I got a few shots of this Carolina Wren late this afternoon as it was singing outside my window. He (or she) was full of life, singing and chirping loudly for several minutes. 
These little birds are fun to watch. They are 'busy bodies' for sure. Always on the move and not still often to get any good pics. But not today, as it was 'still' for several minutes allowing me to get a few pics.
Good Birding and God Bless!
I did a little birdwatching this weekend at Lake Monticello on Saturday morning. I saw several flycatchers: an Eastern Kingbird, several Barn Swallows, and a few Scissor-Tailed Flycatchers.
The juvenile Red Bellied Woodpecker activity has been in full effect in my backyard this weekend. I've identified two juveniles after the recent departure from their nest. The adults are feeding the juveniles regularly from the suet and peanuts out of the feeder.
Today one of the juveniles made his way down to the top of the feeder to find out what it had to offer. They have not been able to get the hang of coordinated flight to get on the suet log or peanut feeder just yet!
I also noticed while taking these pictures that this juvenile has started to get a little red tinge of color on the crown of his head. Guess that this juveniles turns out to be a little baby boy!
Well, the Red Bellied juveniles have started to get 'their wings' so to speak. They have been out and about, getting fed by their parents and beginning to figure things out. It is different seeing them with their colorful parents as their are without color in their juvenile plumage.
I hope to get more pics of these little ones are they begin to get the hang of the suet feeders.
Good Birding and God Bless!
I woke up to a very nice surprise this morning. It was a 1st Spring Male Tanager. This young male is just starting to get his color after his first winter. 
His color is beginning change over the bright orange-red that Tanagers are known for. This visit was especially nice for me because it was a Lifer because I'd never seen a young male before.
This year's first juveniles were Brown Thrashers. I thought this was especially fitting that this years first additions were seen on Mother's Day. 
This picture is a little grainy as it is a little bit dark and rainy here, as you can see. Happy Mother's Day!
Good birding and God Bless!
I've had a lot of Rose Breasted Grosbeaks in my yard today. The weather must have driven them in. Several males and females were at the feeder for hours today.
-- Post From My iPhone
As far as blogging goes, I would probably win an award for the worst blogger of the year. As anyone who did follow this blog knows, I haven't been very regular.
That being said, I would like to follow up on the last post I did make from last summer. The little one in the nest turned out to be two! There was a much anticipated flurry of activity once they got their wings.
They didn't take long getting the 'hang' of eating on the suet log. Mom and Dad took their turns showing them how it was down.
It was very different seeing the juvenile without any coloration to distinguish it as a male or female. They stayed around for several weeks, feeding on the suet log.
I did also have at least two, maybe three Red-Head Juveniles last summer also. Hopefully, I'll get those pics up soon!
I've been fairly busy lately and haven't been good at all about posting on the blog. My apologies to the faithful few who read it. I'm still birding and it has slowed down a little around here for me. I believe things will change soon on the birding front ...
Any way, back to what has been going on with me over the last month and a half that I've been away from my blog. I took another business trip to Phoenix, AZ. I was able to get a little sight seeing done at the end of the trip.
We were able to hike up Camelback Mountain which sits within the Phoenix city limits. We didn't actually make it to the summit due to our limitations, meaning we weren't in shape to do it! We didn't want have to get hauled to the emergency room. That doesn't make for good sight seeing or birdwatching!
I did add several new additions to my life list on this trip. Below is a Verdin which is a very distinctive bird. This is a male which has a yellow head and throat. Females have less yellow on their head but are similar in markings. They were very quick little things and didn't feel like posing for any pictures!
Verdins also make very unique nests. They make a completely enclosed nest, not like most birds nest I'm used to which are bowl shaped. This particular tree had at least 6 nests in it.
This is a close up of one of the nests which has the entrance hole. I'm glad I got to see the Verdin's as they are unique from what I normally get to see in Arkansas.
I finally broke down and decided to purchase a feeder from Wild Birds Unlimited. They have a pole system that puts the stop to squirrel problems. I had one and now, I don't!!!
Not that I dislike squirrels but I would rather feed the birds and not the squirrels. Squirrels also take up space on the feeder and prevent the birds from feeding. Below is my setup and believe, it works!
