Rosyfinch Ramblings: January 2022

Thursday, January 27, 2022

Yard bird list is expanding

My new Connecticut yard bird list has swollen to 18 species, of which I have now photographed 13 through the windows. Latest arrivals to the feeder were--

The male Red-bellied Woodpecker spends more time eating the seeds rather than at the suet cake which is favored by the Downy and Hairy Woodpeckers:

This view, on a snowy morning, shows off the red on lower belly which gives the species its name, but it is often difficult to see in the field. Since museum collections of bird skins were usually displayed lying on their backs, this feature was obvious to early taxonomists:

One American Robin flew into the holly tree and gleaned the red berries right next to the window. I had to shoot from across the room and never got a good exposure. These are just to document the sighting in eBird:

It approached very close to the window glass and immediately flew away after looking right at me:

A flock of 3-5 American Goldfinches suddenly appeared on January 20.

They were very aggressive and took over the feeder, confronting other visiting species. They even squabbled among themselves:

A male Northern Cardinal gifted us with a Christmas Card view:

I installed a second shepherd's hook to hold a platform seed feeder with transparent cover (to the far left in this view from the front door of our suite). Since the home is sited on a granite dome, there are few places with enough soil to anchor the iron stand. I could only drive it down about 5 inches before hitting solid rock . I hope it withstands the wind. It snowed right after I put it up. The birds ignored it and its supply of millet, even though they feasted on wind-driven spillage beneath it.

The kitchen windows on the main floor provide magnificent views of the surrounding open space. On clear nights, the lights of the city of Hartford shine bright, about 11 miles distant:

Sunsets have been glorious. Like snowflakes, no two are ever alike. Official sunset was at 4:51 PM. These were consecutive iPhone views between 4:50 and 5:25 PM on January 20th:

Seen and photographed to date (13 species), Red-bellied Woodpecker, Downy Woodpecker, Hairy Woodpecker, Blue Jay, Tufted Titmouse, Black-capped Chickadee, Dark-eyed Junco, White-throated Sparrow, Northern Cardinal, Red-bellied Woodpecker, Cedar Waxwing, American Robin, American Goldfinch. Seen but not photographed (5 species) Canada Goose, Red-tailed Hawk, Turkey Vulture, Mourning Dove, American Crow.

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Linking to:

Garden Affair

Nature Thursday

Skywatch Friday

Weekend Reflections

Saturday's Critters

BirdD'Pot

All Seasons

Wordless Wednesday (on Tuesday)

Natasha Musing

Our World Tuesday

Wild Bird Wednesday

My Corner of the World

Timeless Thursday

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Please visit the links to all these posts to see some excellent photos on display
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Thursday, January 20, 2022

Connecticut feeder birds

During the 18 years we resided in south Florida, I was disappointed if our early morning walks in the Wounded Wetlands provided sightings of less than 20 bird species. Here in inland northern Connecticut, I expected to find about ten "target" winter resident species. After settling in for a couple of weeks, I put up an iron shepherd's hook and hung a tube feeder filled with black oil sunflower seeds and a suet cake. It attracted absolutely no birds until the fourth day (January 13) when a Tufted Titmouse visited.

My photos were of poor quality, as I was shooting through the double-glazed windows of the front door, although I had carefully washed both inside and outside surfaces.

Almost immediately, there was an explosion of avian visitors. Black-capped Chickadees were next to arrive:

The titmice dominated the feeder, chasing away the chickadees, which flew in and quickly perched just long enough to grasp a single sunflower seed and fly back to a tree to hack open its shell.

I had mixed some white proso millet with the sunflower seeds. The titmice scattered the millet on the ground as they retrieved the black seeds. This was good for the ground-feeding Dark-eyed Juncos, which gathered under the feeder:

They were joined by White-throated Sparrows which scratched with both feet at the same time to expose the fallen millet seeds:

A male Northern Cardinal flew in. He attempted to take some of the sunflower seeds, but the perch was too small. He settled for whatever fell to the ground:

He was joined by a demure female cardinal:

The word "demure" popped into my vocabulary. I meant it to describe her more sudued but certainly beautiful plumage, not her attitude or "birdsonality."

A Blue Jay visited briefly:

The suet feeder attracted a Downy Woodpecker. Note that it has black bars on its tail.

I was surprised when a Hairy Woodpecker suddenly arrived. While its plumage is nearly identical to that of the Downy Woodpecker, this larger bird has a proportionally longer bill (about the length of its head). It also lacks black bars on its outer tail feathers. (To remember this distinction I say that the Hairy "H'aint" got any black tail bars). Red on its head indicates that it is a male;:

While they did not visit the feeders, a flock of "Bonus Birds" settled into trees behind the feeder, too far away for good images but clearly identifiable as Cedar Waxwings:

We were delighted when the waxwings flew into a holly tree next to our door to feed on its red berries. They were so close to an adjacent window that I could not fit the entire birds into the viewfinder:

Eight species on the first day! The birds seemed to be jumping for joy:

Cold night on January 15 (minus 16.1 C):

Over a foot of snow fell after I put up the feeder on January 9:

That night at 9:30 PM in ambient darkness I took this photo with my iPhone 11 Pro Max. The only light was a wash from a window to the left, and the hand-held exposure was 1.5 second. It revealed hidden color and beauty. The low light performance of the phone camera is amazing:

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Linking to:

Garden Affair

Fences Around the World

Nature Thursday

Skywatch Friday

Weekend Reflections

Saturday's Critters

BirdD'Pot

All Seasons

Wordless Wednesday (on Tuesday)

Natasha Musing

Our World Tuesday

Wild Bird Wednesday

My Corner of the World

Timeless Thursday

________________________________________________

Please visit the links to all these posts to see some excellent photos on display
________________________________________________

Wednesday, January 12, 2022

Crops & Clips: Flashback to January, 2019

As I do each month, I enjoyed looking back over my archived photos, taken three years previously, to remember how things were then and what I now will be missing this time of year in our new Connecticut home. As usual, I searched for images which reflected favorite memes: critters of all kinds (especially birds), skies and clouds, reflections, flowers and fences, as well as scenes which speak for themselves. We spent the entire month at home in south Florida.

Little Blue Heron adult before sunrise on New Years Day:

An early morning Great Blue Heron:

Later, a Tricolored Heron reflected nicely as it took flight:

A Great Egret strutted lakeside:

A Tree Swallow in flight:

A Blue-gray Gnatcatcher foraged for insects in the fruiting Firebush (Hamelia Patens):

Black birds can be difficult photographic subjects. The light reflected nicely to reveal feather details of this Fish Crow:

Blue-headed Vireos migrate in rather late in autumn and early winter. They can be reclusive, so it was a treat when I could obtain decent photos:

A lone American Robin appeared on January 30. Some winters we fail to see a single one, although one year a large flock showed up:

On January 7, as I was approaching the trailhead near our home, a Bald Eagle, presumably the female of the pair at the local nest, swooped down in front of me and picked up a clump of dried grass. Since the eagles line their nest with softer materials, this is a sign that eggs or eaglets may be present:

An immature Red-shouldered Hawk roosted nearby:

Out in the Wounded Wetlands, female White-tailed Deer gathered together:

On January 20, we watched an eclipse of the full Wolf Moon:

Moonset on January 21...

...followed by morning rays:

The waning Wolf Moon peered through the clouds on the morning of January 23:

Bald Eagles stole the show. We believed that the first egg hatched about January 10, but the eaglets were not seen from the ground until the last day of the month. On January 25 the male (Pride, to right)) rearranged a stick and the pair appeared to be tending one or more eaglets: