Orioles

Three orioles showed up at breakfast. A female had barkbutter while the male went straight to the jelly.  Then another female shoved him off the jelly.  A mockingbird also enjoyed the jelly.  Blue jays, bluebirds, and a brown thrasher wanted the mix of barkbutter and mealworms that K had restocked. So, alas, did a half dozen starlings.  Bluebirds seemed flustered  by the battling starlings and mostly stuck to seeds.  All the sparrows appeared to be white throats.  At lunchtime a pelican flew upstream.  

 

Overcast

Occasional sunshine and more frequent wind gusts punctuated a mostly overcast day.  I saw 78° on the thermometer again.  The pileated woodpeckers made repeated visits to the suet.  White throats polished off some barkbutter but there was plenty for a pale pine warbler.  

Daffodils were in full bloom, not just the dwarf clumps.  Other bulbs were sending up leaves.   A pelican flew upstream past the silent dredge equipment.  I noticed that the Argiope egg sack looked deflated so perhaps the spiderlings took advantage of the warm wind to spread out.  

The male red bellied woodpecker returned but spooked before he got any suet.  Then the female pileated showed up, so maybe that's why he left.  A cormorant paddled past the dredge barge.  Others flew to their roost under heavy clouds.  

 

Lamb-like weather

A little googling suggested that the proverb owed as much to constellations in the zodiac as to weather prediction.  However that may be, the month began with soft, warm air under a sunny sky.  Bluebirds made the feeder rounds.  White throats did too, and also foraged on the ground.  The song sparrow stayed on the ground.  A myrtle warbler wanted what was in the dish.  Another white throat took a bath in the pool puddle while a dove walked around the edge.  Starlings made repeated forays but spooked easily.  Blue jays were wary but got their share of barkbutter balls.  So did a white breasted nuthatch.  I saw a brown headed nuthatch but it was too quick.  A crow investigated.  

I refilled the glass dish.  A mockingbird must have been watching.  A couple of bufflehead drakes dived and a couple of pelicans flew over the creek.  A Carolina wren finally arrived.  Then a brown thrasher showed up.  Baltimore orioles visited.  Three female brown headed cowbirds picked over the mulch.  I think they wanted the stale popcorn.  More daffodils bloomed.  The temperature cooled as the day went on, there were some wind gusts, and clouds moved in.

All day rain

K left the jelly and barkbutter covered so the menu was reduced to seeds and suet.  The pileated pair were fine with that.  A Carolina wren, a myrtle and an orange crowned warbler also ate suet.  Bluebirds just left.  White throats picked through the dead, wet vegetation. I glimpsed a junco and a song sparrow as well.  The male red bellied woodpecker hung under the suet.  Pelicans and gulls flew past the dredging that returned to our section of the creek.  

Warmer

Again, a sunny morning was reflected in the placid creek, but later the day turned cloudy.  Blue jays and pine warblers got excited about the barkbutter balls.  White throats pursued breakfast everywhere.  A female oriole tried the suet.  Brown headed nuthatches sneaked past the other seed eaters.  Turkey vultures continued to circle over the creek.  A Carolina wren found crumbs in the barkbutter dish.  Three starlings were disappointed.  

At lunch, the female pileated demolished suet.  A mourning dove roamed the mulch.  A warbler and a wren had a stare-off over the suet.  Pelicans were thick - I saw three in the air at once.  After I refilled the barkbutter dish, a myrtle warbler had some.  Blue jays came back.  Bluebirds also showed up.  The red bellied woodpecker landed on the post but then froze as though sensing a predator.  The house finches on the seed feeder did the same.  

Hungry birds

At breakfast,I saw no evidence that any snow fell overnight, but K said I should have looked in the front yard.   Some fuzzy clouds floated in sunshine, but by 10am we had overcast.  The birds were glad to find all the feeders open.  Bluebirds went after the mealworm barkbutter mix but so did white throats, pine warblers, and Carolina wrens.  The pileated pair were only interested in suet.  The male evicted the female.  A bold (or hungry) downy tried to share with the red belly but the red belly decided on seeds.  Later he scared a warbler off the suet.  A song sparrow came a-foraging with the white throats.  Blue jays picked over the barkbutter balls.  

The great blackback gull was back.  A small flock of buffleheads paddled around the dock most of the day.  I spotted a female hoodie among them.  A handful of vultures kept circling over the water.  Several pelicans fished and one perched on a piling.  A ring bill gull flew by.

