MID ATLANTIC BIRDS IN OUR GARDENS

By popular demand. The odds are one in ten that someone will blow the topic within ten posts.
Here is my Coopers Hawk taken through a window glass. Not good but this bird is difficult to sneak up on. The rail it is sitting on is 4" X 4".

Here is one of our regulars shot through glass using 70 X 200 f/2.8 IS II.

Of course, Doc that's what so fun about DG...we never stay on topic.

Lots of birds today filling up for the coming snow

Wren enjoying leftover peanut butter sandwich

Mockingbird

Junco

Eating on the peanut butter sandwich is the Carolina Wren. Key points are tail up and the white or cream head stripe.

OK! Doc--don't start this Thread with negative predictions--or expectations....
Just try to go with the flow....

Sorry that you have such a problem with Posts, naturally, tending to meander...
This is basically a "Chat Room"--just of much greater and more intellectual proportions.

If it stayed ONLY on the topic on hand--NO Posts would ever reach the 200 mark.
They would die at--lets say--maybe 40 Posts.....Given the multitude of levels of gardening
knowledge--it is a given that topics of discussion will take some detours. Patience!

This very blurry picture is of a hawk de-feathering, and then consuming, a Blackbird of some kind
last winter on a snowbank against my shed.
I took some pictures through my very dirty LR window--and also in a zoom function--
which means my hand had to be a lot more steady than usual. So! It is NOT too focused.

I watched this hawk for quite a while--as I had never seen one before.
Is this a Sparrow Hawk???? Going by the striated marks on it's chest..

Don't see too many wild birds of the attack kind around here...I live in a development.
NOT like open areas and acres of acres of open space.

Anyway--this is MY contribution..........Gita

No it is not a Sparrow Hawk. It is to large to be a Sparrow Hawk. Hawks are a bit tricky because just about all have different look alike hawks to consider. It is not unusual to have a picture that is not clear. They are not easy to photograph or at least that has been my amateur experience. We have two I have not photographed appearing several times a week and sometimes several times a day. They are properly identified as the Cooper's and the Sharp Shinned.

I like the Peterson Field Guide to Eastern Birds, paperback. There are a half dozen Peterson Field Guides....one for each different birding region. It will correctly show the birds both as adults and immature sizes, feather color and markings. It gives ranges and migration facts. For years it has been a best seller. I met the author while in college and using his book in an Ornithology Course. He was a graduate school buddy with my professor. The book is possibly the easiest to use of several choices on the market.

I use this id site, often

http://identify.whatbird.com/mwg/_/0/attrs.aspx

From Feb 09 to Feb 10 I had the distinct pleasure of siting almost every day a pair of adult and then two juvenile Bald Eagles! After last Febs huge snow falls their nest was still up but I only saw one adult and then nothing.....Some other smaller bird of prey could be seen perching on the very tall dead tree where I could almost count on seeing an eagle.

Out of habit I look up to that tree as I deliver my daily paper route and today there was an eagle.!!!!! I cried as I parked my car under that tree and got out to take the papers in to the senior citizen condo bldg. When I came out, looking up, of course, the eagle turned it's head in my direction and "nodded". I nodded back!

They say that crows can recognize certain individuals..wonder if eagles can.? I'll keep up my nodding acquaintance as long as I am priviledged to do so.

I am 30 feet away from a 60+ tall perch so my cell phone camera is terribly inadequate for a pic. Judy

Ok Doc, this is post #10, still on topic. The picture of your Coopers hawk is great, it really shows the size of it, compared to the 4x4. It is so hard to get a real perspective on size. Keep the pix coming.

I got a picture of a hawk the other day, he flew high up into my hugh Spruce in the back yard. I took shot through the window and it was snowing. He sat un the tree for a long time just turning his head, probably looking for food, then flew over the house to an other large spruce across the street.

I have the Peterson's guide too, and bought a Sibley Guide for Easter North America a few years back. I use both.

