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.