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.

Happy Birdday

The last time lots of birds showed up on a quiet, gray day, a friend suggested I call it that.  And since this followed my birthday, why not. I was up early and saw cormorants fishing and a GBH lurking. 

Up on the patio songbirds began to assemble.  Downy woodpeckers, titmice, and a Carolina wren each sought their preferred food.  A flock of robins darted around in the trees but didn't come close.  Then the cat showed up, but gave up quickly and moved on.  Unfortunately, so did the birds.

After a while, Juncos popped up.  A couple of pine warblers ate and argued.  At lunchtime the can came back but this time the birds didn't seem to notice.  Perhaps it was the number  of birds, but something made them testy.  They mostly refused to share and the house finches got into a fight.  The oriole came out for a moment but found it all too much. 

A female bufflehead paddled upstream  Surprisingly, I saw a few yellow jackets around the camellia.  Then the blue birds arrived, but why I don't know because they only watched. 

A red bellied wood pecker took a turn at the suet until he was kicked of by  a downy half his size.  The final visitor I saw was a song sparrow.  It reminded me that I had not seen any white throats

Colder

A pine and an orange crowned warbler breakfasted on suet before they were startled off.  The downy woodpeckers soon arrived.  I saw a Carolina wren on the bark butter feeder.  A hooded merganser drake paddled upstream through choppy water.

In the afternoon, I blamed the feral cat for keeping the birds away till a hawk whooshed across the yard.  I couldn't see it where it landed up in a neighbor's pine, but a crow found it.  The crow called all kind of names while barnstorming with hovers and dives and rolls in midair. Finally the hawk lumbered into the air and flew away, still with the tree between me and it.  It left an impression of large size and a creamy underside so I'm guessing red tailed.

After that the pine warbler and the chickadees showed up.  The cat sauntered off after a scratch-stretch on the cedar tree.  Mallards, geese, and cormorants paddled on the gilded water.  Yesterday's wind stripped the maple but the dogwoods and even the neighbors' birch trees still had leaves.  Like the oak, the blueberry bushes finally turned color.  It was too cold for insects. 

Windy sunset

Mallards disturbed the creek's surface at breakfast.  Downy woodpeckers were back for more suet. The regulars had seeds and white throats picked up what they could find.   Leaves continued to fall and even the oak turned color. 

We celebrated the day with a sort of paella which was delicious.  Afterward, a Baltimore oriole helped himself to bark butter balls.  The wind got fierce about the time we started work repotting the vines on the front patio trellis.  I thought that would be a sheltered nook, but it was very chilly.  Thanks to K, we got it done before sunset.  I hope they survive.

Cormorants flapped madly to get home against the wind.  I thought I saw a pelican but I'm not sure.  So I went down to the dock to see if anything else would fly over.  Canada geese and mallards were out on the water but I didn't see any birds flying.  The sunset was so spectacular I forgot everything else.  And it was very cold. 

Raining leaves

The overcast sky began to rain about mid morning. There wasn't much wind but leaves kept drifting down. 

I saw a Carolina wren on the bark butter. Downy woodpeckers and white throated sparrows came for lunch.  Several herons and a pelican flew over the creek.  Crows chased a hawk. 

The rain stopped in the afternoon and surfaces began to dry though the sky stayed overcast.  Sunset finally lit them from beneath.

Sunshine

It was a pretty day and quite warm, but I was up early for two morning meetings and then several long calls.  So I didn't see or do much.  I saw only the regulars at the feeders.  Wasps were flying around the camellias.  Turtles were taking their ease on a log. 

A downy woodpecker sneaked up on the suet.  White throated sparrows foraged for fallen seeds.  As the light was failing, I noticed a kingfisher on a dock piling.

Warm sun

The placid creek reflected sunshine from the trees on the far side.  Since this was the dark of the moon, low tide was quite low.  Buffleheads, mallards, and geese disturbed the reflections.  When buffleheads preen their bubblegum-pink legs come out of the water. 

