Still warm

The sky was very changeable.  At breakfast, it hinted rain.  After lunch, it was dotted with fair weather cumulus.  Later it was an intense clear blue. The warmth confused flowers. 

A song sparrow was dubious about the bark butter residue.  A white throated sparrow stayed with the seeds that fell in the mulch.  The two wrens investigated everything.  The downy woodpeckers stuck to suet.

I encountered the cat in the front yard and later in the back, occupying patches of sunshine.  Chickadees and cardinals came to the feeder anyway, but the male cardinal was wary and watchful.

This is the 3090th post I've made in over the last nine years.  That's an average of 343 posts per year.  I think I've been reasonably faithful to the task I set myself.  I wonder if the data may eventually be useful. 

Rainfall for 2019 was just average (46") for the first time in about five years.

Surprising day

A heron was on the dock at breakfast, but cloud cover made it too dark for the camera.  
As I was planning to travel to Cape Charles on the Eastern Shore, I checked the weather prediction early in the morning.  But the day was much warmer and drier than forecast. It set a record: Norfolk had a high of 77° and Cape Charles of 76°. Plus, instead of the predicted thunderstorm, there was sunshine.  

I took my camera but mostly got photos of the sky.  On the way over I saw a half dozen dark birds floating next to one of the islands that anchor the CBBT tunnels.  They might have been coots.  Fog shrouded the last mile or so of the bridge and I saw some dark birds perched on the lights.  They were probably buzzards but might have been birds of prey.  

On the way back, around 3:30pm I saw a gannet plunge into the water.  Then a pelican flew past.  There were numerous great and lesser blackback gulls perched on lights and railings.  Herring or ring bill gulls floated in the air alongside the bridge. 

I got home in time to watch the sunset and see the crescent moon.  

Gray mist

There was a glorious sunrise before the overcast moved in.  The temperature and the humidity were high. Heavy dew coated the railing and the chairs.  The pair of Carolina wrens were first up but they didn't stay long.  A great blue heron flew past.  By 9am I could feel the mist on my skin.

A bufflehead drake floated on a mirror of water.  A pine warbler was chased off the suet by a downy woodpecker but he came back and insisted on sharing.  A song sparrow foraged for breakfast.  A titmouse joined the seed eaters.  Then the cat showed up. 

When we got home around 4pm, the male red bellied woodpecker came for suet.  I didn't see anything else before the light failed, possibly because the cat was lurking. 

Warm

Dawn had a hint of mist that didn't last.  The sun lit up reflections in the placid creek.  There was little activity at breakfast. 

After lunch, a song and a white throated sparrow foraged in the mulch.  For some reason, there seem to be only tan morph white throats this winter.  I know there was a white morph when they first arrived but I haven't seen it since. 

Downy woodpeckers worked on the suet.  K took the ant moat down and discovered the water had jelled somehow into a brown goo.  I think I've got it clean again.  A pine warbler tried to get some suet but a downy came flying out of the blue and batted the warbler away.  The downy didn't even stay to eat.  The warbler just transferred to the bark butter dish. 

Two myrtle warblers fussed over who got to eat first and went chasing around the yard.  One decided to eat camellia pollen.  A bluebird watched all this, then left.  A Carolina wren evaded the camera. 

Boaters disrupted the buffleheads on the creak.   I found a slime mold under the maple tree.  As I rested from clipping nandina berries, a downy worked up the courage to come to the suet.  I could hear it talking to itself softly.  Later I saw a bird in the oak that I thought was a downy, but it wasn't.  Instead, it was an immature male yellow bellied sapsucker.  Weirdly, it would fly away from the oak, hover flapping for a moment, then fly back.  I was unsuccessful in photographing that behavior. 

A few wasps were lured out by the day's warmth, but the solstice was only a week ago and the sun set before 5pm.  I forgot to look for the moon.

Even foggier

The blanket of fog was thick enough to condense and drip.  It lifted very slowly and became a white sky.  I think it made the birds anxious that there might be a hidden predator. A song sparrow cautiously looked for seeds under the chair, then checked the bark butter dish that I neglected to refill. The red bellied woodpecker decided to risk the suet.  A sickly house finch spent a long time at the feeder, probably contaminating it.