Finally found the Hawk pics I was looking for...sheesh

Oh btw that is a Cooper's Hawk, on the swingset


another one on a very foggy morning on my deck

One of my favs
Tufted Titmouse

Nice pics everyone
Doc that is an excellent shot of the Chickadee.
Gita a great catch on the hawk eating.
Jen nice set of pics really like that Hawk on the table. I can never seem to get good hawk pics.
Ric got this shot of a Pleated Woodpecker the other day. He was out along the edge of the woods at the back of the pasture.

Thanks to Gita and Lady, I found this wonderful thread. Gita, please be nice and stop picking on Doc. I am so grateful he started this group. I was getting such cabin fever and have been watching the birds more each day and now we have a place to share our activities.

Doc, I love my Peterson" First Guides Birds". I do not know when I got it but I have had it for sometime and I find it very helpful. We have the sharp-shinned Hawk here at the farm I think. I have another book called the Bird Feeder Book by Donald and Lillian Stokes that is a paperback and has good pictures but after seeing your picture of the Cooper's Hawk I am wondering about how accurate their information is. They said in their book that the most common species are the sharp-shinned in the East and the Cooper's in the West. You are lucky to have found a Cooper's. The word common is the key I am sure. There are no signs up there to tell them not to come East. LOL

A few years ago there were pictures on the Internet of the Eagles nesting and you could watch them daily to see their actions. It was so beautiful to watch them I could hardly stay away from it. You could sit for hours and just wait for them to do something. Crazy, but fun. I don't remember who had it up. I am sure there are still those things available now, just do not have the time to hunt them. We have a few bald eagles here in NJ now, but I have not seen any at my location. They are at the Veterans Cemetery just a few miles up the road. The men who work there watch them all the time and keep us posted on their activities. What Majestic creatures.

Judy, How exciting to have seen a bald eagle like that. Wow.

The pictures are great. Except the one of the Hawk eating the bird.That makes me sad. I hate those hawks for that reason, but I would guess they have to eat too. I have seen them fly down and grab a dove and when they take off there is nothing but one little feather left of the dove. They grab and flee with the entire bird. Fast as a bullet.

Thanks again for starting this thread. Hopefully we can keep it going ON SUBJECT for Doc's sake. Hugs to you all. JB

JB---Glad you found this Thread....
.
I am NOT, seriously, picking on Doc. I love Doc for all his knowledge and all he has contributed
to these Threads. It may be that, just because he is a man, he does not like all that chit chat.
Doc---Please don't stop!!!! We need your knowledge here--on ANY topic!

JB--
Do you know the name of the hawk I posted--eating that bird? I know nothing of hawks...
Yes! I have seen (ONCE) a hawk come down-- right in my back yard and snatch up a Dove.
Feathers flying! I was out there working and just heard the squawking....
I find it sad--because Doves mate for life....It is just like losing a mate--forever.

Many other times--I have seen just feathers left, here and there, where someone has had a meal
of these beautiful birds. They are "sitting ducks"---as they are ground feeders and slow to take off.
Could be cats or some other critter. Not too many of therm here in a development.....

I also have the "Field Guide to Birds" by Peterson--1967 edition. I see no pictures of hawks in there--
just silhouettes of their bodies in flight. Gee! I can't tell from that....

I have a small pair of Opera Glasses--and now and then I use them to look at something closer.
For us people that wear glasses----binoculars are hard to use......

Still working on my seeds! Two days solid now.....Must get therm done!

Gita

Here's the only other picture that was half-way decent of the hawk. ID????

About 1940 the book Silent Spring was written. By 1960 the use of harsh chemicals with DDT being one of the worst the forcast of the book was very much a fact. DDT was taken off the market. Many birds were nearly extinct. Some required catch and release to have them again. The Hawks were most notable that were caught in Canada and again released in the Northeast. The program worked.Today they are well populated through out the Northeast.

One of the reasons Peterson's Field Guides are so much liked is the fact they are so accurate. They have been updated with each printing of a new edition. Errors get corrected and new facts get entered.