At lunch, the birds brightened the dull light.  A myrtle warbler joined its pine cousins.    First a white breasted nuthatch then a brown headed showed up.  Bluebirds, white throats,  and wrens returned.  I missed a shot at a male oriole but two females were more cooperative.  I could tell them apart because one was a darker orange than the other.  A mockingbird watched from across the pool patio but didn't come to eat.  A brown thrasher, however, dug right in.  

 

Real rain

Gusty wind from the North spotted and streaked the windows, making photography difficult.  The rain filled the ant moat to overflowing and gave a surprise shower to the red bellied woodpecker that landed hard on the suet.  A brown thrasher came for barkbutter or mealworms only to find the dish still covered against the rain.  The same happened to a white throat.  Pelicans and gulls passed over the creek.  Some finches hid out by a corner window.  The seed feeder overhang sheltered a downy and a bluebird.  

Bird buffet

Morning began with a pileated woodpecker and blue jays.  Three starlings visited but were unsatisfied and didn't stay.  A white throat pecked at the residue in the barkbutter dish.  A Carolina wren got inside the dish.  Meanwhile a goldfinch landed on the suet with a pine warbler.  The goldfinch must have realized its mistake and joined the house finches for seeds.  House finches are bigger.  

The overcast sky developed blue rents.  A pair of buffleheads drifted on the creek.   Lots of little birds use the azalea by the side window as a launchpad for the feeders, but it is very hard to get photos of them.   White breasted and brown headed nuthatches picked out seeds.  I refilled the glass dish with a mix of mealworms and barkbutter balls.  The pine warbler was pleased.  A downy sampled the suet.  The song sparrow found what I dropped (deliberately).  Bluebirds noticed that the dish was refilled.  The female oriole had jelly and a drink.  

Pelicans and gulls were very busy on the creek but the only ducks I saw were the bufflehead pair and another female.  A great blue heron stalked along our shoreline.  By then the sky had cleared but the light was going.  

Waterfowl

A wren dug into the seeds for breakfast.  So did a downy. I saw a goldfinch, but it got away.   A brown headed nuthatch also collected seeds.  K put our a fresh block of suet and the warblers found it.  The clouds lifted as time passed. At high tide, I spotted the orange cat perched on a stump at the water's edge.  

Pelicans fished along our stretch of the creek.  A variety of gulls fished too - herring, ring bill, and black back.  The sight of a great black back gull with a fish attracted a young pelican still in brown plumage.  A great egret flew upstream.  A cormorant photo-bombed a picture of a gull.  I saw another red breasted merganser.  A great blue heron stood watch below the dam. A mallard pair paddled across the water.  A female bufflehead dived.  

Very gray

Overnight rain continued into the morning and gradually became mist.  The temperature slowly dropped all day.  A flurry of birds arrived early but found nothing but seeds.  Even the suet was gone to the consternation of downy, red bellied and pileated woodpeckers.  I saw pelicans and a bufflehead on the creek.  A white breasted nuthatch was content with seeds.  Three juncos also ate seeds.  So did bluebirds.  Sparrows and warblers foraged on the ground.  A mockingbird gave up.  

At lunch, a Carolina wren settled for seeds.    By late afternoon the mist was becoming fog.  A pair of buffleheads were the lone occupants of the creek.  

Fog

Happy Lunar New Year and Mardi Gras.  At breakfast a light fog grayed the distant pines. It didn't seem to trouble the pelicans flying low over the creek.  Gulls, too, were fishing.  The committee of vultures took to the trees.  The two mourning doves returned.  Downy and red bellied woodpeckers came for the feeders.  So did a wren, a pine and a myrtle warbler, a brown headed nuthatch and starlings.  Blue jays flew past but returned for breakfast.

The sun finally got through at 10am.  Then a junco appeared on the seed feeder.  Where was it during the bird count?  Bluebirds enjoyed the sunshine.  A goldfinch also wanted seeds.  The pelicans kept on fishing, apparently with success judging by the splashdowns.  Cormorants had the same idea.  

 

Gray

We held off on the open dish feeders in case the rain was not finished.  That was just as well since starlings investigated the menu.  The towhee returned for breakfast.  I saw what I think were bufflehead drakes.  Pelicans flew by all day and the dredge apparently observed the holiday.   The red belly ate both seeds and suet but the downy only wanted suet.  Nuthatches came earlier than usual, both kinds.  I also counted a blue jay, a mockingbird, a pair of bluebirds, two kinds of warbler, and a wren before 8:30am.  Later in the morning there were titmice and the song sparrow.  Except for a crow, the lunchtime birds were repeats even though they now had jelly and barkbutter balls.  The temperature only rose a couple of degrees from just under 40 to just over. Plus, the wind was gusty.  I was glad to be inside to finish the GBBC.  I did twelve checklists and counted 37 species, one of which was new.  This year I posted more photos too.  