One of the squirrels ate some camellia flowers.

A kingfisher streaked past without stopping.  A bufflehead drake slurped something from the surface of the creek, just like a mallard or a Canada goose.  Ii couldn't see anything, but he kept at it all afternoon.  Finally he preened and rolled over in the water.  A couple of turtles climbed onto their log to enjoy the warm air and muted sunlight.  A couple of gulls dived into the creek opposite the dam outfall, but there was too much vegetation in the way for me to be sure what that was all about.  The creek was flat and glassy most of the day.

Morning fog

The fog was apparent when I got up, peaked around 8am, and burned off by 9am.  Birds were slow to appear.  A song sparrow ventured out to the seeds I'd scattered.  A white throated sparrow followed. 

The sun caught the male red bellied woodpecker at the suet.  The downy woodpeckers weren't having that so they came too. 

Two Carolina wrens wanted bark butter.  The squirrel with the  sore flank was being followed by another in a manner that suggests she's about to go into heat.

A pine warbler, a myrtle warbler (AKA yellow rumped, butterbutt), and an orange crowned warbler all wanted lunch.  The ruby crowned kinglet reappeared, seeking suet.

A couple of bufflehead drakes preened on the creek.   The sky was mostly clear but stratus clouds blurred the late afternoon sun. 

Beautiful day

The male red bellied woodpecker was back.  I scattered the Christmas seeds and  a song sparrow came to claim a share.  It got a millet hull stuck on its beak.  

I saw some hooded mergansers on the creek.  A cormorant cut through the mirror the water made.  The a bufflehead did the same. 

The yellow rumped warbler perched in the cherry to preen.  A white throated sparrow noticed the seeds I scattered. A Carolina wren wrestled with a bark butter ball.  Downy woodpeckers got their suet back. 

At mid day in the sun I was warm but at 5pm on the dock waiting for sunset I was too cold to stay long.  The cormorants flew home in their daily commute, but I didn't see any other large birds.  A couple of flocks of unidentifiable smaller birds passed over.  There was little to no wind. Toward evening haze spread over the sky.

Sunshine

The sunlit creek was glassy and nothing was frozen for a change.  I think it was milder than predicted.  I took advantage and went to the Rec Center pool in the morning. Before that, at breakfast the red belied woodpecker had suet.  A song sparrow waded in the birdbath.  Downy woodpeckers retook possession of the suet. 

After lunch, I indulged in Christmas cookie decorating.  While I was all sticky from rolling dough, a butterbutt bounced around the camellia right outside the kitchen window. A squirrel tried to raid the suet but the pepper drove it away.  Pelicans splashed down in the creek but not where they would be easy to photograph.   A pine warbler blazed in the sunlight.  A Carolina wren stayed in the shadows. 

Sunset was gold and rose thanks to some wispy clouds in the West. 

Two crowns, two kings

A song sparrow was up before there was enough light for the camera.   So was a downy woodpecker.   The blasted cat started to stalk something in the azalea but gave up.  The red bellied woodpecker had a suet brunch. 

Around noon, a ruby crowned kinglet dashed to the bark butter tub and hammered at it furiously.  Then it darted over to the suet.  That brought out the orange crowned warbler, but at no time did either bird show its crown.  The downy woodpecker eventually came back. 

There seemed to be a lot going on under the water as the tide dropped.  I saw a few buffleheads on the surface.  Pelicans flew up and down the creek frequently but I didn't see any plunge into our stretch.  A great blue heron rested on a dock piling.  Two mallard pairs dabbled under the bulkhead.

Then I realized a male kingfisher had landed on the dock bench.  Actually, it was his fish that caught my eye.  The kingfisher seemed constipated, if that's possible.  He lifted his tail many times before he got results.  I never saw him eat the fish but both birds were gone the next time I looked.  And soon after that the light was gone.

