Project FeederWatch 3rd Weekend

The third weekend of our Project FeederWatch was fun! On Sunday morning, we added four more species to our PFW list. A House Wren was checking out the brush pile. He spent quite a bit of time around it. Yellow-rumped Warblers, American Robins and Cedar Waxwings all used the birdbath. The Cedar Waxwings were the FOS of the winter season for me. There were about 50 of them in the tree in the backyard and about eight visited the birdbath. I hope they come back more often. The rest of the birds were pretty normal. The Chipping Sparrow population has increased quite a bit. We had 21 of them on the ground feeder at one time yesterday. An American Goldfinch visited the Nyjer feeder yesterday and was back this morning. Hopefully he'll hang around and bring his friends with him.

Birds that we didn't count on the PFW list included more Tree Swallows. There were 10 to 15 flying around over the pasture. Six Eastern Bluebirds were on the power lines out front. American Crows made their presence known around the area where the cows are fed. A Red-bellied Woodpecker dined on the tallow seeds.

This morning has been cold and wet. We haven't had many birds at the feeders. Several Yellow-rumped Warblers were in the hackberry tree behind the house. Fox squirrels have been at the ground feeder several times this morning and that makes the birds a little nervous to be there with them. I've also seen a Sharp-shinned Hawk make several passes over the yard and that will definitely make the birds nervous.

Birds Seen 11/29/09 (15 species): Sharp-shinned Hawk, Red-shouldered Hawk, Eurasian Collared-Dove, Red-bellied Woodpecker, American Crow, Tree Swallow, House Wren, Eastern Bluebird, American Robin, Cedar Waxwing, Yellow-rumped Warbler, Chipping Sparrow, Northern Cardinal, American Goldfinch, House Sparrow

Project FeederWatch Day 3

Today was a little better. It was cool this morning and quite a few birds came in. Two cardinals, two Eurasian Collared-Doves, six Chipping Sparrows, one Mourning Dove, eight House Sparrows and one Common Grackle visited the feeders. I kept hoping one of the Yellow-rumped Warblers would visit the water so we could count them.

I think I'm going to get up early in the morning and go birding in the woods for a little bit. I'm curious to see how many more winter migrants have come in. I also want to check the pond to see if any ducks are hanging out down there. There are several more plants around the edges, so they may feel a little more comfortable.

Feeders Are A Little More Active

It seems that the birds are slowly coming back to the feeders. This morning as the sun was just coming up, three Chipping Sparrows were on my ground feeder eating millet. As I watched more, the Yellow-rumped Warblers really got active in the trees behind the house. Several of them came to the bird bath and got a drink. A couple of Eastern Bluebirds came to the bird bath as well. I'm hoping the Yellow-rumped Warblers find the suet I put out. That would be fun to have them coming to a feeder. Two Carolina Chickadees were enjoying the new oil sunflower I put out for them. I'm ready for them to all be back at the feeders all the time!

As I was going to my car to leave for work, a flock of about 10 American Robins flew overhead. Those were the first ones I've seen this fall. I need to get down in the woods and see what has shown up. Maybe on Monday.

Raptors! Raptors! Raptors!

Our second day of Project FeederWatch was a little more productive, but not much. We added Northern Cardinal and Eurasian Collared-Dove to our list. It was nice to see the cardinal out there because I haven't seen one regularly in weeks. Hopefully they'll start coming back a little more.

I did watch the rest of the birds around the house today and it was the day of the raptors! I saw six species of raptors flying around or over the house this afternoon. Osprey, Sharp-shinned Hawk, Cooper's Hawk, Red-shouldered Hawk, Red-tailed Hawk and Merlin. The Merlin was perched on a utility pole. He stayed long enough to allow me to get my scope and get some good close-ups. The Sharp-shinned Hawk snagged a House Sparrow at the feeder this morning.

Overall, I saw fifteen species of birds today. It was fun even though I didn't get to get out and go birdwatching.

Birds Seen 11/16/09 (15 species): Black Vulture, Turkey Vulture, Osprey, Sharp-shinned Hawk, Cooper's Hawk. Red-shouldered Hawk, Red-tailed Hawk, Merlin, Eurasian Collared-Dove, Red-bellied Woodpecker, Eastern Phoebe, Yellow-rumped Warbler, Northern Cardinal, Red-winged Blackbird, House Sparrow

Project FeederWatch Day 1

Our Project FeederWatch started off pretty slowly today. A male Sharp-shinned Hawk chased the House Sparrows for a little while. He hung around the feeders for a while, so they were pretty quiet. He must have left because the House Sparrows came back along with a couple of Chipping Sparrows. That was it. Maybe things will pick up a little more tomorrow.

Project FeederWatch

Project FeederWatch began this weekend. It's a six-month long survey of birds that visit feeders, water and other things provided by people for them. Our count starts today. This year, instead of just seeing what birds come, we're going to keep a record of which feeders they visit. It's an added piece of information for us to see which of our feeders are most commonly used and which aren't used very much. I think it's going to be a lot of fun for us.

I have seen most of the winter migrants in the area now. An Eastern Phoebe hangs out around the house quite a bit. Yellow-rumped Warblers are in the tops of the trees along with Ruby-crowned Kinglets. Occasionally I'll hear a Northern Flicker calling from in the woods. I sure wish one of them would find my feeders! That would be cool! I'm hoping the Yellow-bellied Sapsucker finds me again this year. It won't be long before the American Goldfinches begin coming to the feeders. They're in the area and a few people have them at their feeders already. That's a little earlier than usual. It will be interesting to see if the National Weather Service's prediction of a cooler, wetter winter comes true and how that influences the birds.

I have seen between ten and twelve Eastern Bluebirds around and in my yard over the past couple of weeks. I'm really hoping for two pairs of them to nest this spring. It's so fun to listen to their call as they're flying overhead.

It's daylight now, so I'm going to start watching the feeders!