It’s been an exciting day.

Here are some borbs for your pleasure and relaxation.

(Blackcapped Chickadee, European Starling, Redbreasted Nuthatch)

The Blues

are in my yard year-round. they love the bird bath, check out the nestbox, stay away for stretches of days, and then come back and delight. Like today. Can you tell the females from the male?

ostdrossel:

I have entered this borby specimen into another BirdSpotter and would love your vote if you like it. Here is the link: https://feederwatch.org/birdspotter-2020/how-you-doin/

Thank you!

Bump! Voting ends on Jan 21. Thank you very much to all who voted so far. You can only vote one time, so sharing is also appreciated <3

Pretties

on another murky day. The Redbellied woodpecker situation is interesting this winter too. I seem to only have females around. The male has not shown up in a long time. The Blue Jays seem to know the sound of my back door by now, they swoop down immediately as soon as I leave from a refill. I hope the sun will come out at some point this coming week. Here’s to Monday, may only good things happen!⁠

The MoDo population

is enjoying the relative quiet and less traffic at the moment. They love to hog the camera feeders but also seem to have a similar heat sensor as cats - I often see them hanging out in groups by the heated bird bath. Such goofballs. Come good into Sunday!

Do you have posts explaining your feeding system(s)? It looks like a dish, but does that mean you fill it every day? Wouldn't it gather rain, etc.? I'd love to know more about how you put the food out and what kinds of food you choose.

Hi, I do not. The little dish I use for my photos is a little glass dish that I fill several times a day. Naturally, it does gather rain when it rains. For the Birdsy camera, the dish is a little bigger, but it also needs several refills per day, depending on traffic. I also have a feeder pole with a platform and several smaller hanging feeders.

I love the seed mixes and cylinders from Wild Birds Unlimited and get them when budget and time allow. Otherwise, I also get a mix with nuts and fruit from Tractor Supply. I stretch the mixes with black oil sunflower seed, and I might add nuts, raisins or mealworms.

I also have some suet out, but it is the plain kind. The Starlings would come in masses otherwise. In the summer, I also habe nectar feeders for the hummingbirds and feed grape jelly and oranges.

Hewwo!! Just stopping by to send you some love from Germany! We currently have 10+ cm snow and I saw a Drossel for the first time yesterday! She was so big and beautiful!! I hope you're having a nice evening!

Wie schön! Liebe Grüße zurück! Ich freue mich so, dass ihr Schnee habt! Und ich bin ganz neidisch auf die Drossel :)

Hey, just a heads up, "snow bunny" is slang for a white woman that sexually fetishizes black men. Thought you might want to know.

Thanks. I did not know this and made the comment innocently. The context should make it clear that this is not what I meant, so as long as my mentions are not clogged with people seeking sexual content, I will leave it. I do not find it offensive but maybe that is the German in me.

It’s been a wild couple of days

but in the yard, things have been rather calm. The weather is meh, and the birds are scarce. But today, the Titmice were back. And they were so vocal! Come good into Friday!

The sun

is making itself rare these days, which is not doing a lot to lift the overall mood or photo quality. The yard is full of regulars, and I am happily helping them to eat well to make it through the cold. One of the most diligent is this Red-breasted Nuthatch lady. I have two couples at most, and whenever I come out for a refill, she is the first to come, even when I still stand there. I love these birds.

I have entered this borby specimen into another BirdSpotter and would love your vote if you like it. Here is the link: https://feederwatch.org/birdspotter-2020/how-you-doin/

Thank you!

One would think

that there aren’t many differences in the looks of individual female Cardinals, but there are! Here is one I like to call Queen Red Eyebrow because of her exquisite red markings. We also had sun today, which was nice for a change. Come good into Sunday!

Bird backs

can be very interesting because they reveal the beautiful patterns and textures of feathers. Here’s to a happy Friday!

(Blue Jay, Starling, Cardinal, MoDo, Chickadee, Bluebird, House Finch, Starling)

The BBs

are also called “Bluebird of happiness”. They have been visiting steadily but usually use the caged feeder (it excludes Starlings that go bonkers for mealworms). The BBs stay here year round, and they usually go for some nibbles and sips and also make sure the nestbox is still there. They go in, sit on the roof and take some of the grass out that I put in there for the roosting Woodpecker. Have a happy Wednesday!

Happy National Bird Day!

Well, to be honest, every day is bird day to me but it is nice to see that there is an official date to celebrate our feathered friends too. My personal bird ambassador this year is the Red-breasted Nuthatch because I am so happy to have them back in my yard after a two-year absence. Quick as always, and almost not in frame.

Have a beautiful Tuesday!

Snow bunnies!

The day greeted us with a beautiful thick layer of snow.

Many beaks and bird bellies got filled, and caches replenished. And I took the Christmas deco inside down. The holidays were fun but I am also ready for the new year.

(Blue Jay, Redbellied Woodpecker, House finch, MoDo, House Finch)

The year

is starting cool and slow, and a large group of Mourning Doves and Starlings has made my yard and feeders their home. This is kind of typical for the season but I am thinking about solutions to reduce their impact on my feeding budget and the variety of birds in the yard. The Starlings come for suet, mealworms and fruit, and access to that can be restricted, but the MoDos eat anything that is small enough to be swallowed. When they become overwhleming, I usually try to switch to grey-striped sunflower seed. But that is not liked by many other birds either. And I always feel bad for restricting access to food when the weather is bad. Birdwatcher problems! Pictured are a Bluebird lady, a Chickadee and a Goldfinch.