 

Rainy

Morning was overcast and drizzle began before lunch.  I submitted three more bird counts.  The first was unsatisfactory, I felt, only 15 birds.  The mockingbird, song sparrow, wren, and pine warbler made me happy.  I did another short count mid morning when I picked up bluebirds, the red bellied woodpecker and a pelican.  

After lunch, drizzle turned to rain.  Despite that, and the hawk that swooped past the feeders, I saw more birds and more species.  The towhee came back.  The male oriole put in a brief appearance.  Nuthatches made it out of bed.  But the weather was dreary without making much of a dent in the drought. 

Robins

There was a light frost and a skin of ice on the creek at first, but the sun quickly warmed everything.  A little flock of robins landed to drink from the pool puddle.  I was not surprised they were thirsty because there's been no rain this month and very little in January.  A different flock squabbled in the back yard across the creek.  It looked to me like one vulture had something that the others wanted.  They spread out their wings and danced around like boxers.  I saw one with a black head and several with red heads.  An eagle swooped past and kept going.  

At the feeders we had a red belly, a blue jay, a Carolina wren, a mockingbird, a bluebird, a pair of orioles, a pine and a myrtle warbler.  On the ground, the song sparrow joined the white throats.  A crow promenaded past the door.   The blue jay scolded me for letting the barkbutter balls run low.  

A brown headed nuthatch showed up for lunch.  Most of the breakfast birds returned.  I also saw through the trees an egret and a pelican and a duck I couldn't identify.   That made me decide to do a third bird count from a window with a better view of the creek.  I was rewarded with a bufflehead, a pair of hooded mergansers, and a red breasted merganser.  Pelicans were easier to photograph and I could identify the gulls.  One was a ringed bill and another was a great black backed gull.  At least four cormorants were fishing or drying out.  

I finally succeeded in accessing eBird on the laptop and using Merlin on the phone. 

A committee of vultures

A little rain dotted the windows in the morning.  A flock of seven black and turkey vultures  landed in the back yard, wandered around, and drank from the pool puddle.  I was surprised to see they have white legs.  All this was closely observed by a great blue heron, maybe the one that chases away other herons.  Meanwhile pelicans flew over the creek watching for fish.  

Because of the rain, we left the dishes covered which frustrated the bluebirds.  The wren shared suet with a downy.  A bluebird moved on to the seed feeder so the wren did too.  White throats  and a song sparrow just stayed on the ground.  A myrtle warbler poked around the defunct watering can.  A white breasted nuthatch shared the seed feeder with a myrtle warbler.  Then a titmouse wanted seeds.  A bedraggled pine warbler aimed for suet but a wren was already eating.  The warbler grieved over the covered barkbutter and mealworms.  It finally got some suet.  

The sky cleared at mid day and I uncovered the dish feeders.  A brown thrasher soon showed up.  Bluebirds followed, then white throats.  Across the creek, a heron was on watch.  I ran around on errands after lunch.  I saw people in shirtsleeves, the day was so warm.  

Frigid

We had a very cold, windy night below 20° and windy enough to prevent the creek from icing.  I wonder if I've lost any plants to this abnormally cold couple of weeks.  I read that a high over Greenland was blocking circumpolar winds and pushing them South.  Small birds need a lot of food in this weather.  Bluebirds arrived very early.  The female oriole was close behind.  A turkey vulture perched on the dock piling.  With no feathers on their heads, I wonder if they get frostbite?  I guess it was our day for big black birds - a crow foraged under the seed feeder.  Blue jays (also corvids even if not black) preferred barkbutter balls.  

A mockingbird came next, then a male oriole.  The female demanded another turn at the BBBalls so the male went for jelly.  Well, the female hustled over and evicted him.  She took her sweet time while he waited.  Meanwhile, the aggressive butterbutt kept ambushing other warblers and chasing them all over the yard.  And while it wasted energy, bigger birds ate their fill.  A brown thrasher took over the barkbutter feeder.  A Carolina wren finally showed up at the feeders, followed by a white breasted nuthatch, then a mockingbird, then a white throated sparrow.  