Songbirds seemed to be taking it easy.  Cardinals were the first to arrive. White throats kicked some mulch to uncover breakfast.  In the afternoon, I noticed a Carolina wren working its way up a pine trunk.  Something dropped a periwinkle by the pool.  The shell looked inhabited so I threw it as close to the water as I could get.

A squirrel with "chipmunk cheeks" was tucked in on a sunny branch.  Turtles basked in the sun on the lake.  Wasps were active, especially yellow jackets around the camellia.  A yellow kneed wasp tried to get into the outdoor grill.  I found some blooming witchhazel though I didn't see any pollinators there.  The black eyed susan was still in flower, and making seeds.  Leaves continued to drift down though the breeze was light. 

Sunset left a warm afterglow, but it wasn't even five o'clock.  And there's still a month to the solstice.

West wind

Enough rain fell last night to fill the birdbath and drown the bark butter.  A song sparrow and a white throated sparrow foraged in the mulch at breakfast but there wasn't enough light.  The wind kept feeder birds to a minimum.  Also there were predators.  

A gust of wind sent a cloud of leaves swirling around the feral cat.  It had been sitting in the sun on the pool cover and I was getting ready to take a photo when the wind blew it away.  Later a hawk lumbered off over the yard headed for Saw Pen Point.

I saw great blue herons flying over the creek and mallards and geese feeding in the water.  A little flock of hoodies paddled upstream. Some insects battled the wind to get to the camellia flowers and one looked like it spent the night. 

Orioles!

There was some sun at breakfast and it illuminated an egret in flight. Feeder birds were slow to arrive.  But by lunchtime they, too, were hungry.  So much was going on that I just kept watching.  A junco came and went quickly and a blue jay made off with a bark butter ball but I think everyone else paid for their food with a photo.  Pine warblers tussled over the suet.  This upset the downy woodpecker who "owns" the suet.  At least one of the warblers was an orange crowned.

A squirrel sat to eat a pecan right in front of me.  Well, I was indoors.  But I went outside to admire the Fall colors.  The dogwoods and cherries and the red maple have been spectacular this year.   The sweet gum was catching up.  And the hickories were more bronze than brown.  Another squirrel appeared to have tangled with something that took the fur off its flank. 

The bluebird clan hung out in the treetops for a while.  Titmice got bolder about having a fair share at the feeders.  The male red bellied woodpecker arrived and the downy cleared out.  But  the red bellied seemed much more anxious.  Both species sneak up on the suet as though it might run away.  

Both a male and a female oriole visited, but not together.  A song sparrow popped up in the mulch.  The Carolina wren had a go at the suet.  White throats worked in the mulch. 

Buffleheads and mallards appeared to be finding plenty to eat.  I glimpsed one female bufflehead but saw mostly drakes.  Cormorants were fishing too.  The air grew still and the creek flattened in the afternoon. Then the light began to fail and by 3:30pm rain was falling.  Night followed all too soon.

Cloudy

In the morning, nothing was stirring but the wind which roughened the creek and brought flickers of sunlight.  At lunch, I saw a few pollinators on the camellia.  Titmice sampled the suet.  A Carolina wren wondered where the bark butter had gone.  (I was washing the dish.)  The male downy woodpecker also had a go at the suet. 

In the afternoon, I could see a couple of turtles basking.  Mallards and geese had the creek to themselves.  The oak was lagging behind the other trees that had turned fall colors.  Even the Virginia creeper on its trunk was already red. 

When I went out to the kitchen, a fox sparrow was drinking from the birdbath.  I only saw a fox sparrow on one other occasion when one had stunned itself on a front window.  This one seemed to get along with the white throated sparrows, but not with a squirrel.  It hopped into the rose thicket and so did a white throat. About then a pine warbler began to work on the suet.  The last picture of the day showed the same sheet of gray stratus cloud cover as my first.