Still overcast

Frost coated the mulch and melted off the bird feeder.  Ice only covered half the creek.  A downy woodpecker was up bright and early.  A pine warbler followed on the suet.  Then a bluebird dropped in but apparently did not think the suet was edible.  The male red bellied woodpecker was back. Vapor rose off the creek.  

While there had been some sunshine early, the sky clouded over again.  After church, K sawed down two redwood limbs that had been intruding in my view and confusing the camera focus.  A Carolina wren looked for a bark butter ball.  A pine warbler went for the tub of bark butter, perhaps because the downy woodpecker was on the suet. There were buffleheads on the creek. 

Overcast solstice

Song and white throated sparrows hunted for breakfast in the mulch and the frozen birdbath.  Carolina wrens stoked up with bark butter.  And then the cat appeared. 

The temperature rose into the 40s and the birdbath slowly melted.  A song sparrow waded through the tiny ice floes.  Downy and red bellied woodpeckers both wanted suet.  So did the orange crowned warbler.  Much later, a pine warbler wanted a share.  

The sun was detectable through the cloud cover but not bright.  The clouds frayed in the North briefly.  I saw cormorants, hoodies and buffleheads fishing and I believe I glimpsed a grebe.

Sunset on the shortest day lit up the bars of cloud in the West. 

Ice on the creek

The cold brought lots of birds.  First a pine warbler, then a female oriole flashed yellow.  A butterbutt seemed to want to compete though it had a lot less yellow to work with.  Song and white throated sparrows foraged and I tossed some seeds on the patio for them.

An orange crowned warbler was displaced from the suet by a yellow rumped warbler.  Later, the male red bellied woodpecker was feasting on suet when the male downy flew in and knocked the red bellied off the suet.  All the while, they ignored the feral cat sunning on the pool cover. 

Two herons flew upstream. Another perched on a snag in the lake. 

Frigid

The creek was choppy at first light but it calmed under the sun.  The birdbath was solid ice so I poured hot water in and a couple of hours later it had frozen again.  Another thing that froze was my car battery, so I spent time I didn't have getting it replaced.

Nevertheless, I discovered that we have two song sparrows.  They don't seem to hang out together like the Carolina wrens or the cardinals so I didn't realize I was seeing different birds.  This morning one foraged in the mulch while another lurked under a chair.  I also saw at least one white throat.  Downy woodpeckers stuffed themselves on suet.

An egret huddled on the dam.  A great blue heron preened on the bank above the bulkhead. Pelicans patrolled the creek.   Crows behaved mysteriously, whispering together on the far bank.

Sunset was cloudless but the sky glowed with color. 

Cold

The sky cleared over night

Gloomy

The morning was warm under a gray sky that occasionally spit a few raindrops.  The song sparrow visited briefly.  Turtles hauled out on their log despite the lack of sunshine. But I didn't see any ducks.  Dandelions thought spring had come. 

I had a wet trip to Suffolk and horrible traffic coming back. The temperature stayed in the 60s until about 7pm when it dived twenty degrees.  The plunge was accompanied by roaring wind and rain. 

Still warm

A pair of Carolina wrens got up with us.  One had bark butter while the other foraged under the seed feeder.  Bufflehead drakes were fishing for breakfast and making the creek reflections waver and ripple. 

I saw a yellow kneed wasp flying around the camellia.   A squirrel tried to rob the feeder.  The song sparrow came to forage for lunch. 

In the afternoon the buffleheads preened and showed their bubblegum-pink feet.  Turtles came out to bask.  The water on both lake and creek moved on gentle waves. 

Sunset came on my way to a meeting, lighting up streaks of stratus cloud.

Gusty

At breakfast, the creek was shiny with reflections.   Juncos foraged under the seed feeder. 

I took the suet cage down to clean it before putting a fresh block of suet out.  Naturally, an orange crowned warbler picked that time to come looking for a treat.  It did not return when I put the fresh suet out, but a downy woodpecker soon found the feeder. Carolina wrens turned to the bark butter balls while the suet was gone. 

