That Baby Bird Stuff Going on Out There!

There is a lot of baby bird activity going on this time of year. Not only are baby hummingbirds out of the nest and visiting feeders, more than doubling the number of nectar visitors, other young birds are foraging around the yard.  It just takes a minute of being still to find them.

I stepped outside because I heard tapping, a sign of a woodpecker near by.  I wondered if a Pileated Woodpecker was around, but found the next best thing--a female Red-bellied Woodpecker foraging in the pines.  I will show you images of her in my next post, but in this one, I wanted to show you some of the baby stuff going on under that same tree!

There were several American Robins running around on the ground and I quickly identified them as juveniles with rusty breasts still speckled with dark spots and white down, and their back and wing feathers also speckled with white.

They already have very robin-like posture and movements.  Alert stance, listening to everything above and below, lightening quick feet.  They learn quickly to watch for food and watch for danger at the same time.

 A good strategy--don't linger in one place for too long!

Right after the young robin scurried away, a Carolina Chickadee landed in front of me. I would not have thought much of it had I not snapped some images just because the camera was in my hand.

Parent and juvenile chickadees look the same. I glanced at these images and concluded, this must be a juvenile! He has picked up a yummy rock for all his foraging efforts!

 He seems to be wondering what to do with his prize.

Thankfully, Carolina Chickadee juveniles follow their parents around for several weeks while they learn to find food and feed themselves!

Next:  Red-bellied Woodpeckers foraging

Carolina Chickadee
American Robin

Eastern Bluebirds--Landlord or Local Diner?

Bluebirds can leave you scratching your head from day to day, wondering what their plans are for that empty nest box.

This morning a pair of Eastern bluebirds landed on the limbs overhead almost instantly when I signaled with a whistle that the mealworm diner was now open for customers.  I had barely closed the feeder top when the pair appeared, singing softly.  I sat on the patio and watched as first the male and then the female visited the dish of mealworms. It was especially gratifying to hear the female's contented chirps as she fed.

The male patiently waited for her to finish, and then, poof, they were gone, the nest box serving as nothing more than a perch in route to the feeder.

After they left, I watched a male tufted titmouse repeatedly visit the feeder and return to a limb to feed his waiting mate.  This was definitely a smile-worthy observation.  I have no idea where they are nesting but it is certainly somewhere nearby.  The male frequently declares his territory with song and raspy scolding notes.  The bluebirds, on the other hand, make me wonder if they are nesting elsewhere and simply stopping by for a snack at the local diner.

As recently as a week ago, the male and female landed on the nest box together and exchanged excited communications, both chattering and wing-waving.  Above, you see the male wing-waving to encourage the female to join him on the next box.  And below, she has landed on the guard, preparing to check out the nest box.  Wing-waving, an alternating series of wing lifts, is expressed by both the male and the female and seems to signal a greeting and encouragement that reinforces the pair bond during the breeding season.

If it were not for last year's records, I would have given up hope that I will have a nesting pair of bluebirds this season.  My notes show that on April 8th of 2011, the pair that raised two broods last season in this nest box had not yet claimed it.  In mid March the wintering flock dispersed as one pair of bluebirds in their midst vigorously chased away flock mates and flock members dispersed in search of breeding territories and mates.  And while some bluebirds may still be searching for nest sites, many pairs in our area have already nested and are incubating eggs.

On the other hand, I have a decisive pair of chickadees in charge of my second nest box.  A Carolina chickadee (above) is building her nest right on schedule with last year's nesting record.  When I last checked the box on March 30th, the female had completed her thick base of moss and was placing a layer of soft grasses, hair, downy feathers, and other soft materials over it to begin forming the nest cup.

Chickadee nests are so soft and neat, astoundingly lovely.

Links and resources:

For stories and images of last season's nesting bluebirds, visit:  Bluebird Family.  And for more on Carolina chickadees visit my chickadee posts.

Also please visit my new book:  Red-shouldered Hawk Territory, A sketchbook journey through nesting season.  The book will be ready for shipping by April 12th and contains my sketches, field notes and the stories and photos that unfolded during four-months of observing a nesting pair of red-shouldered hawks.  You can visit some of those stories and images on this blog by clicking: Red-shouldered hawks. Scroll to the bottom to read earliest posts first.

More Fall Excitement

Have you seen the movie Bambi?  Remember the scene when all the birds and animals of the forest gather around to see the new baby?  That's what it feels like while I'm sitting on my patio sometimes, like a magical scene from Bambi. Of course, the birds and animals aren't gathered around me.  They're coming to the sunflower seed and suet feeders despite my presence.  That's actually my favorite interaction, the opportunity to watch them at close range as though I'm invisible.