Lovely Fall day

Birds were eager for breakfast but I think some of the migrants kept moving South because they did not reappear.  A pine warbler remained but was bullied by the titmice.  A blue jay found something beyond the far edge of the patio.

White throated sparrows were back for fallen seeds and downy woodpeckers for suet.  A curious mockingbird watched from the step railing. 

I saw only mallards and cormorants on the creek. Turtles were basking on a snag in the lake.  Stratus clouds slid across the sky to make a streaky sunset, but I was in a meeting and could only watch through a window. 

Bird flurries

Sunshine, at last, brought out the birds, residents and migrants.  I saw the first juncos of the season, and the first bufflehead.  A mixed flock that joined the usual feeder birds included robins and a bluebird.  There were at least three titmice, white throated sparrows, a yellow rumped warbler, and a downy woodpecker. A blue jay watched from a distance. 

The feral cat also wanted to watch, so that ended the party.  The cat has learned how to turn the pool cover into a drink dispenser.  It licked at the cover while its weight caused the cover to dip into the water below.

Misty

It was misty all day and overcast, but the wind was finally gone.  In the morning I surprised a lot of birds everywhere.  A yellow rumped warbler was in the camellia. A red-bellied woodpecker was eating suet. 

We went to a farm South of Pungo for a meeting.  I took the camera just in case, and we saw the harrier again, but there was a car behind me and no shoulder on the two-lane road.  The sky down there had begun to clear but the overcast was solid when we returned to civilization. A downywoodpecker had taken over the suet. 

Dark day

Tide was high in the morning.  Birds were scarce.  When I got home the cat was stalking a squirrel.  It was too dark for photos at 4pm. 

Still blowing

I saw a few hoodies on the creek before the water got too high.  I've noticed they like low tide that makes it easier to trap fish.  The light was poor and rain fell earlier than predicted.  The downy woodpeckers again competed for suet.   The male got the first turn, but the female insisted it be short. 

Eyebrows were in fashion as white throated sparrows and a Carolina wren foraged.  Chickadees and cardinals kept to the sunflower seeds. 

After lunch, the song sparrow joined the foragers.  It too has eyebrows. 

A pine warbler and a Carolina wren took opposite sides of the suet.  I can't figure out why the downy pair don't do that.  Soon the dark day slipped into an early night

Gale!

The wind-driven tide flooded parts of Hampton Roads. A High Wind Warning was issued through Sunday and coastal flooding into Monday.  Traffic on the CBBT was restricted according to a sign I saw on the way home.  A light mist collected on the windshield.  WaPo had a nice diagram of the storm.

A downy woodpecker, titmice, and a couple of white throated sparrows wanted breakfast. 

Afterward, I looked across at the lake where a half dozen egrets and cormorants were sheltering from the wind.  Down on the creek (not very far down with the height of the tide), hoodies hugged the bulkhead where the wind had less force.  One male had to do the hoodie strut, but the low light ruined my picture.  I counted nine drakes and only five females, but others might have been under water. 

The parking lot at the Larchmont Library was half flooded.  I was puzzled because it didn't seem to be overwash from the wetland, but when I left, I saw a storm sewer manhole cover leaking onto the street.  So the tide backed up the pipes. 

As we ate lunch, a red-winged blackbird joined the feeder crowd, but he didn't eat anything.  A Carolina wren  perched on the bench with too much foliage in the way of the camera.  But the foliage was taking a beating, both from the wind and the frost a day ago.

Rain

Cold, gray, and wet, it was just a wretched day.  The birds were hungry. Downy woodpeckers argued about the suet.  Song and white throated sparrows wanted fast food.  Titmice and chickadees dashed to the seeds and back to shelter. 

White sky

Hazy streaks turned into a thin glaze that later became a white overcast. The creek was full of morning reflections.  Some of them were a hooded merganser.