I can not suggest how many hawks there are now but an early AM trip from Williamsport to Harrisburg will enable you to see a half dozen or more perched along Rt. 15. This is not at all unusual. In my time I remember when there were none sighted on that same trip. At that time that was not unusual either. Crows and hawks are natural enemies. It is not unusual to see more than one chase in any half day afield.

Some folks are upset when the hawks feed on the birds they are feeding. This is one way the proper balance is maintained. A healthier breeding stock is the end result of flock thinning.

Doc--

When we all immigrated into the USA--we were all "poofed" down with DDT--
right down the back of one's shirt...This was in 1951. I guess they thought we were all
"Typhoid Mary's".....or such Not true at all!
G.

Wellllll...............So much for thinking that Blackbirds migrated.

Today--they found my bird feeder under my patio roof--and the cloud of
them descended to feed.... Not as many as I have seen--but they were all over the place...

At least I am glad someone likes my "Ace" seeds! They better get used to these--
as I have 3 more 20lb. bags to go. Food is food! If one is hungry enough--one will eat anything...

Hey! I noticed today that some starlings were checking out their old nesting place--
which is several holes in the decaying trunks of my Kwanzan Cherry trees out on the median.
As the trunks have decayed --like they have become hollow--Sparrows ans Starlings have
claimed them for nesting for years. AND--they seem to return every spring to re-claim them.

Funny thing last spring......
I was noticing that a squirrel was becoming VERY attentive to one of the hollow trunks--
at the top of the trunk where the branches split. Now--i KNOW that some Blackbirds
had long claimed that as their prime nesting place....
As I watched out my kitchen window--I saw this squirrel disappear into this hollow trunk.
Then--HA...HA....I watched this blackbird chasing this squirrel up the small tree--squawking
all the time.
WHO is the biggest? The squirrel, of course.
WHO won the battle? The blackbird.

In time--I saw the bird dig out and discard a lot of the "fluff" the squirrel had feathered her nest in.
It was not hair from the chest---but more like cottony insulation down there. GONE!

It is neat to watch these birds fly in, worm in beak, and then descend in these hollow stems
to feed their young. It is also fascinating to see the young ones emerge and hover over their
"home" and retreat in the same at night--till the MOM needs to use it for her second clutch.

I also had the privilege of observing a Dove sitting on her nest--in my neighbors huge Fig Tree,
totally oblivious to humans within feet of it. I believe the males and females actually took turns.
They never moved...no matter how close I got to see them--camera in hand..
When the chicks were almost adult size---they would still go back to the nest and the
Mom would shelter them under her body. And then--one day--they were all on their own--

I actually saw the Mom laying new eggs (2) in the nest again. I stood there, camera in hand.
Waiting....for her to lay the 2nd egg. Gave up[. I was astonished how large the egg was
compared to the size of the Mourning Dove! It must have been quite an effort!

The next morning, the nest was destroyed and they were all gone.....
We have a feral cat around here....Maybe it just had a good meal.....or some other critter....
I literally mourned this.....It was too close to home.

And---Life goes on........as always.....

Gita

We love watching birds here in the Finger Lakes area of NY. Have been feeding them here on the edge of a large ravine/gully for over 34 years. Lots of different woodpeckers along with all the little fun birds. We had red tailed hawks bring their young to the telephone pole in our yard when they could first fly. They sat there and cried for food all day long. Pileated woodpeckers have done the same thing with their young.

I was thinking T. titmouse were my favorite then the wonderful picture of the Carolina Wren now I am torn between the two. I guess it is like flowers, what ever I am looking at is my favorite at that time.

Anywho, the reason I am posting is to share this site of nesting bald eagles in Maryland. If you check on the right side of the picture it takes you to the Osprey cam at the nesting site and you can see different birds perching on it.

http://www.friendsofblackwater.org/camhtm2.html

thanks for letting me chime in,

Joy

Thank you Joy. I will really enjoy this . Chime in again! And stay warm. Judy

Close up like this, huh, Gita????

