Disapproving Cardinal
Showing posts with label Northern Cardinal. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Northern Cardinal. Show all posts
Friday, May 16, 2008
Saturday, January 5, 2008
Feeder Friends
The downy woodpecker and northern cardinal shared some seed bell yesterday:
They were mostly polite in sharing... mostly.
The woodpeckers are such cool looking birds.
Here's the red-bellied woodpecker visiting again:
Of course, I can never resist a cardinal shot. I wouldn't mess with this guy if I were you! He looks like he could whoop some arse.
They were mostly polite in sharing... mostly.
The woodpeckers are such cool looking birds.
Here's the red-bellied woodpecker visiting again:
Of course, I can never resist a cardinal shot. I wouldn't mess with this guy if I were you! He looks like he could whoop some arse.
Thursday, January 3, 2008
Can't Get Enough of Cardinals
The 3 Northern Cardinals were back today, and I just can't get enough of them, particularly the Mrs.!
We have lift-off!
Warming up in the sun (if that's possible at 9 degrees F)
Brrrr! She looks cold!
We have lift-off!
Warming up in the sun (if that's possible at 9 degrees F)
Brrrr! She looks cold!
Wednesday, January 2, 2008
Happy New Year!
It's my first birding new year! :)
We're on cold weather lockdown for the new year here in Chicagoland, but the days leading up to 2008 gave us a temporary thaw:
The cold and snow of 2008 has everybody scrambling for a meal - even 'Coop. There's something bone-chilling about a Cooper's Hawk's stare:
Eyeing a potential meal. He was not successful this time... this time.
I finally got a glimpse of the female cardinal! I've had a male cardinal visiting occasionally for a few weeks now, and this cold snap brought out his mate, AND another male! I love seeing the cardinals at my feeders. They're gorgeous birds and I'm glad to be able to help them get by this winter.
Isn't she gorgeous!
She never sat still for very long, but I did snap this picture of her jumping from the deck rail to the black oil sunflower seed Cedar feeder. It makes me giggle!
The less frequent visitors of the Sparrow Mob have spent a lot more time here the last couple days. Here's my Song Sparrow friend - haven't seen this one in a little while!
And here's the local American Tree Sparrow, who now visits with a friend:
Had to include this shot - see the snow whooshing by?
Here are my two least common sparrows, hanging out in the same feeder!
I had 3 American Goldfinches here today too - up from the usual 1. Hungry Hungry Finches! (You know, instead of Hungry Hungry Hippos)
There's a bunny rabbit nibbling on brush in my yard now. It's funny how the birds will hop right around the rabbit, not even blinking at his presence. They're completely comfortable knowing he's not a threat. I'm glad, because I don't mind watching him, either! :)
We're on cold weather lockdown for the new year here in Chicagoland, but the days leading up to 2008 gave us a temporary thaw:
The cold and snow of 2008 has everybody scrambling for a meal - even 'Coop. There's something bone-chilling about a Cooper's Hawk's stare:
Eyeing a potential meal. He was not successful this time... this time.
I finally got a glimpse of the female cardinal! I've had a male cardinal visiting occasionally for a few weeks now, and this cold snap brought out his mate, AND another male! I love seeing the cardinals at my feeders. They're gorgeous birds and I'm glad to be able to help them get by this winter.
Isn't she gorgeous!
She never sat still for very long, but I did snap this picture of her jumping from the deck rail to the black oil sunflower seed Cedar feeder. It makes me giggle!
The less frequent visitors of the Sparrow Mob have spent a lot more time here the last couple days. Here's my Song Sparrow friend - haven't seen this one in a little while!
And here's the local American Tree Sparrow, who now visits with a friend:
Had to include this shot - see the snow whooshing by?
Here are my two least common sparrows, hanging out in the same feeder!
I had 3 American Goldfinches here today too - up from the usual 1. Hungry Hungry Finches! (You know, instead of Hungry Hungry Hippos)
There's a bunny rabbit nibbling on brush in my yard now. It's funny how the birds will hop right around the rabbit, not even blinking at his presence. They're completely comfortable knowing he's not a threat. I'm glad, because I don't mind watching him, either! :)
Monday, December 24, 2007
Sunday, December 23, 2007
Cold and Windy
Hello, birds! How about a 30+ degree temperature drop and some 45mph wind gusts to get you into the holiday spirit?