The woodpeckers found the suet, first a downy pair, then a male red-bellied.  Startled while foraging, a white throated sparrow took refuge in the rosebush.  The song sparrow also hunted for fallen seeds.  House finches discussed precedence on the seed feeder. Titmice wanted turns too.   A bluebird wanted to know if there was anything good to eat.  But a couple of blue jays rushed ahead.  Much later, a couple of pine warblers argued about the suet.  I spotted a mockingbird in the wild cherry.  Then a flock of robins arrived. 

The feral cat seemed to find the pool cover comfortable.  We speculated that it was warmer.  After a snooze it became an intent bird watcher. 

A great blue heron perched on a piling across the creek.  From there it sallied forth to harass cormorants.

Brrrrrr

A light frost rimed the mulch and the birdbath was frozen.   A dark morning with an occasional stray fragment of a snowflake gave way to bright sunshine that never warmed the air beyond the 30s.

 A downy woodpecker found the suet. Titmice joined the feeder gang.  Then the cat showed up. 

A crow perched on a piling at the neighbors' dock.  A great blue heron flew downstream. At least half a dozen hoodies cavorted on the creek as the shadows grew long.  The low angle sunlight gilded the ducks which wasn't good for photos. It seemed at times like they were swimming in rings as though herding fish.  Sometimes there was a commotion in the water with no visible cause.  The tide was out so any fish would have had less space to escape. 

"Siberian" cold front

Apparently the Arctic winds blew the hooded mergansers into town.  Two pairs showed up at breakfast.  Cormorants were out fishing.  The lost kayak paddle coasted past again.  Crows posed atop the pine as an ill omen. 

Then we had an all day rain and drizzle with the temperature sliding down and the dark closing in by 5 o'clock.  The rain finally stopped by 8pm and the cloud cover seemed to be breaking up as it reflected urban light pollution. 

The feral cat hung around under the cedar for a while at lunch time.  But the birds were too hungry to stay away from the feeder for long.  Cardinals, chickadees, and titmice competed for sunflower seeds.  On the ground a white throated sparrow hunted for what they dropped.  Despite the low light and rain streaks, I took quite a few pictures. 

Hazy

Placid water reflected a sky full of contrails.  Titmice were again darting in for sunflower seeds, but one took a bark butter ball.  The female cardinal reappeared.  A Carolina wren investigated the bark butter ball dish.  The song sparrow came out in the daylight. Night fell quickly - the jump back from Daylight Savings Time made the day seem very short.  The almost full moon was bright. 

Birds and bees

At breakfast time, the creek was quite rumpled under a hazy blue sky.  The day began chilly but warmed enough to bring out insects. The camellia attracted the bees, but I also saw a paper wasp and large moth or small butterfly. The little jumping spider was still on the railing, but definitely alive. 

When we got home, several titmice were crowding the chickadees at the feeder.  But by the time my hands were free house finches had taken over.  Two butterbutts got into a fuss.  They were the only migrants.  A pine warbler found the bark butter balls, but I think it is a permanent resident. 

Though I kept an eye out for migrant ducks, I only saw mallards.  A great blue heron occupied the channel marker.  The male kingfisher perched on a neighbor's dock piling. 

I moved the suet back to its usual winter location which flummoxed a downy woodpecker that had tracked it down to the new spot.  The suet looked like it was getting moldy from lack of sunlight or maybe air circulation.  I also cut away most of the damaged mountain mint that got infested with spider mites.  I wish I had figured out that they were what was plaguing the rosemary all those years but it wasn't till they moved over to the mountain mint that I could see what it was.  Ironically, rosemary oil is supposed to deter them. 

At dusk, the song sparrow reappeared to forage under the seed feeder.  When a squirrel startled it, the bird took refuge in the thorny rose canes.  The camera struggled with the low light.

Bright cold

A sleepy dove stretched by the birdbath at breakfast.  Other birds must have been even sleepier because there was little feeder activity.  The sun shone and the wind was less gusty but the air was cold.  Time to bring in potted plants.

