, I miss you on the other threads, but then, I haven't posted on them either. I sent a Dmail yesterday. Huggs, Lee
Welcome, Lee! You don't have to live in the MA to be more than welcome posting here... it's a diverse & appreciative group of folks! I'm crossing my fingers for the return of your eagles; hope you'll keep us posted. :-)
Saw the white speckled Dove again today. Seen her/him a few times.
So--he/she is still around.....
The bottom fell off my big, three tube, bird feeder.....Need to get the glue out again...
The best glue for anything is a tube of "Locktite" Super Glue. HD has it.
It glues everything--like the bottoms of your tennis shoes , wood, plastic, you name it.
Still no Goldfinches--se one now and then. They must be busy nesting...
I tell you--the birds are crazy around here--especially the sparrows..the males are
SWOOOO hot-to-trot they are always chasing after the females--screeching away...
The hormones rule this time of year......;o)
Gita did you lose that Starling Condo cherry tree, or still have it?
This is a busy morning for the birds. It is still so windy but it is getting warmer. I have fed so much feed to the blackbirds and starlings I am wondering if ever I will see another color bird around here. The cardinals must be going to nest, the female eats her regular meals but she is really not around much anymore, used to be she was here all the time. Now, she is missing and I would guess she may be laying eggs. The robins are getting fat also and not only the males, but the females. They must be finding grubs and stuff because they are still here.
Lee, it is good to see you. Did all your snow melt in Montana? Do you feed the birds? I would love to have eagles to watch. I get such a thrill when one flies over the farm. Lee you must go to the site http://davesgarden.com/community/forums/t/1305687/ . Karen from VA takes pictures along the river and they are wonderful. You will love them. Please take a second and visit. I am going to copy some of the pictures for Pinterest. I bet my bird friends will love that on there.
I just finished making signs that I am going to post on trees in neighboring areas, they say"
TO ALL GOLDFINCH....JB'S FEEDERS ARE FULL....GIVE THEM A TRY.
LOL I'd better refill my feeders -- all empty again! -- before the birds hear about the reliable supply of good eats at JB's!
Sally,
Yes! I still have the dead-tree Condo! Those Starlings guard it every day--and they start early.
It is pathetic looking--the ax will fall soon. I will feel so bad...
Mowed my lawn today--and I have to go right next to the tree and the hole--oops--"front door"...
I always think whether I am disturbing them. maybe they just put up with it....
Here's one of them--I think the male--as it was sitting high and singing away...
I think I already posted this--a ways up....
Here's the white/gray blotched Mourning Dove again. Munching away at all the seeds I throw on the patio floor
just for the ground-feeder. I think it lives around here....:o)
Gita, I zoomed in on the dove and it looks to me like there could be a pale silver band on his left leg. I still say he is someone's racing or homing pigeon i.e. dove. I can not be sure but it certainly looks like he is banded when you zoom in. Could be my bad eyesight too. Oh well, I was just trying to help. Hugs. JB
I have a large Blue Spruce in my front yard and it is home to Robins, mourning doves, and who knows what else. It is full of birds, and about 4 in the morning they start to come to life singing. What a bunch of different sounds. The mourning doves are looking at a plum tree in the back yard, but I think it is not high enough for them to build a nest. Sure wish they would since it is only about 8 ft from the window and we could watch the babies easily without disturbing them,. We have magpies, grackles (not sure if that is what they are called) and some I don't know what they are.
What beautiful pictures. I am so envious, I can't take pictures worth a darn, but sure do enjoy the fruits of others.
JB, thanks for the links. I hope I am not imposing on anyone here, but I have really enjoyed lurking.
Huggs, Lee
Welcome, Lee! I'm brand new to birds and trying to learn the most basic species.
I hear woodpeckers everyday, but I have no idea how to spot them, or to attract them to my yard. I can hear from the drumming that they're pretty close by.
No need to lurk, lee. Jump right in. Awesome to have nesting eagles to watch. Hoping it returns this year for you.
You should be thinking about getting out the Hummer feeders, soon. They are getting pretty close.
http://www.hummingbirds.net/map.html
This message was edited Apr 6, 2013 8:13 PM
Welcome, Lee!
J b--
next time i see the Dove--I will try to see its leg and the band.
I have to look through my LR window--and as soon as they spot me--the scurried away.
They will never sit still or even come close if i am out there...
JB--How do you zoom in on a posted picture???????? new to me!
Thank you all for the welcome. You were right, JB, they don't seem to care that I am way over here in whoop whoop country.
I know this is about birds, but I just have to tell you--There were triplet baby lambs born here this week, not unusual in itself, but there was one white, one black, and one black and white which is really really rare. There was a picture in our local newspaper and I wish I could share with everyone, but can't figure out how to do it from a newspaper. They are so cute with their little long tails. I only wish I could see them in person. OK--if I name them bird names maybe that would be acceptable for a bird thread he he he
Thanks again, Huggs, Lee
Lee--
You can photograph the picture in the paper and then upload it like all your other pictures.
I have done recipes that way--and pictures in books too.
many times you will see that people take a picture of the monitor to show someone
if they have a question....
Gita
Thanks, I will try it tomorrow. Huggs, Lee
Gita, I have ZoomText for my eye problem and I use it off and on when I am reading or have lots of work with figures and for things like bird legs that I need to look at. ☺
Lee , I never tried Gita's way with a photo because I have a scanner and if I use it properly it works really good. It is on my Cannon printer. But, I am just learning to use it.