Across the creek, a great blue heron rested on the new bulkhead.  Dirt covered the yard behind the bulkhead and I noticed scrapes on the trees.  A herring gull found something in the water and a mallard drake had to investigate.  A crow watched from the dock.  I got a couple of glimpses of an eagle.  Like the eagle, pelicans were always behind twigs that threw the camera focus off.  A downy pecked at the suet.  I spotted a pine warbler up in the redwood, probably avoiding the mad butterbutt.  The male red belly had some seeds.  I noticed the sweet gum balls were sparse this year which might explain the house finch squabbling at the seed feeder.  Sunshine warmed the day up to 30°.  The orioles and warblers emptied the jelly dish.  K refilled the barkbutter dish several times.  

Temperature dropping

A dusting of snow lay on the concrete, evidence that the ground was frozen.  Wind whipped the trees and passing clouds made the sunlight blink.  The birds went through a lot of food.  A Carolina wren woke up hungry.  Then a titmouse came for seeds.  White throats foraged in the frozen mulch.  Three bluebirds watched from the wild cherry.  

Out on the creek, I saw herring gulls and a hoodie drake.  A handful of buffleheads flew downstream and a pelican flew upstream and landed on the dock.  Of course there were mallards.  A great blue heron strutted by with its catch.  

The red bellied woodpecker joined us for lunch.   Bluebirds and white throats appreciated the barkbutter refill.  A mockingbird lurked in a dogwood, seeming upset at the competition.  Then a male Baltimore oriole brightened the jelly dish.  A blue jay drank from the pool puddle.  That water is the last to freeze.  A white breasted nuthatch ate barkbutter balls.  The female oriole showed up and made the male wait for jelly.  Two orioles and several warblers consume it fast.  A myrtle warbler wasted energy chasing other warblers away from food.  

 

Undertakers' converntion

The red bellied woodpecker was up early for suet.  Out on the creek, herring and ring bill gulls were fishing along with one bufflehead drake.  Pelicans flew over and the resident GBH chased another away.  Bluebirds ate seeds while a white throat complained that the barkbutter dish was empty.  Myrtle warblers got aggressive.  Clouds moved in.  A flock of vultures settled in the trees.  Bluebirds ignored them because I had refilled the dish.  Carolina wrens were pleased too.  A white breasted nuthatch ate seeds. The downy ate suet.  

Really cold

The temperature was 22° when I got up and rose all the way to 24° during the day.  The gusty wind must have driven the chill down into the teens.  Occasional sunlight broke through the overcast.  The red belly was up early, soon followed by the oriole.  The oriole was not willing to share with bluebirds.  Eventually she left and I counted four bluebirds.  Warblers and white throats hunted breakfast.  A white breasted nuthatch, then brown headed nuthatches, visited.  A Carolina wren poked that long beak into dead vegetation.  Blue jays noticed the barkbutter balls.  K refilled the glass dish twice.   A white throat tried to get possession of the dish but neither a bluebird nor the oriole was intimidated.  A chickadee walked down the pine trunk.

At lunch, white throats, nuthatches, titmice, wrens, and red belly were all still eating.  A flock of a dozen or more hoodies, mostly drakes, fished on the creek. I had been afraid the dredging might have scared them off for the Winter, but today the equipment was docked.   There may have been more females but they blended in with the water.  A pelican fly-by was blurred by tree branches.  A cormorant popped up out of the cold, gray water with a fish.  A half dozen egrets flew away.  A couple of buffleheads hung out with the hoodies.  Of course there were mallards.  They intercepted the cormorant but it dived.  Bu then the light was very poor.  

The snow began around 10pm.   

Birds stuffing themselves

You would have thought there was a storm coming* the way birds were stuffing their faces, um crops, today.  I was gone all morning but they were hungry at breakfast and still eating at lunch.  Bluebirds could not stay away from the barkbutter dish.  Brown headed nuthatches only wanted seeds.  The Carolina wren would try anything.  The white throats wanted food to fall down to them.  A butterbutt stared at the door as though that would make more food appear. The red bellied woodpecker diminished the block of suet.  A pine warbler was happy with mealworms

 Both wrens came for lunch.  A couple of pine warblers disputed possession of the suet.  The day was mostly cloudy but the sky cleared occasionally so we had some sun.  It lit up a pine warbler.  Then a bluebird frustrated another warbler.  Nuthatches persisted.  A white throat tired of waiting and got up on the dish.  Titmice were willing to eat everything.  The oriole wanted jelly.  Bluebirds stared down a house finch.  Two butterbutts watched for an opportunity to get a meal.  I saw but didn't get a picture of a downy woodpecker and a brown pelican.   Clouds pinked at sunset.  

*Winter Storm Fern, of all silly names!