I missed a day. Actually, I took so many pictures that I didn't want to deal with them. But Friday began with the cat birdwatching. A brown headed nuthatch ignored the feral feline and eventually it gave up. The sun was out by lunchtime. It lit up a bluebird and a pine warbler, neither of which looked at the camera. A starling came for suet. A mockingbird looked surprised. Then a male oriole arrived. (The camera kept focusing on the background instead of the bright orange bird.)
The male pileated woodpecker was next. I got some nice closeups. A bluebird and a house finch watched. The smaller birds act very intimidated by the pileateds but the pileated woodpeckers are far more wary of me. As soon as the pileated left, a downy moved in. A female oriole found the jelly on the table. The brown headed nuthatch came back.
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On Saturday, wind from the South brought cloud cover. The creek was calmer in the morning. A myrtle warbler wanted breakfast. So did an unusual looking junco that had tan sides. All About Birds says that's either an immature or female of the slate colored variety. (There are many varieties of dark eyed junco but only one in the Eastern US)
The male pileated woodpecker returned followed by the female. For a while she picked up crumbs he'd dropped but she clearly was not content. He pretended to be oblivious. Eventually she started climbing the post and he started down. They stared at each other, then he went back up to the suet. She flashed her wings and flew away.
While all this was going on, a white throated sparrow kicked over mulch. A bluebird checked to see if any crumbs were left. A blue jay got word that I'd put out barkbutter balls. A mockingbird investigated the jelly.
After lunch, I saw a female bufflehead on the creek. A female oriole remembered the jelly. A bluebird watched from the dogwood while a male gathered nesting material. The pileateds returned and this time she got the suet. Then the wretched cat came back.
There have been lots of gulls fishing in the last couple of weeks, but fewer pelicans. I spotted a blue jay in a tree with its back to me. A brown thrasher perched at the top of a pine. A couple of cedar waxwings waited on bare cherry twigs, for what I wonder. A bluebird posed on the ornamental feeder hanger. A mockingbird landed on the shepherd's crook that holds the barkbutter. A white throated sparrow rested in the dogwood. The brown headed nuthatch made a foray to the sunflower seeds.
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