Winter Goldfinch #1090

During the last half of November I only had a few opportunities to walk out in the back yard. It was usually very cold and windy. Worse, very few birds were out. The only exception was on November 17, when a lone male Eastern Goldfinch suddenly perched on the fence rail. Males resemble the females in drab winter garb, but their plumage is suffused with varying degrees of yellow, most evident around their face and neck This male was particularly bright:

The bird dropped down and was nearly invisible in the weeds behind the fence. I obtained a few more lucky shots, this on a dried-up American Burnweed which still has a few clinging seeds with attached fluffy "parachutes" (pappus):  

It then flew to the dried-up stalk of an Evening Primrose. Note the few black feathers on the bird's forehead, remnants of the conspicuous black patch he will sport in summer plumage:

In the background, the clinging brown leaves of an oak tree created pleasant bokeh:

So much for my outdoor birding. Seen through the windows of the front door, an American Robin posed nicely in the bare branches of the Aspen next to the feeders:

A  male Northern Cardinal perched in the same tree, then flew down to feed on the safflower seeds in the hanging platform:

A Black-capped Chickadee paused briefly on the granite ledge before flying up to grasp a single sunflower seed:

An Eastern Bluebird inspected the suet feeder:

Another bluebird fed at the pine cone stuffed with peanut butter (a poor photo  taken diagonally through the double panes):

A Hairy Woodpecker tasted the suet. Note its large size, longer bill and pure white outer tail feathers which distinguish it from the Downy Woodpecker:

The male Hairy's red occipital patch is bisected by a black stripe, while the male Downy has a single red spot:

Two days later, this male Downy Woodpecker stopped by to provide a comparison. Its bill sticks out only about the same distance as the space between its base and the Downy's eye: 

My computer station is reflected in the glass of our front door, which provides a good view of the feeders:

Just after sunrise on November 28, the full Beaver Moon was setting over Hartford:

This week's header: Beaver Moon setting over Hartford

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Linking to:

Nature Thursday

Skywatch Friday

Weekend Reflections

Saturday's Critters

Garden Affair

All Seasons

Image-in-ing

Nature Notes

Wordless Wednesday (on Tuesday)

Wild Bird Wednesday

My Corner of the World
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Please visit the links to all these posts to see some excellent photos on display
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