A Crowd of Robins and A Dogwood Tree

A cold front welcomed in our first day of November, so I set feeders out for the birds. Titmice, chickadees and cardinals gathered but it soon became apparent there were many more birds in the yard than usual.

When I walked over to the Dogwood to investigate, I found a crowd of American Robins in the tree eating the ripened dogwood berries.

Not a bit shy about their new surroundings, the robins, mixed with a few Cedar Waxwings, were hungrily picking berries in as many different ways as you and I might invent. Some hung upside down, others grabbed berries in a fly-by fashion, still others found a convenient spot and picked and swallowed them one by one. Sometimes as many as half-a-dozen gathered on a branch at a time. And all around, on nearby limbs, more birds waited their turn.

It was heavenly. They were so close, so busy, so accessible. As you might guess, I took a ton of photographs. And while I enjoyed the party, others came to dine--a male Red-bellied woodpecker (I will show you more about how he uses his tongue in a later post), two male Yellow-bellied sapsuckers, a Hermit thrush, an Eastern Phoebe, a White-throated sparrow, three Northern Flickers and a Northern Mockingbird.

Need I say what a fine party this was for me? (Last image, Northern Mockingbird).