Oy the poor birds! Yesterday, they hardly ate anything out of the feeders, having free range in the 50 degree temps and vanishing snow cover. Overnight, the temperature dropped into the teens and the wind picked up. Today, they've eaten me out of house and home and probably could have eaten more - but I didn't want to go out and scare them all away to refill the feeders, figuring they were still foraging on the ground and seemed to be doing alright. Daylight is just about gone, and only a few stragglers are left at the feeders. I don't know how they survive these cold winters!
They had a hard time with the wind today.
Check out this cardinal - the wind was blowing from the west, left to right as you look at this photo:
No, he's not posing! That's the wind blowing him!
He had a much easier time on the platform feeder, but still you can see his crown feathers blowing left to right:
I was really worried for the mourning doves. Three times, they took off to fly away and one ran into the house, blown off course by the wind. None were stunned - I don't think they hit head first as they were trying to fly away from the house but the wind gusts threw them backwards. They all continued flying away, but still - it can't be good for their poor little bodies to take that beating. They're the only ones left in the yard now, scrounging for the last of the seeds off the ground.
The most poofed out mourning dove EVER:
It surprises me that only a few starlings visit per day. I've seen the whole flock a few times (I've counted 17 of them), but they rarely come en masse. More often, 2 or 3 show up, and they stick to either the nut/seed bell over in the tree, or the suet feeder. They really don't bother the smaller birds, contrary to their reputations. They do fight with each other a lot, though!
I finally got a shot of the American Tree Sparrow. I was able to confirm the American Tree Sparrow ID today, as this one faced me a few times and I was able to see the dark spot on its chest through my binoculars. I think (s)he is a loner. I've never seen more than one here. It's nice to have some variety in the winter.
The American Tree Sparrow nests in northern Canada, but unlike those Common Redpolls, these sparrows do migrate south to the US every winter. It's hard to imagine flying south into Chicago and stopping. I just want to say to these guys, "Keep flying! Just a little longer! It's warmer down there!" I know it's all relative, but the current 18 degrees F can't feel warm to too many people (or birds!) I'm already chilled to the bone thinking of filling the feeders tonight. I think I'll go out a bit early, as soon as night falls and the birds are gone.
The winds are really howling out there. Tomorrow's high is 27F and hopefully the winds will die down a bit.
Oy the poor birds! Yesterday, they hardly ate anything out of the feeders, having free range in the 50 degree temps and vanishing snow cover. Overnight, the temperature dropped into the teens and the wind picked up. Today, they've eaten me out of house and home and probably could have eaten more - but I didn't want to go out and scare them all away to refill the feeders, figuring they were still foraging on the ground and seemed to be doing alright. Daylight is just about gone, and only a few stragglers are left at the feeders. I don't know how they survive these cold winters!
They had a hard time with the wind today.
Check out this cardinal - the wind was blowing from the west, left to right as you look at this photo:
No, he's not posing! That's the wind blowing him!
He had a much easier time on the platform feeder, but still you can see his crown feathers blowing left to right:
I was really worried for the mourning doves. Three times, they took off to fly away and one ran into the house, blown off course by the wind. None were stunned - I don't think they hit head first as they were trying to fly away from the house but the wind gusts threw them backwards. They all continued flying away, but still - it can't be good for their poor little bodies to take that beating. They're the only ones left in the yard now, scrounging for the last of the seeds off the ground.
The most poofed out mourning dove EVER:
It surprises me that only a few starlings visit per day. I've seen the whole flock a few times (I've counted 17 of them), but they rarely come en masse. More often, 2 or 3 show up, and they stick to either the nut/seed bell over in the tree, or the suet feeder. They really don't bother the smaller birds, contrary to their reputations. They do fight with each other a lot, though!
I finally got a shot of the American Tree Sparrow. I was able to confirm the American Tree Sparrow ID today, as this one faced me a few times and I was able to see the dark spot on its chest through my binoculars. I think (s)he is a loner. I've never seen more than one here. It's nice to have some variety in the winter.
The American Tree Sparrow nests in northern Canada, but unlike those Common Redpolls, these sparrows do migrate south to the US every winter. It's hard to imagine flying south into Chicago and stopping. I just want to say to these guys, "Keep flying! Just a little longer! It's warmer down there!" I know it's all relative, but the current 18 degrees F can't feel warm to too many people (or birds!) I'm already chilled to the bone thinking of filling the feeders tonight. I think I'll go out a bit early, as soon as night falls and the birds are gone.
