Singing birds

Dawn was clear and still, but loud with birdsong.  I sat outside to listen till I got too cold.  The sun came up gold and the creek reflected the warm colors. Chickadees didn't wait for me to go inside.

When I did, warblers, woodpeckers, and white throated sparrows showed up.  A sparrow with a rusty cap and unmarked white tummy landed on the feeder but flew off before I could get it into focus.  Two warblers briefly shared the suet till a third chased them both away.  Then a brown thrasher appeared to dive on a downy on the suet, but instead the brown thrasher contented itself on fallen scraps.  It's one of the few birds that tolerates squirrels.  A couple of blue jays chased through the trees, courting or establishing territory?  Two Carolina wrens foraged on the patio.  They look younger and less grumpy than the grill inspector.

A carry-out carton sailed downstream on its own reflection.  At lunch the brown thrasher returned and settled in on top of the suet cage.  Then the male downy showed up and moved in.  They shared the suet for a while but the brown thrasher was first to leave.

In the afternoon, a wind from the WNW picked up.  Three female hooded mergansers fished up and back down the creek.  An osprey hovered overhead but didn't see anything and moved on.  The brown thrasher returned yet again.  Chickadees were everywhere.  One clung like a leech to the suet, even when joined by a warbler. 

I installed the hummer feeder on a sign hanger which I put across the steps from the other feeders.  It's very close to the ground so this may not work.  A curious chickadee hopped on but couldn't figure out how to make it dispense food.  I saw spider threads - eggs must have hatched.

Toward evening, a male kingfisher came to the same piling as yesterday.