Jen what a lovely pic. We have doves nest in our trumpet vine but I'm not sure how successful they are too easy of a spot for the cats to get to. I always get a kick out of the fact that they would pick a spot with so much foot traffic just a foot below the nest. A bit blurry just a little far for me and my camera. Watching each others back while waiting their turn at the feeders.

Doves are not to be figured out as to where they might build a nest. One year we had them in the spouting just a foot or so above our back door where there was lots of traffic. I feared she would have big time problems building in the water's guided path. She got away with it. She never returned to our spouting.

I have seen 2 doves "nests'.....if you can call them that...

Doves just gather a pile of twigs and that is the "nest'....
May have a bit of something soft on top...

The one in my neighbor's Fig tree chose an area where 3 lg. branches joined--
forming a bit of a platform. I have pictures--but cannot find them in my zillions.

Jen--nice close-up.

Thank you Joy. I love watching them. That is so exciting to keep an eye on them at different times of the day.

Hi everyone... I have a speical link for you.
Live cam, Hummer in Calf. With 2 babies in nest. You will love this.
http://phoebeallens.com/

The link didn't work for me. :-(

Me neither-----Gita

We have those big black grackles. I shoot at them with my 410 and scare them away. They don't come around much anymore. Maybe 1 or 2 but not in droves like they use to.

Crit--
The Blackbirds just found my feeder.....They were here early today!
I do not care to see them--as they can trash a full feeder in one day!

NOT paying money to feed those bottomless pits!
They are like a hungry bunch of teenagers crashing a party and eating up everything---
and then--departing.....without a "Thank You"!

UGH! Gita

I tried the link and it worked....There is an advertisement that they run first, so it looks like it is not the right link. Don't forget that Calf. is in a different time zone.
Plaese try it again and let me know.

Worked for me Lady. Wow

Crit and Gita, Some friends highly recommend using a "Roller Feeder" > It's simple, ingeneous and outwits squirrels and larger birds like grackles. You can check it out here:

http://www.rollerfeeder.com/rf2_cardinal_feeder_CS.htm

Great shot Jen

Also switching to safflower seeds keeps the squirrels and grackles away

I use to mix safflower in with my regular feed, but since I shoot at them, they have moved on to someone else's buffet. :-) Don't try this at home if you don't live in the country. lol

The Phoebe cam worked for me and it was great. I saw one of the parents. They just sat there and did not feed, the babies did not come up for feed so they must be sleeping and the parents must be out feeding themselves.

Hey Doc............I saw a young Hawk today. It looked like he was just beginning to get the orange feathers on his breast, the breast was almost all white with the orange showing around the top of the breast near where the wing meets the body. I was very happy to see the family is still around. He was alone and hunting. I will keep my eyes open for the rest of the family. The crows are here also, so that surprises me since they are not very compatible. The crows flock is growing faster than than the hawk. Each year I try and count them. JB

Interesting............last summer two cars traveled the same routes to the same destination. One must have been full of gabbers and non-lookers. The folks in my car counted two turkey, seven deer, two different hawks, a guy fishing and catching a wild trout and numerous small birds. It took us nearly a half hour longer to enjoy all that. Keeping the eyes open and taking time to use them was just more important to us on that trip. I might add there were no funny phones turned on in my car either. LOL

Someone had a Peterson Field Guide and we had a good pair of binoculars. I don't know which got used the most. When the group was birding I parked my butt beside my camera and photographed the fence row brambles and the birds that were numerous in the thick cover. I did not have the variety but I had some excellent shots the group apparently did not take the time to make. I far prefer quality to numbers. That goes for most of what I look at including posts in a forum. LOL

Well, so far ya got pretty good quality here!
I use safflower and thistle, only, this year and last. THe usual customers all seem to like the safflower fine, except the squirrel. He checks but doesn't linger and pig out. Goldfinches have emptied half my thistle tube in two weeks, several of them coming, up to five at once now.
I am hearing and seeing robins again.
My nuthatches and peckers seem to prefer the suet hanging right against the tree trunk rather than dangling from a chain and swinging .
Keep the pictures coming! Maybe I can snap a few next week. Petersons is my primary guide also.