The feeder setup also has perches that allow birds to feel protected before feeding. I noticed that a Brown Thrasher family likes the perches. The adult had two juveniles waiting while it picked at the suet on the side of the feeder.
As you can see, the juveniles are well on their way on catching up to their parent. They look very similar to the adult in almost every way. However, they haven't yet developed the yellow eye which helps to identify the adult.
I've also found a Brown Thrasher nest we two eggs. I can't get close enough long enough to get any shots but I've got more juveniles on the way.
Good Birding and God Bless!
I've recently added several Red-Headed Woodpeckers to my regulars in my backyard. They were scarce during the winter except for one juvenile that stayed pretty high up in the trees and was only rarely seen.
One of the new visitors has taken a liking to the peanut feeder. He performs acrobatics to get to the peanuts in the feeder. He spins around and around at the bottom to peck at the peanuts.
We spent the weekend at Brush Mountain with my wife's brother and his wife. It was a great time of birding for me. I added three birds to my life list!
My brother-in-law and I spotted a Blue-Gray Gnatcatcher right off the bat the first day I was there. It was a lifer for the both of us! I got a few pictures of it but none turned out. Maybe next time!
On Saturday, we hiked up Pinnacle Mountain in West Little Rock. We saw another lifer five minutes into our hike. It was a Black & White Warbler. He was flitting about in the trees and was too quick to get any pictures.
I added one more to my list on Saturday evening which was a Bank Swallow. He was flying around a lake near the house. He was flying acrobatically and catching insects for dinner.
Good Birding and God Bless!
I have had my first juvenile visitors of the year. I was wondering what species would get off to the early start. It turned out to be Robins. They won the "First Juvenile Of The Year" title for 2008.
The juveniles look very similar to the adults except the rusty red breast isn't fully developed. You can see the slight rusty red color on the juveniles but it is speckled with grayish black spots.
It also amazes me how quickly the juveniles grow. These pictures were actually taken early last week. You can see they are slightly smaller than the adult carefully watching over them.
I also was able to capture these videos which I wanted to include. The adult is feeding the juveniles as they follow it around. I just love to see the interaction between the adult and the juvenile as they raise them!
If there is one thing I've learned about watching birds, sometimes you get lucky and just happen to be in the right place at the right time. I've seen several birds for just a second and then they are gone. Sometimes, never to return.
This was the case (or so I thought) on Sunday when this one flew into the yard. I was able to get a quick shot off before it flew off. I quickly got out my trusty field guides to determine which one it was. At first glance, I thought that it was a female Purple Finch, but then realized it was way too big.
I was able to surmise that is was a female and a Rose Breasted Grosbeak. Wow, another addition to my life list. They seem to be coming quickly as the spring migration has a lot of birds moving!
I like to capture pictures of the female of the species and really enjoy attempting to identify them. They usually don't have the distinguishing marks that easily identify the males.
Another thing I like about seeing the female is that you know the male is not far behind! This was the case with the Rose Breasted Grosbeak. The male didn't show back up on Sunday, but made his debut on Monday! He is a very nice looking bird.
It took these guys a little while to find out which feeder to use and where to find food. I had to fill up my tray feeder with seeds as they had a little trouble negotiating the smaller tube and house feeders.
Good Birding and God Bless!
You know it pays off sometimes to just to sit and watch the birds out your window and wait to see which ones fly into your yard next. I really love this about birding because it helps me to slow down and enjoy things a little more than I used to.
This is just what I was doing on Sunday afternoon when this female Summer Tanager stopped by for a little visit. I've seen a male two times before but never a female. Tanagers are residents of the southeast and central portions of the U.S.
She is not the bright red color that the male exhibits but rather a dull yellow. Tanagers are distinctive birds and beautiful. They have proven hard for me to photograph as they hang out in the upper levels of trees.
Good Birding and God Bless!
I had a pretty good weekend last week watching birds. My wife and I went up to Cane Creek State Park near Star City, AR to check it out on Saturday.