The winds are really howling out there. Tomorrow's high is 27F and hopefully the winds will die down a bit.
Saturday, December 15, 2007
A for Effort
The Northern Cardinal was back today, and he was quite a bit more bold than in previous visits. He hung out in the yard for most of the afternoon, spending most of his time working on the hanging fruit/nut/seed bell in the tree. He likes to hide deeper in the tree and down in the brush, but I was able to snap a few shots of his acrobatic attempts to grab seeds off of what's left of the bell.
The forecast is calling for 6+ inches of snow tonight, and I can tell it's coming by the hordes of birds that have been at the feeders all day. Dusk will be upon us soon, so I hope the birds got enough to eat for the night.
The forecast is calling for 6+ inches of snow tonight, and I can tell it's coming by the hordes of birds that have been at the feeders all day. Dusk will be upon us soon, so I hope the birds got enough to eat for the night.
Tuesday, December 11, 2007
Splashes of Red
The cardinal was back again briefly this morning. Here I caught him checking out the new nut/fruit/seed bell with a house finch. It's nice to see some splashes of red in the tree.
We had some freezing rain last night, so the tree is coated in ice and the birds are out in earnest taking advantage of the feeders. Even as I've watched for the past half hour or so, the ice seems to be melting off the tree. Traffic maps show "green" so hopefully getting to work today won't be too bad.
And because I think they're cute, here are male and female white crowned sparrows:
Male
Female
We had some freezing rain last night, so the tree is coated in ice and the birds are out in earnest taking advantage of the feeders. Even as I've watched for the past half hour or so, the ice seems to be melting off the tree. Traffic maps show "green" so hopefully getting to work today won't be too bad.
And because I think they're cute, here are male and female white crowned sparrows:
Male
Female
Monday, December 10, 2007
My First Cardinal!
I had my first visit from a cardinal today - a male Northern Cardinal. I slept in this morning and woke up late. As I pulled myself upright and swung my legs over the side of the bed to look out the window at the birds, imagine my surprise as a cardinal flew into the tree at that very moment! I jumped up, and I believe my exact words were, "Holy sh*t! My first cardinal!" I ran to my office to grab the camera, which of course had the wrong lens attached. I swapped out the lens in a frantic foggy excitement and ran back to my bedroom.
The cardinal was very hesitant about checking things out. The feeders were bustling with finches, house sparrows, juncos, and mourning doves, so he was sort of bobbing and weaving to stay out of the way of the other birds (who hardly seemed to notice him). I surely noticed him!
Can you say, sore thumb? (As in, sticks out like a...)
The cardinal flew back and forth to the tree a lot, seeming a bit nervous. It was hard to snap any photos of him, as he kept dropping down into the brush.
I never did see his female companion, but I will keep looking! Cardinals (our state bird here in Illinois) are very close with their mates. According to the book, Birds of Chicago (U.S. City Bird Guides)
, "This species pair bond is one of the most faithful of Chicago's resident birds. Never far from one another, male and female cardinals softly vocalize to one another not only through the breeding season, but year round, as if sharing sweet nothings. The ritualized beak-to-beak feeding reinforces the romantic appeal of these easily identifiable birds," (p139). Oh, how sweet!
Finally, a cardinal has found me!
Watching all of those crazy juncos down there
Scoping out the scene
The cardinal was very hesitant about checking things out. The feeders were bustling with finches, house sparrows, juncos, and mourning doves, so he was sort of bobbing and weaving to stay out of the way of the other birds (who hardly seemed to notice him). I surely noticed him!
Can you say, sore thumb? (As in, sticks out like a...)
The cardinal flew back and forth to the tree a lot, seeming a bit nervous. It was hard to snap any photos of him, as he kept dropping down into the brush.
I never did see his female companion, but I will keep looking! Cardinals (our state bird here in Illinois) are very close with their mates. According to the book, Birds of Chicago (U.S. City Bird Guides)
, "This species pair bond is one of the most faithful of Chicago's resident birds. Never far from one another, male and female cardinals softly vocalize to one another not only through the breeding season, but year round, as if sharing sweet nothings. The ritualized beak-to-beak feeding reinforces the romantic appeal of these easily identifiable birds," (p139). Oh, how sweet!Finally, a cardinal has found me!
Watching all of those crazy juncos down there
Scoping out the scene
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