I didn't have seed and suet feeders out while hummingbirds were migrating earlier in September and October, allowing plenty of space for nectar feeders.  But when the last hummer departed, the quiet and stillness around the patio was too much!  So I hung suet and sunflower seeds one morning and sat outside just to watch and enjoy.  And I was rewarded, Bambi style.

I had not expected the feeder to attract so much attention after so many days of absence, but when seeds are offered, action happens.  The number of chickadees and titmice arriving all at once in a very short time was surprising.  It was also nice to think that some of these foraging chickadees might be the youngsters that fledged from my nest box this past spring.

And then there are the mammals, the chipmunks and squirrels that come around.  I became annoyed with the squirrels in October as I watched them visit the holly bush over and over again, as many as three at a time, stripping it of green berries, sometimes tearing the tip of the limb off to carry away a whole clump.  A day ago, I saw a small cluster of berries that had actually been allowed to turn red.  It's at the end of a long limb at the top and probably hard to reach.  While European holly berries are not a primary food choice for our birds, last winter these clumps of red berries attracted many species, allowing me to enjoy them on our coldest, snowy days in January and February.  But the berries have all been harvested already.  There will be no holly berries this winter to attract birds.  Once that was settled and done, I managed to feel peace again with the squirrels. After all, they have to eat too.

Above you see another character that comes around frequently, especially when the seeds are out.  He/she has given me several laugh-out-loud moments.  Once, she came around the corner of the house, and upon seeing me, bolted in another direction.  I thought she was running away to hide, but instead, she scurried up the leg of the bird bath and perched there taking a long drink.

Another time, I noticed her out of the corner of my eye, and turned my head to get a better look.  Here she came, in my direction, cheeks bulging with food to the max, and an enormous acorn clutched in her mouth.  She was so comical I laughed out loud, which of course, sent her into hiding behind a plant container.  Not too long after that, she reappeared, and continued her path, scampering under my chair as she rounded the corner heading for her burrow.

Among the other birds that visited the sunflower seeds and suet, was this white-breasted nuthatch, above and below.  Ever since I noticed a titmouse holding a dogwood berry with its feet while eating it, I have been fascinated with bird's feet and how they use them.  At the banding station, I also discovered how beautiful they can be, with even their foot pads colorfully matching plumage.  Each bird species has its own unique feet, perfectly designed in size, shape and color to suit the bird's foraging habits and habitat.  The white-breasted nuthatch has enormous and powerful feet attached to that little body!  And these feet are well adapted to clinging and climbing tree trunks as it forages and hides seeds for later consumption.  When I saw the image below, I had the impression of this nuthatch sliding in on roller skates!

In addition to the size of his feet, notice that hefty claw in the back.

I'm currently in the midst of several art projects with very close deadlines, keeping me both close to home and very busy.  And this is good news.  I love creating.  Below, a preview of one of my paintings in a collection called, Autumn Birds.  I'll share more about these projects as I get them completed.

This is also my favorite time of year, a wonderful season to take a break from time to time, just to step outside on these beautiful autumn days and take in the changing colors and the sounds and sights of foraging birds.

Nature in all her beauty!

Links and Resources:

To see a tufted titmouse holding a dogwood berry visit:  It's busy under that Dogwood
More posts on bird feet:  A Nashville Warbler from Head to Toe and Bird Banding and Matters of the Heart.
More autumn posts.
In Time out for Woodpeckers find a red-bellied woodpecker foraging among fall dogwood leaves.

My Eastern Bluebird Neighbors

I feel privileged.  That's what it's like to be a nest box landlord and have bluebirds settle in as neighbors.  I hoped for this when I put up the nest boxes, but I wasn't sure if they would succeed in attracting bluebirds.  

I love Carolina chickadees too, mind you.  I delighted in watching their nestlings change and fledge last season in this very same box.  And I'm enjoying my chickadee family in the second nest box farther from the house. Chickadee babies have to be the cutest ever! The chickadee nestlings pictured below hatched around the 15th of April and should be fledging any time.    

After believing I would have two chickadee families nesting in my nest boxes this season, a day arrived when nesting activity changed in the nest box close to the house.  On April 8th, a female chickadee was still hard at work building her nest, a full three inches of moss stacked neatly as a bottom layer, to show for her days of hard work.  Brief visits from bluebirds came and went during this time, and still she continued her nest building.  

But on April 9th, something dramatically different happened.  The bluebird pair came to visit and stayed a while.  The male went inside the nest box, while the female watched and listened from several positions outside the box.  He then came out and perched on the inside of the guard with moss in his beak.  He soon discarded it and the two flew to a dead oak limb with the male issuing thrush-y chucking sounds, as if to warn others away.  After this, I did not hear or see further chickadee activity around the nest box.  