They have two trails to nature walk on, the Delta View Trail and Lake Trail. The Delta View Trail is 2.5 miles and the Lake Trail covers the entire lake is about 15 miles long. We covered a partial segment of the Delta View Trail. It was very nicely land out and was great for taking a nature walk.
I was walking for birding, she was walking for exercise so our paces were slightly different. About 5 minutes into our little adventure, she calls me on my cell to tell me to hurry up. She thinks she has spotted a Pileated Woodpecker! I quickened step only to be disappointed when I arrived, it was gone. This is the one bird I has on my list to see first and hopefully capture the moment with a picture.
I did see a Summer Tanager, a Yellow-Rumped Warbler, several Titmice and a few Downy Woodpeckers. I include a pic of the Summer Tanager below. It was high in the trees. He wasn't in the mood to have his picture taken!
I went back up to Cane Creek on Sunday afternoon with my friends and their little 'birder' that I've had the pleasure of showing my backyard birds to. She just loved it. This time we covered the entire 2.5 mile Delta View Trail. We saw and heard several birds.
This time, however, the Pileated Woodpecker wasn't so illusive. I was able to observe 3 Pileateds, all in flight. They are awesome birds. They are distinctive to say the least. I was excited I was able to see one. Next time I hope to get a pic of the experience!
That same day, I had another treat to add to the weekend. I had two Indigo Bunting visit my yard. The hung around for most of the day, just at a distance. They never would come in close enough to get a descent pic.
All in all, it was a good weekend. I added two birds to my life list!
God Bless and Good Birding!
This weekend was probably the best so far for me on the birding front. I spent Saturday morning out a Lake Monticello again. The bird activity most definitely picked up since last weekend. It was bright sunny day and was perfect for bird watching!
There were two Flickers that were spending time feeding on the ground out by the lake when I first got there. I then noticed this Loggerhead Shrike on the pavilion and seemed to be watching the Flickers. Check out Aunt B's Backyard for some great shots of a Northern Flicker.
As I was leaving the lake, I noticed a Belted Kingfisher perched on this dead tree. He was 'posing' and I got as many pics as I could! As I was watching, he just took off and dove straight into the water. I was shocked but then he re-emerged and took his perch again. I guess he either saw a fish or needed to cool off!
Check back later this week to hear about the trips that we took to Cane Creek State Park near Star City. I'm still going through the pics and all of my field notes. It was a great trip. My little 'birding buddy' went with us on Sunday. She loved it!
Good Birding and God Bless!
My wife and spent some time Saturday doing a little bird watching with a friend and her 4 year old daughter. She really loves watching birds and has turned into a little 'birder'. We decided to ask her and her mother to come with us to Lake Monticello to see the birds.
We saw several species of birds. We saw many Starlings feeding by the lake when we first arrived. We had to sneak up on them to get a better view. I showed them a few techniques I use to get up close on birds. We used the surrounding trees to shield us so the birds didn't get a glimpse of us.
After seeing the Starlings, we looked out in the lake and saw a group of Coots swimming. We also saw these two Green Head Mallards swimming around. We saw several other species including a Belted Kingfisher, Mockingbird, and Turkey Vultures.
All in all, it was a great trip, mostly because we had a future birder with us. It was definitely exciting to see how excited she got every time a bird flew over. We finished the afternoon off by coming over to our house where she got to see the Woodpeckers and Cardinals in our backyard.
Good Birding and God Bless!
I wanted to post a few pics of the ducks I saw last week at the Old Fish Hatchery in Dallas. Larry over at The Brownstone Birding Blog inspired me to share my duck photos! He posted some very nice shots a few weeks back of the ducks he's been seeing.
I've seen a Wood Duck before but it was several years ago before my 'birding days' began. This is a very pretty and distinctive duck. It isn't easily confused with any other duck as it is one of the few ducks with a crest.
The other duck I saw on my way into the Hatchery was a lifer for sure. I noticed it's distinctive half moon crest on the side of his head right away. He also has a violet gray head and a noticeably blue patch on its wing. Texas is on the very southern end of its summer range.
I was able to get a shot of both the male and female Blue-Winged. There were also many Mallards in the hatchery. All in all, the Old Fish Hatchery in Dallas is definitely a duck haven!
Good Birding and God Bless!
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