Birds
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Mystery solved
In 2011, I heard a bird song in the Adirondacks that I couldn’t identify. This year I heard it again. Finally it occurred to me to ask the folks over at Cornell Lab. I sent them a link to some video clips I posted of the song on my other blog, and they identified the bird for me. It’s a winter wren!
Here is some video of a singing winter wren over at YouTube. I’m so glad that next time I hear the bird, I’ll know what to look for!
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Blackburnian warbler
This was my first sighting of a blackburnian warbler. We spent a few days in the Adirondacks, and this fellow was part of a crowd of warblers making their way through the yard.
Most of the others were, I think, black-throated greens, though the only ones I got pictures of were in their non-breeding plumage…
…or perhaps, in some cases, juveniles.
On a hike up Bald Mountain, flocks of golden-crowned kinglets were working the treetops. It’s amazing to me how many caterpillars there are for them up there!
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Green Heron
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Goldfinches
They’re like falling stars in the back yard — bright fluffs of yellow with dramatic black accents.
The volunteer sunflower patch that grew beneath our bird feeder looks pretty rag tag, but this is when it gets most interesting to the goldfinches.
The females are much more discreet, but equally fond of sunflower seeds. We have several feeders with them, but the finches prefer to harvest their own.
Sometimes, polite requests to share are met with stony refusal.
Their chatter always makes me smile. They’re later nesters, and this time of year they are especially evident. They’re one of the treasures around here.
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Kaleidescope
These are all flowers and other beauties from my in-laws’ place.
Hummingbirds love these trumpet vines. At one point I watched a female drinking from the feeder while a male watched quietly from the clothesline. Then they both flew to the flowers, and the male swooped up and down in impressive arcs, a courtship ritual I assume. It was a cool thing to see.
Mr. Hummer 
Such glorious color, everywhere you look. I’m posting this to return to in the white wintertime…
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House Wren
This house wren was busy feeding babies — but not too busy to scold, machine-gun fashion.
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Pilot training
My husband’s family is filled with pilots. This wooden airplane is a weathervane, and it’s always fun when we go to my in-laws’ and see various birds sitting on it. This day I saw a sparrow, a bluebird and, as this photo shows, a hummingbird.
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Mostly about birds…
Cliff swallows It’s good to have a bleacher seat with thugs like this guy around.
This tree full of swallow nestlings was fun to see.
Every time a parent bird flew near, all four would start fluttering in a desperate plea for feeding. It was as if they were trying to lift the tree off the ground.
Only once in awhile did one of them get fed, though.
We have lots of fledglings around out yard these days: chickadees and titmice, downy, hairy and red-bellied woodpeckers, cardinals, rose-breasted grosbeaks, and robins. It’s good to know that so many species have been successful despite the sobering challenges they face every nesting season.
Chestnut-sided warbler with caterpillar 
Curious red-eyed vireo 
Young robin 
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Hungry
Everyone was feeding their young this week when we took our walk in the woods. This was probably a once in a lifetime sight… I think Mrs. Doe had a fast getaway in mind, but she tolerated her two hungry fawns for a minute before leaping cleanly over them and leading them quickly into the woods.
The redwinged blackbird babies were hungry too…
…as were the orioles.
Other sights…
Indigo bunting 
Daisy 
“Indian paintbrush” 
Red-eyed vireo That’s just a sampling… There were many other sights and sounds, too. This time of year it’s impossible to document them all.
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Chickadee Nest
This active chickadee nest was a delightful discovery on a walk the other day. The parents were feeding young, coming and going nonstop with beaks full of caterpillars.
