There were a nesting pair of Bullock’s orioles that used to live in the pine tree in my backyard. They would visit the hummingbird feeder, which was an entertaining sight, as it was built for hummingbirds, and orioles are quite a bit larger. So their weight would send the feeder swinging, splashing nectar everywhere, and they had to contort their necks into awkward positions to get any.Originally Posted by ronmac
Confirmed Bachelors: the dramedy hit of 1883...
Listen for the sweet whistling. It almost sounds human.
https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/..._Oriole/sounds
Chad
Yes, I'm quite familiar with the call. I haven't heard this one since the weather got cold again.
Last edited by ronmac; 05-08-2017 at 01:02 PM.
"The White Zone is for loading and unloading only. If you got to load or unload go to the White Zone!"
We haven't talk about seeing these guys yet. We get our share.
"The White Zone is for loading and unloading only. If you got to load or unload go to the White Zone!"
That was for Duncan, you turkey.See what I did there?
I was at the Great Smokey Mountains a year ago and saw several of them. I did see them once here while on a trip in eastern Washington.We haven't talk about seeing these guys yet. We get our share.
Another bird I saw on that trip for the first (and only) time was an indigo bunting. I took some pictures but it was at a long distance so they are a little fuzzy. Do any of you Easterners see much of them?
I've never seen any buntings in Pennsylvania.
Every once in a while, we'll have a turkey parade (the non-political type, that is) marching through our yard, with a few hens and about 35 chicks.
"The White Zone is for loading and unloading only. If you got to load or unload go to the White Zone!"
We've had a couple of male Rose-breasted Grosbeaks hanging out in our backyard on the feeders the past couple of days. I've never seen any at our house before. I'll post a couple of pictures once I transfer them to my computer from the camera.
https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/...ed_Grosbeak/id
Last edited by 100423; 05-09-2017 at 01:03 PM. Reason: Dumb ass mistake
We've got all our birds back now plus the migratory waterfowl passing through. I'd go wandering out to the wetlands but the ticks are so bad this year I ain't gonna risk it.
I don't like country music, but I don't mean to denigrate those who do. And for the people who like country music, denigrate means 'put down.'- Bob Newhart
Indigo Buntings are coming in now. PA is part of their summer territory. They've been reported over that last few weeks here in Chester County. We get Snow Buntings from time to time in the winter and in March 2016, we got a Painted Bunting. We about lost our shit over that one.
Rose-breasted.
Got a very quick glimpse of an oriole today. He came back this evening and was very hard to locate. I saw a quick flurry of golden orange in the neighbor's tree and that was it. There were two of them in the neighborhood at the time.
"The White Zone is for loading and unloading only. If you got to load or unload go to the White Zone!"
One of my daily tasks at work is to go out to the seaside cabins and “environmental campground” and remove the trash and recycling. Well, the padlock holding the post that blocks the fire road out to the camprgound was sticking, so I just gave up and walked from my work truck to the trash bins. And I’m glad I did, because a fox sparrow landed on a branch near me and sang to me. Very cool.
Won’t happen again any time soon, though. Today I blasted the lock with WD-40 and it opens just fine. My co-workers will probably whine about their hands getting greasy, but they’ll just have to live with it.
I remember the days when you had to go way out in the country to see wild turkeys. Now they just wander suburban parking lots. There’s a bunch of them who live around the residence area, gobbling and displaying constantly. They’re vermin. I like to call them “ugly peacocks.”
I was woken in the middle of the night by screeching sounds. I had rather hoped it was a bobcat or mountain lion pouncing on and devouring one of the turkeys. More likely it was just raccoons fighting over scraps of food. I know they’re out there because I’ve seen their paw-prints on my car.
There’s also a great blue heron that hangs around the meadow area. I consider that to be a much nicer free-range pet than the turkeys.
Confirmed Bachelors: the dramedy hit of 1883...
At the Everett (WA) waterfront, there is a nesting area of blue herons on some old pilings. A friend of mine and I noticed it for the first time a few weeks ago. There are several nest with parent birds on top. Through binoculars I quickly counted 22 birds in a small area. It was pretty neat to see. Every time I go for a walk there I look to see if there are any young ones out yet. So far none.