After additional grasses were added to form the nest cup, on April 11th, just two days later, I discovered a single blue egg in the nest box.   On the 15th, there were a total of five blue eggs and the female has been incubating ever since.  Since incubation is said to take from 12-15 days, if she began on the 15th, the eggs should be hatching any day now.  

Sometimes while I'm sitting outside with morning coffee, the female will come out of the box and perch on the inside of the predator guard.  Other times the male comes to perch inside the guard and brings a breakfast offering, shown in the image below.  On other occasions, I've heard the male sing ever so softly and wing flex just outside the entrance to entice the female out of the box in the morning.    

It's been joy and a privilege to witness these activities, especially knowing that the best is yet to come.

To see earlier stories about bluebird visits to the nest boxes, visit Bluebirds and Wild Turkey and on my sketch blog, Wishing Upon Bluebirds.  For articles leading up to the story on this post, visit my Wild Birds Unlimited articles:  Smitten with Bluebirds and April Celebrations.  And to see last season's chickadee family, visit the Secretive Chickadee Family and A Happy Fledging Time of Year.

It's April and Spring is Here

Of course April 1st isn't the official day of spring, neither is it a guarantee of anything spring about the weather. Yesterday's report called for snow in the higher elevations. And if I needed confirmation, this morning I found two "snow birds"--slate-colored juncos--foraging just outside my door. Maybe those mountain tops did get that dusting of snow.

But the story about white stuff is very different down here in the valley.

While fruit trees are still showing color everywhere, in my yard I'm also enjoying the early opening of dogwood blossoms as they overlap the sprays of purple and pink displayed by the redbud trees.  Always a spectacular combination.   

And on the ground among patches of moss and pale bluets, I searched out the Virginia bluebells and found both fresh pink buds and the delicate blue bell-shaped blossoms.

One other plant has been catching my attention lately, the wild columbine that's getting ready for its first year of bloom.  I thought it had sprouted its delicate green leaves too soon when three weeks ago it was pelted by sleet and snow.  Hard rain and high winds followed.  Despite its delicate appearance, this hardy native showed no wear from all that bluster.    

Its strong stalk shot up, seemingly overnight, and produced tiny lantern shaped buds on arched stems.  Below is an image I took today showing the immature buds with a hint of the scarlet that will eventually dominate each blossom.  While I watch it change, I think of the large clump of columbines my mother once had in her yard and the stories she told of searching for wildflowers along the banks of the Tennessee River.  I'm also reminded of the hardiness of our native plants and the perfection in nature's timing as I see these spring flowers emerge. This columbine has become like a companion, its steady progress telling a story, offering up a new treasure for me to consider with each passing day.  

And while I was out and about checking for signs of spring, I paid a visit to the nest box in the lower yard.  A little over a week ago, I noticed a Carolina chickadee gathering nesting materials and flying in and out of the box.  Today I decided to check on the progress and found six tiny speckled eggs nestled in the softly lined nest cup.  An indignant Ms.Chickadee scolded me while I snapped this image.  

Spring has arrived in the Tennessee Valley.

For a view of the nest box, visit:  Wild Turkey and Eastern Bluebirds.  And for a sketching experience with Bluets and Virginia Bluebells, visit Fumbling En Plein Air at Vickie's Sketchbook.

Inauguration Chickadee

No sooner did I see my photos of this Carolina chickadee in the snow than I began to think about painting it. Since I haven't painted snow in a while, I decided to try it first in my sketch book. Sketching is fun because its relaxed. Generally used for recording experiences, artist notes and sometimes the planning out of a painting, a sketchbook is a place for 'no pressure' practice and play. It's a doubly worthwhile experience to take photos as the sketch progresses. I'm discovering this as I remind myself to do it. You get to see what's happening twice, once while you are deep in your creative brain, wandering the uncharted territory of color, shape and perspective as it relates to a new subject. And a second time as you see the progression through images.

While viewing the image on the left above I could clearly see the pathways of dark and light and how they weren't leading my eye through the sketch. And since this sketch is a bit of a map for a future painting, I went back in and added the darks you see on the right and in the final sketch (top). Generally, I like to begin with the background when I start a painting, to see how the colors and light play out. Then I work with the painting focus to make sure these same colors are reflected in the subject.

This is a painting of neutrals with a splash of color, an arrangement I love. I used ultramarine blue, vandyke brown and sepia to make variations of gray and brown. I added quinacridone gold to the blue to create greens and Winsor Deep Red for the berries.
In the end the sketch was wonderful practice. I noticed and corrected details in the placement of the eye, the shape of the beak, the shape of the white feather pattern against the black cap. I also noticed snow. It's crusty and irregular. I lost my snow shapes easily. So, with my sketch to remind me, I'll draw the snow detail more carefully in the final painting.
Inauguration day. New hope and new energy for the world.