At sunset, the feral cat was all curled up next to the pool cover.  By then the air was still and the creek surface unruffled.  Thin cloud streaks in the South tinted briefly.  The moon was still behind the trees.

Cold gale

Clouds were flying South all day, some fluffy cotton, some dark and heavy.  The wind at ground level was very gusty, churning water, thrashing trees, and scooping up fallen leaves. A murmuration of blackbirds landed in the trees, then took off and swirled above the creek. 

After lunch, a Carolina wren checked out the bark butter dish.  I spotted the first yellow rumped warbler of the season.  Finches and chickadees took over the sunflower seeds.  Squirrels were busy hunting food on the ground.  

Geese were finding something in the water in front of our yard.  An egret labored to fly North into the wind.  On the  creek, cormorants herded another school of fish.  A young cormorant shared the deadfall on the lake with a mallard pair. 

Warm sun

 The creek was back to its smooth morning surface.  Clouds were few and small.  Warmth brought pollinators to the camellia - honeybees, yellow jackets, and the first long-tailed skipper Urbanus proteus I've ever seen!  It only had one tail left. It may have been Dorantes Longtail instead, but either way a first.  Range didn't help as neither belongs this far North.  The difference to look for is a blue-green tint to the head and back. 

 A tiny jumping spider sat on the railing of the steps. Clusters of green cones hung on the dawn redwood, revealed as its needles blew away. 

A pair of Carolina wrens visited the bark butter.  And a mourning dove drank art the birdbath.  Cormorants held a fish drive around 2pm.

Clear sky

I awoke to bright sun and a chilly North wind that made the creek choppy. When I went out to dump the soggy bark butter balls, a leaf footed bug dropped from the top of the doorway where it had secreted itself, perhaps for warmth.  I persuaded it to go outside.

After lunch I walked around the yard.  There were some insects, flies and yellow jackets mostly.  The forsythia was deceived into flowering and the zinnia, black eyed susan, and one daisy were still blooming, along with the rose.  I pulled up the big fungus under the oak to get a look at its spore side.   As I expected, it was a polypore spreading from two quite thick stalks.  Ir looked a bit moldy so I left it in the sun. 

A house finch was perfectly camouflaged by red dogwood leaves, but the twigs' motion as the finch tugged at berries gave it away.

When we got home in the late afternoon, a mockingbird argued with me as I swept leaves out of the garage.  It had quite a repertoire of buzzes and clicks and other unmusical sounds.  But it didn't stay for a portrait. The lantana put out a late blossom.

The wind had dropped and the creek reflected turning leaves.  A cormorant and a great blue heron perched on snags in the lake, but there wasn't enough light.  While I'm grateful for the extra morning sleep, twilight comes far too early after the return to standard time. 

Rain

The morning rain did not dampen voter turnout. The skies slowly cleared in the afternoon.  After dark there was some fog near the water.  The haloed moon passed through belts of high ice clouds. 

Hazy

The sky between wispy clouds was a faded blue.  I felt kind of hazy, myself, and out of sync with the time change.  The haze produced a sundog at the tip of a contrail.


I heard a distant train whistle, a barking dog, but few birds.  Some gnats or other tiny flies were in the air but I didn't see anything larger.

Farewell daylight (savings)

The day was sunny but cool.  Apparently birds were hungry enough to ignore the feral cat which nearly caught a house finch.  Titmice joined the feeder crowd.  A female cardinal booted a finch off the feeder. 

Both downy and red bellied woodpeckers were looking for a meal.  A female downy checked every place I've ever hung the suet, just in case.  A blue jay streaked across the yard.

A starling and a mockingbird gobbled dogwood berries.

Song sparrow

I was gone most of the day but got home in time to enjoy a solitary song sparrow that poked around under the seed feeder.  It had been a long time since I'd seen one.  I think the resident bird must have died.  The one today looked very spiffy in many shades of brown and round as a baseball.  I hope it decides to settle here year around. 

