2016 got off to a lively start. We got up late to a cloudy sky and cooler air. Carolina wrens scurried after the mealworms I had scattered. K refilled the seed feeder. I looked up from the newspaper to see an explosion of birds: sparrows, titmice, cardinals, finches, chickadees, and warblers, both pine and yellow rumped.
Three species of woodpecker showed up. In addition to the downy woodpeckers on the suet, a pileated swooped past and landed in the oak. Then a red bellied landed in the dogwood. Pelicans flew over the creek and soon cormorants came driving a school of fish upstream. A little later they all flew off down the creek. The feral cat sneaked up on the feeder, only to be startled when a dove took off.
The birds came back in waves, particularly during lunch when my fingers were greasy. I wondered if their come-and-go pattern was a reaction to a predator? I saw a red tailed hawk watching for a while from the top of a pine across the creek. Afterward, there was a lot of fussing about precedence - the downy woodpeckers went at it, the cardinals just glared, and even the chickadees got testy.
Juncos finally showed up mid afternoon. Hooded mergansers and buffleheads fished but generally behind a screen of brush. A crow dived on a squirrel that scrambled up the post. Then another did yoga on the sculpture.
Three species of woodpecker showed up. In addition to the downy woodpeckers on the suet, a pileated swooped past and landed in the oak. Then a red bellied landed in the dogwood. Pelicans flew over the creek and soon cormorants came driving a school of fish upstream. A little later they all flew off down the creek. The feral cat sneaked up on the feeder, only to be startled when a dove took off. 
The birds came back in waves, particularly during lunch when my fingers were greasy. I wondered if their come-and-go pattern was a reaction to a predator? I saw a red tailed hawk watching for a while from the top of a pine across the creek. Afterward, there was a lot of fussing about precedence - the downy woodpeckers went at it, the cardinals just glared, and even the chickadees got testy. 
Juncos finally showed up mid afternoon. Hooded mergansers and buffleheads fished but generally behind a screen of brush. A crow dived on a squirrel that scrambled up the post. Then another did yoga on the sculpture. 
No comments:
Post a Comment