Only one bird and one squirrel in sight, and like kids they both wanted the same spot to play in. Nature is so entertaining.
birds
Blue Jay enjoying a suet cake
Blue jays love suet, and they like suet feeders set on a tree trunk allowing them to solidly perch, as opposed to hanging feeders that sway. This jay was really enjoying the suet cage we set against one of our backyard trees. Blue jays are very intelligent, and some believe that they are capable of remembering individual human faces.
Robin out of the nest a bit early
Parent knows the youngster is somewhere close by, they can hear it!
Now the youngster is looking for somebody to help.
About ten minutes after we shot these videos we saw both the young and old robins in our front yard. The adult was catching worms and grubs and feeding the youngster. Guess all is well, at least for a while.
Grackle feeds its youngster
The gray bird landed, and we did not recognize what kind of bird it was. Soon however two grackles showed up and it was obvious that they were here to feed their offspring.
We did not recognize this species
Ah, looks like a parent is here to feed the youngster
There is the second parent and the youngster demanding more to eat
This was an interesting and enjoyable event for us to observe. It was the first time we had seen an immature grackle. There is always something going on with the wildlife in our backyard! We enjoy sharing our photos with you.
Portrait of a mourning dove
We see doves nearly every day in our yard
Here is another one of our welcomed friendly backyard visitors. The mourning dove is in the same taxonomic family as pigeons. It is one of the most common North American birds. Doves have very sad and mournful calls, and have been compared to the cries of owls. Doves also make a very characteristic pulsing sound as they fly. Amongst agricultural societies this bird is known as “the rain crow” due to the legend that the calls of doves warn of the impending arrival of rain.
Pileated woodpeckers in the neighborhood
Looking out the front door I spotted a pair of Pileated woodpeckers on the side of a tree across the street. One of them, a male, flew right at me and landed in a big tree next door. The second stayed on the other side of the street flying from tree to tree.
Within a very short time the female across the street had flown tree to tree down the street and out of sight. These large birds create quite a commotion when they fly through the neighborhood!
Young immature robin
This young robin was hopping around the yard, constantly looking at the ground on the earth worm hunt. The young bird’s plumage still has its early “speckled” feathers. It won’t be long until this robin will sport that famous solid color red-breast.
Wet bunny and other critters
Wet bunny sitting in a heavy rain shower
Baltimore oriole enjoying the nectar feeder
Red-winged blackbird This is the first season we have seen this species in our yard
This squirrel loves a crunchy kernel of corn
We really enjoy the menagerie that shows up in our backyard. At one point yesterday we counted at least nine (9) squirrels romping around. They were having fun chasing each other up and down and around the tree, and it looked like total pandemonium. We are very fortunate to have a nice yard that gives us our own little slice of nature.
Pileated woodpeckers are impressive
(The video focuses quickly after it starts.)
We spotted this female Pileated woodpecker working over a large stump at a cemetery. She worked it for quite a while, and did not take off even when we got much closer. Perhaps she is used to lots of cars and people in the cemetery.
A Baltimore oriole is a new visitor
We enjoyed seeing a Baltimore oriole for the first time over the past few days. A very colorful bird indeed.
Those pesky sparrows love to photo bomb
This fellow loves our hummingbird feeder
It seems like he is proud of his plumage
We’ve seen at least two males (the pics are of a male) and at least one female. Hopefully there is a nest nearby. We may have to get another hummingbird feeder, as the orioles have taken over this one. Orioles love nectar, and appearently fresh fruit. We’ll try hanging some cut oranges up soon.
Roadtirement 