There is also a colony or two of Caspian terns on top of some of the buildings. It's fun to watch them dive into the water trying to catch fish.
Had a run in with one a couple of weeks ago. He had been chased off of the road by a driver and I thought he was just a male wild turkey who was puffed out for mating. I was going to see if I could get him into a nearby pasture further from the road. Looked like scene out of Mortal Combat reenacted between an old fat chick and a turkey. Turns out this thing is a domestic turkey and the owner came out and chased it back in the yard with a broom. We have wild turkeys everywhere though. I encountered one on a walk at some point prior to the MMA turkey match and by comparison, the wild turkey, when not puffed up, is thinner, way larger and acted aggressive but was inching away from me the whole time.We haven't talk about seeing these guys yet. We get our share.
Now, if you want a truly aggressive bird, swans are deceptively predatorial. On the same walk, I went down to the lake to look for eagles and ospreys (ospreys are mad plentiful here) and this freakin' swan was literally stalking me.
"Alienated-so alien I go!"
It was a literal Cedar Waxwing shitstorm yesterday.
Mulberry trees are ripe in the area and the mob showed up for a feast.
Outside activity was curtailed as out deck was covered by 'black rain'.
They moved on before sunset but it was pretty noisy for a while.
Thankfully it was all in the back and not on the cars out front.
When they hit the Holly tree in the front it gets messy fast.
"It is the mark of an educated mind to be able to entertain a thought without accepting it."
-- Aristotle
Nostalgia, you know, ain't what it used to be. Furthermore, they tells me, it never was.
“A Man Who Does Not Read Has No Appreciable Advantage Over the Man Who Cannot Read” - Mark Twain
A really unusual-looking bird that I never knew we had in Western PA until I saw them in my neighborhood a couple of years ago.
"The White Zone is for loading and unloading only. If you got to load or unload go to the White Zone!"
You're so lucky! Cedar Waxwings are one of my favourite birds. They are so pretty! I've only had one sighting, while camping in Northern Ontario a looooooong time ago.
I had a great day watching our feeder on Tuesday morning. First we had a Rose-breasted Grossbeak at our feeder. They are not common here, but we often spot them during migration, so every time I see one at the feeder it's a treat!
Then I had a female and male Baltimore Oriole at the new Oriole feeder that I had hung on Sunday. Judging by how little jelly is left on the feeder, they've been coming by pretty regularly...just not when I'm around to see them. Sneaky buggers.
They like some of the plants in our yard. We added fox gloves and licorice mint this year, i don't recall what they were after last year though
"Alienated-so alien I go!"
Just saw a male downy woodpecker in my backyard while mowing. I stopped the mower to give him a little time to do his work and then he moved on. I also saw (and heard) a female blue jay. I like seeing blue jays but jebus, they're aggressive assholes.
I don't like country music, but I don't mean to denigrate those who do. And for the people who like country music, denigrate means 'put down.'- Bob Newhart
How do you know it was a female Blue Jay? They're monomorphic.
Seemed smaller than the males I've seen.
I don't like country music, but I don't mean to denigrate those who do. And for the people who like country music, denigrate means 'put down.'- Bob Newhart
I was mistaken about the bird that serenaded me earlier. It was, in fact, a vesper sparrow:
Confirmed Bachelors: the dramedy hit of 1883...
Yesterday i was sitting on a bench on the grounds of my co-op,throwing walnuts to the squirrels and birds, as is my wont.Suddenly i hear a whooshing sound,turn in the direction of the sound, and,about fifteen feet to the right of where i was sitting i see a red-tail hawk swoop at my head level to snag a flushed starling.It happened in a flash,but it was so close to me and at eye level......amazing.
A "never to be forgotten" memory.
"please do not understand me too quickly"-andre gide
A Baltimore Oriole and a Hairy Woodpecker at our feeder about five minutes ago. It's a pretty grainy shot. I had to take it with my phone from about five feet away from a window. If the Oriole sees any movement, he's gone.
Woodpecker and Oriole.jpg
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