A male downy woodpecker ate some suet but there was foliage in the way of the camera. A male squirrel feasted on fallen dogwood berries on the pool cover.  His face was stained with berry juice. 

Flock of bluebirds

 Overnight, we went from record-setting heat to crisp, sunny Fall.  A yellow jacket paused to sunbathe on a cherry leaf.  I got a quick shot of an eagle. 

Toward evening, little birds were flying back ant forth, trying out different treetop perches.  When I used the camera as a telescope, it revealed that they were mostly bluebirds and a few house finches. There was still a breeze but the creek surface was glassy. 

Hot Halloween

The temperature got up to 80° in the afternoon but it was very windy.  K spotted a caterpillar on the patio.  My best guess of its identity is large yellow underwing, an invasive pest.  I saw a cloudless sulphur cross the yard.  A  little black moth rested on the front door.  But the wind kept birds out on sight, except for the feeder regulars. 

Ho-hum

The day was much like yesterday, overcast with random gusts of wind.  During lunch, a couple of woodpeckers flew to the dogwood and out of sight.  In the afternoon, I saw the male kingfisher on a piling.  But the only picture I got was blurred by low light and foreground foliage that threw the focus off.  Little birds flitted among the branches in the oak  canopy.  I couldn't identify them, but they might have been the titmice that showed up at the feeder later. A blue jay shot up from somewhere in the front yard when we left.  And of course the cat came back. 

Dull day

The feral cat was back at breakfast.  And so the birds were not.  The cat sat on part of the cover that was over the water.  Maybe that was warmer?  And the cat returned at supper, this time on the concrete.

An interesting crane fly hugged the wall out  of the wind.  Despite the gray sky and chilly wind, flowers were blooming.  A lost kayak paddle bobbed on the creek.  A Carolina wren briefly inspected the mealworms I had put out, but left without eating. We decided where to plant the two pots of milkweed.  K wanted a rosebush moved.

First white throat

The morning's blue sky filled with fuzzy-edged cumulus.  It was still windy and a lot cooler and drier.The tide ran high in the morning in response to the dark of the moon.

After lunch I spotted the first white throated sparrow of the season.  Crows were having a fit over what I suspect was the coopers hawk I saw yesterday. 

I picked the hibiscus pod in order to save the seeds.  Two bugs were also in the pod.   A winged ant wandered around the patio. By mid afternoon the cloud cover was complete. 

Steamy

The day was hot and humid with intermittent drizzle and occasional flickers of sun until mid afternoon, then the torrent struck.  Fierce gusts of wind accompanied the downpour.  Afterward, there was some sunlight but the air dripped with moisture. The warmth brought pollinators to the camellia.  I saw a bumblebee and a paper wasp.  A rosebud started.

At lunch time, a dove looked around under the feeder.  Then a coopers hawk shot across the yard and caught a songbird with a yellow breast.  Everything was very quiet for some time afterward.  A squirrel watched the whole thing then made a very cautious departure.

Clouds

Yesterday was overcast and all I saw was squirrels.  And after dark, little moths on the window.

The clouds at dawn today were gilded with sunlight.  The creek was as glassy as yesterday, but the reflections were dazzling, not muted.

There was plenty of sunshine.  The drier air sent the saltbush fluff flying like snow, but it was impossible to photograph.

I found a little glass snail on the patio.  When I came close to the covered steps I heard something plop into the water.  I hop whatever it was could get out again.  A queen yellow jacket buzzed around and I glimpsed something that flew like a dragonfly. 

Cat kill

The wretched feral cat caught a female cardinal under the feeder.  I didn't see it coming any more than the poor bird. 

Titmice wanted sunflower seeds.  I saw someone fishing from a boat on the lake. 

Clear skies

The waning moon was a morning crescent.  Titmice joined the feeder crew.  Seed fluff from the saltbush filled the air.  It was a lovely day.

I think I saw a phoebe.  A downy woodpecker found the suet.  Gulls circled high over the creek.  House finches found something they liked on the lower patio.