2 wet gray days

I saw nothing yesterday.  Today wind gusts roughened the gray creek.  A downy, a titmouse, a goldfinch, a cardinal, and the mockingbird came anyway.  Seeds and suet were all that was available which disappointed the mockingbird. 

During a brief clearing mid morning birds and a squirrel rushed to get food.  I uncovered the barkbutter balls for the blue jays.  White throats foraged in the wet.  The squirrel got a drink from the brimming ant moat, and spilled it.  A pine warbler considered seeds and a Carolina wren suet.  It was very warm.  Then the rain came back harder and kept up for the rest of the day and into the night.  The cumulative amount of rainfall was in the Thursday newspaper, 2.57 inches. 

 

Gray

A great blue heron perched on a dock post.  The mockingbird came by at lunch.  White throats foraged.  A Carolina wren did not like the rain shower but it didn't last long.  A pine warbler observed that there was no barkbutter to eat.  Still, it brightened the gloom.  K moved the crops back out to take advantage of the warmth and free water.  In the afternoon a kingfisher took up the dock post.  

Warmer

Morning was not so cold but still windy.  Pelicans cruised over the ice-free creek at low tide. The feeders were quiet, then I noticed the black and white cat birdwatching.  After it gave up, songbirds began to appear.  Pine warblers started on the suet, soon joined by a chickadee.  The mockingbird went back to the jelly.  A white breasted nuthatch braved a cardinal for a seed.  A squirrel scrambled after hackberries.  A Carolina wren investigated the window.  White throats looked for spilled food. 

At lunch the temperature rose above 60°!  A mockingbird stared into the window.  A squirrel sat on the feeder roof and scrubbed its face.  It got a drink from the ant moat and showed it could cling to the post with only hind feet. 

Creek ice

Dawn was COLD.  The tide was out and a matte skin reached almost to the bulkhead.  Fortunately there were some barkbutter balls left from yesterday to help the blue jays warm up.  The mockingbird was upset that the ant moat was frozen.  A Carolina wren headed right to the suet.  White throats foraged below the feeders.  Crows stayed in the trees.  Even at noon there was still ice but the water got rougher and swept it away.  

An orange crowned warbler visited the suet.  Nuthatches, brown headed and white breasted came for seeds.  The female red bellied woodpecker had some seeds too.  After the ant moat melted, the female oriole came for a drink.  The Carolina wren peered through the window at me.  The orange crowned warbler found the jelly but the pine warbler stayed loyal to barkbutter and suet.  Cardinals, chickadees, and downy woodpeckers were present throughout the day.  

 

Red bellied woodpecker

The trees were still when I got up but soon the wind shook them and threw leaves at the windows.  The temperature read 32° and the tide was very low -- below the barnacles.  (There was no frost.  Yesterday's humidity was down in the 20s!)   The mockingbird headed straight to the ant moat as there wasn't any water left in the birdbath.  White throats danced around it hoping to kick up a seed.  A very plumped-out bluebird surveyed the scene while a pine warbler pecked at the suet.  Then bluebird and warbler shared seeds.  

The barkbutter dish held nothing but some oats.  A Carolina wren made do with suet.  At lunch time the mockingbird feasted on jelly.  The creek had risen to cover the lowest board on the bulkhead but the surface was flat and shiny.  A pelican made a couple of passes over the water but I didn't catch it on pixels.  

When the temperature got up to 40° I went out and filled the barkbutter dish.  A squirrel drank from the ant moat.  A buzzard passed over the house and creek.  And at long last a female red bellied woodpecker visited.  She had eyes only for the barkbutter balls but I expect she'll notice the suet eventually.  A female cardinal bellied down on the seed feeder perch so her feathers covered her toes.  It took surprisingly long for the blue jays to show up for barkbutter balls.  

Gusty

Sunshine was intermittent, wind gusts were fierce, but the temperature rose more than the earlier part of the week.  White throated sparrows and a Carolina wren were up at breakfast.  At lunch time I refilled the barkbutter dish and then we had blue jays.  Pine warblers also arrived at lunch.  Eventually, I saw the mockingbird.  The yellow cat tried again to catch a squirrel.  The frightened squirrel hid under the grill.  

The wind must have pushed water out of the Bay because the tide never rose much.  Still, the creek stayed glassy, though dusted with leaves and tree detritus.   

South wind

I was going to skip this day as I was on a computer during most of the daylight hours.  However there was a striking sunset and a bird chirping somewhere in the tree branches through which I saw the colors.  The temperature reached the upper 40s and the sky clouded over.  Yesterday the wind made a flag snap and stand fully outspread to the South.  Today the wind and the flag flipped, which explained the clouds.