Serenity Cove Birds

What a brutal, cold, snowy, winter it is turning out to be. January was one of the coldest on record and February is pretty much the same.
I have a serious case of the winter blahs and I am counting down the days until spring. 34 Days! Only thing is...in Ohio that doesn't mean much. Not to be a pessimist but it could be double that. I'm holding out for an early spring because I think we DESERVE it after putting up with this cold winter!

Red-bellied Woodpecker

 

Watching and feeding birds is one bright spot in the long winter months.

The birds were slow to come around earlier in the winter, but it's been a feeding frenzy since the extreme cold arrived.

 

Here are just a few of the birds that are daily visitors at the feeders.

 

Downy Woodpecker

 

Northern Flicker

 

Pileated Woodpeckers

 

Three Pileated Woodpeckers have been regular visitors this winter but I just can't get that third one in the picture.

 

The wing span of a Pileated!

 

Beat It......I was here first!

 

Blue Jays cannot resist peanuts. A lot of people don't like Blue Jays but I tolerate them because they warn other birds when a predator is in the area. They hog a lot of food though.

 

White Crowned Sparrow

 

Here is a Brown Creeper that usually shows up during the last half of winter.

 

The bluebirds are always my favorite. I never get tired of watching them as you can tell by the amount of pictures I take of them.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 Tree Hugger

 

 

 

House Finch

 

 

 

For a while I thought we weren't going to have any Cardinals this year but they finally showed up when the weather got extremely cold in January. Not as many as some years, but at least we got a few. They are such beautiful birds and their cheer, cheer, cheer, birdie, birdie, birdie, song are such a welcome sound in the spring.

 

 

 

 Carolina Wren

These little birds are so much fun to watch. They just seem to bounce around all over the place, checking out all the feeders and investigating every nesting cavity.

 They love to steal the dried mealworms I put out for the bluebirds, usually getting to them first. But that's okay, it seems the bluebirds would rather eat the suet. 

 

Junco

 

Tufted Titmouse

 

American Goldfinch

 

Patiently waiting on spring.

Winter is for the Birds

I've given a lot of love to the bluebirds at my feeders, so now it's time I give some of the other birds some attention too. After all, they all help get me through the long winter months.

Pileated woodpeckers are the most uncommon of the woodpeckers that visit my feeders. He mostly forages in this tree for suet and seeds hidden by the other birds. Visits are very sporadic although I hear his calls frequently in the woods.

 Blue Jays are very common at the bird feeders. While suet is what they eat most of the time, and lots of it, peanuts in the shell is what they go absolutely crazy over. They take as many as they can, as fast as they can, and hide them. Back and forth, back and forth. When they are all gone they go find them and eat them.  How they remember where they put them all I don't know.

They are not my favorite bird, but it's so funny watching them go crazy over the peanuts.

Tufted Titmice love peanuts in the shell as well. But they have to be very quick if they want to get any before the Blue Jays hog them all. This one got lucky.

The perky little Carolina Wrens always make me smile. They also love the freeze dried mealworms I put out for the bluebirds, and more often than not, get to them before the bluebirds do.

I'm not fat, I'm fluffy!

Nuthatch

American Goldfinch

Cardinal

House Finch

Black-Capped Chickadee

White-Throated Sparrow

Song Sparrow

Downy Woodpecker

Dark-Eyed Junco

We always called Junco's snowbirds because they typically show up when the first snow flies.

I think this is the only winter bird that doesn't stay here to nest. They spend their summers in the extreme northern states or Canada. They do stay year round in the Appalachian Mountains. I frequently see them when hiking in the upper elevations in the Smoky Mountains.

Yellow-Shafted Flickers are usually pretty wary birds and hard to photograph but they seem to be getting a little bolder. I have spotted them at the feeders just about every day this winter. I just love the beautiful colored plumage on the Flickers.

Sorry, I couldn't resist another Bluebird photo. After all, they are my favorite bird.

And yesterday I spotted the first Robin. The first sight of a Robin is always symbolic with spring, although I know Robins remain in the area all winter. They tend to stay in flocks in wooded areas and are rarely seen. Some do move farther south for the winter, while Robins north of us may come here for the winter.

What is your first reliable sign of spring? For me it is hearing the spring peepers and the appearance of the Red-Winged Blackbirds. When I hear that first musical trill of a Red-Winged Blackbird, I know that spring has indeed arrived.

Bluebird Paradise

After a few weeks weeks of milder weather, winter is back with a vengeance, this time with frigid temperatures. Not so much snow, just COLD!! 

 I hate the cold but it always brings the birds back in droves. I get a lot of bird traffic at my feeders, but nothing thrills me more than the amazingly beautiful bluebirds.

 I was wondering what happened to all the bluebirds I had last winter.

 After fledging last summer, they completely disappeared.  When we got about a foot of snow a few weeks ago, I finally noticed three of them out at the feeders. They must have spread the word there's free food available because there is a whole flock of them now. I am so happy to have them back.

Isn't she adorable? Fluffing up their feathers creates air pockets that help them maintain their body temperature.

At times bluebirds can have the most solemn expressions and.....

other times they look angry.

I put some mealworms out hoping the bluebirds would get to them before the other birds found them, but the nuthatch snatched them up real quick.

Suet is in very high demand on cold winter days. In this type of weather I go through two blocks per day, plus what I spread in holes in trees or on a hollow log.

 Recipe here. They go crazy for it!

Checking out the apples.

Sorry.....This post was intended to be photos of all the birds at my feeders but I got a little carried away taking pictures of the bluebirds I didn't know when to stop. So I'll do a separate post of the other birds.