A large flock of blackbirds, many with red epaulettes flashing, shot across the creek and over the yard, headed into the wind.  That was all I saw of them.  The song sparrow took over foraging for seeds under that feeder. Chickadees and titmice took seeds to the camellia to hammer open.  A pine warbler found the bark butter dish feeder. 

The day was gorgeously warm and sunny, but every few minutes a gust of wind peeled the warmth away even though the wind was from the South.  That wind might have been why so many pelicans forsook the bay for our creek which had also become choppy.  But apparently pelicans could see through the rough water to the fish below.  Cormorants were fishing too and so was a pied bill grebe. 

Warm

Morning was a misery of drizzle and fog, but not cold.  The sky cleared in the middle of the afternoon, but soon more clouds blew in. A pelican flew patrols over the creek.

Two Carolina wrens tackled the suet nubbins but one soon dropped off.  Eventually the downy woodpecker demanded his suet back.

A flock of robins and at least one bluebird flew across the creek from our trees.  My best guess was that they were eating sweet gum seeds from the dangling gum balls. 

Rain

I left before dawn and got home well after dark. When I first left the house, the moon was visible behind clouds, but by the time I got into Norfolk, it was raining.  The whole day was dark and wet, but warmer.

In lieu of observation, here are two books.

Bird Count, a picture book for older children, recalled memories of the Christmas bird counts of my childhood.  My father led bird walks year around but never failed to lead a Christmas count.  Sometimes they were very cold and we certainly did not drive around like the people in the story.  But the birds were similar and fewer than those that spend the winter in Virginia. 

1001 Secrets Every Birder Should Know is a trivia compendium with snarky commentary.  Some of the secrets are about birds from other continents and some are sensationalized.  It focuses on bird behavior and clues from bird anatomy.  And various rumors and urban legends are smacked down. 

Chilly

Sunshine was intermittent all the cold day.  A Carolina wren was one of the first visitors.  A white throated sparrow used the rose thorns for protection.  Downy woodpeckers visited while the sun was shining.  I cussed out the cat for scaring the birds. 

There was lots of pelican activity but, as always, vegetation was in the way.  I finally got a mostly unobstructed shot.   A great blue heron perched on the fallen tree in the lake.  It was not a day for turtles.  A female bufflehead paddled swiftly upstream leaving a wake.  A cormorant made the water boil before it surfaced.  Bufflehead drakes finally showed up when the light was going.  One nearly collided with a goose. 

Cold returned

The song sparrow greeted the wet, dim dawn.  I  was experimenting with some millet and safflower seeds and the song sparrow gobbled up the millet.  Soon the downy woodpeckers arrived.  The cold brought out the juncos. 

 At lunch time I noticed a titmouse was very still on the feeder perch.  The feral cat was sitting on the pool cover, dividing its attention between a rustling in the azalea bush on the far side of the pool and the bird feeder.  I saw but couldn't capture a bluebird and a Carolina wren.

The sky had been slowly clearing and was quite blue after lunch.  But by 4pm it was turning white again.  The feeder birds were mostly gone but buffleheads were out on the creek.  One hooded merganser drake cruised past the buffleheads twice.  White throated sparrows arrived to forage.  Then the cat came back around sunset.  The low stratus clouds turned pink even as they were dissipating.  Later the moon was bright but behind a thin glaze of cloud.  

Very warm wind

Wind from the Southwest rushed low-level, wispy clouds over us and brought weak sunshine.  Sparrows were first up.  A song sparrow poked around right outside the window.  Insects were soon flying.  The squirrels seemed to think it was Spring.  Turtles enjoyed the heat.  The tide went way out thanks to the wind from the Southwest.  Yellow jackets worked on the camellias.  One many-spotted ladybird beetle prowled on a camellia leaf.  I took a photo of my car thermometer to prove the temperature reached the high 70s.   It didn't break the record set in 2007, but it came within a couple of degrees. 

Fog

Titmice showed up for breakfast. The fog wasn't as evident over our creek, but when I crossed the Lesner bridge, both bays were enshrouded.  It was much foggier on the way down Great Neck than it had been on the way up Independence. 

Downy woodpeckers came for lunch.  On the creek, a great black-backed gull wrestled with a large catch.  A great blue heron watched from the neighbors' floating dock.  Buffleheads were out but the light was fading.  The feral cat kept birds from their bedtime snacks. 

The waxing moon had an ice halo.

Warming

The wind shifted and brought warmer, wetter air so the sky clouded over.  A downy woodpecker worked on the suet.  The rough water in the creek glittered in the sun.

My efforts to photograph a pelican were again frustrated.  I didn't see much else.  A couple of great blue herons flew downstream.  A cormorant swallowed a fish. 

The feral cat was settled in on the pool cover when we got home.  Quite a flock of cormorants perched on the fallen trees on the lake while an egret watched. 

Cold

I was gone all morning and again after mid afternoon, so all I had tome to see was the lunch crowd, and that was small.  A pine warbler made the rounds of feeders.  A song sparrow was interested in the birdbath.

Nothing stirred on the lake and all I saw on the creek was a lone bufflehead drake and a goose.  A pelican flew low over the water but didn't return.

Going gray

A cold and sunny start led to a warm, overcast day's end.  The birdbath was frozen.  Birds didn't get going very fast but eventually a downy woodpecker came for suet.  The feral cat huddled under the cedar facing away so it appeared all black. 

The creek was a perfect mirror, "as above, so below."  I saw a pelican but it was gone before I could think about the camera.  A bufflehead drake hung around making rings in the reflections. 

By noon, clouds created a mackerel sky and by mid afternoon the overcast was solid.  The temperature had risen about twenty degrees.  As soon as the light was poor, out came the white throated sparrows.  

Breezy

The sky seemed lightly hazed despite the bright sunlight.  Most trees were bare but oak leaves continued to fall.  Mallards and geese slurped up food off the creek surface.  A couple of turtles basked on the lake log. 

Pine and orange crowned warblers, downy woodpeckers, white throated and song sparrows came to the feeders along with the regulars.

At sunset, there were no clouds but a salmon glow above the Western horizon blended into twilight blue.  The quarter moon was crisp edged.

Gone

I left in the dark and returned in the dark. On the way into Richmond by train we crossed what I suppose was the James River.  The rising sun and a dirty window got into my photo of exposed rocks in the river.  It was a nice day in Richmond, but I was inside.  A lovely sunset began in Hampton and followed as we crossed the bridge tunnel. 

Sunny

Windy and chilly despite the sunshine.  Turtles basked in their sheltered spot.  Most trees except oaks were bare. Finches and chickadees came for seeds.  If other birds visited, I missed them.  Mallards seemed to find plenty in the water.  Clouds formed orderly rows in the Northeast.  After dark, they made the quarter moon a ghostly blur. 

Sky drama

I had a before-breakfast appointment and rain hammered me along the bay.  A flock of big birds passed the bridge.  They might have been pelicans.  It had stopped when I returned and muted sunlight escaped through a thin patch of overcast.  I definitely saw pelicans at lunch. Enough leaves blew off the willow that I could see the dam outfall.

By time for my afternoon commitment immense individual clouds stretched in bands of rain with blue sky between so that I saw sunlight trees between strokes of the wiper blades  

Back home birds rushed to feed during a lull.  A titmouse, a pine warbler, and a Carolina wren joined the regulars.  A song sparrow foraged with the white throats.  As the light faded, I glimpsed a female bufflehead between dives. 

Leaf fall

K said this was the day and certainly there were lots of leaves floating down in the light rain.  Occasional gusts stirred the fallen and sometimes sent them back into the air.  A bufflehead drake passed by several times, on and in the creek.  The temperature rose into the 60s on the wet South wind. 

I counted four white throated sparrows. Downy woodpeckers hung from the bottom of the suet cage.  Finches and chickadees frequented the seed feeder.  The feral cat mesmerized a frozen white throat till I popped out of the door and yelled at it to stop hunting birds.