Backyard Birding Forum

A few of the birds from the backyard this weekend. I hope you enjoy, we certainly did!

Carolina Wren - I have a ton of these - I put up little woven birdhouses underneath my deck and they really like them.


Pine Warbler (looks like a goldfinch, but it's not) This little guy is on the feeder nonstop. He loves the nutseed mix I put out.


Another of the Pine Warbler - this is a blurry pic but for some reason I like it and I wanted to share it.


Mockingbird - this guy has taken over the backyard! Big suet eater and he loves the nut and berry seedblocks


My little buddy


Cardinals - male and female. I have so many cardinals it's ridiculous. They look great when the sun is shining.


NEMESIS!!!!

wow.  nicely done, matt.

i wish we had things going on already, by to give you an idea of what's happening here, we basically spent the weekend clearing snow and sleet off the driveway.  :(

I had thought about you and your woven nests this weekend.  did you say that they need to be kept dry?  i was looking into getting a couple, but i don't think i have a place to hang them that is protected from the weather.  however, i did get a table saw for christmas, so i might venture to make a more traditional birdhouse on my own.

lastly, how do you distinguish a pine warbler from a gold finch?

lol, I know all about your weather, my parents were visiting last week (they live outside of Rochester) and they had to extend their stay here until sunday to avoid driving back in that mess.

The woven nests won't be good unless you have them protected - rain would soak them pretty quick.



About the only way to tell a pine warbler from the goldfinch is the beak. A warbler has a long, slender beak and the finch has a shorter, more triangular pointed beak that starts out alot bigger at the mouth and slims down to the pointed end .

warbler


goldfinch

Almost forgot to post this blurry pic - We have a few red tailed hawks building a nest about 200 yards into the woods in the backyard. I think they are male and female, one is alot smaller than the other. Had to zoom quite a bit to get this pic. So far I haven't seen them picking off my birds, but I'm sure they'll be preying upon them.

immortal_suby:

lol, I know all about your weather, my parents were visiting last week (they live outside of Rochester) and they had to extend their stay here until sunday to avoid driving back in that mess.

LOL.  after shoveling for 4 hours yesterday, i think my wife is ready to move to warmer climes.

immortal_suby:

About the only way to tell a pine warbler from the goldfinch is the beak. A warbler has a long, slender beak and the finch has a shorter, more triangular pointed beak that starts out alot bigger at the mouth and slims down to the pointed end .

awesome.  i'll be sure to pay more attention.

Finally caught this guy on film. I am still not sure if he is a Downy or a Hairy woodpecker. Pretty tough to tell them apart. He visits the suet alot, but is pretty skittish so it's been tough to get a shot of him. I believe there is a female also since another that visits looks identical but without the red on the back of the head.

great shot, Matt!

Finally caught this one too. Had to zoom quite a bit so the image isn't that great. If I try to get close this one flies off every time. It's a red bellied woodpecker (although the belly isn't red - not sure who came up with that name)

Matt,

I know this reply is months late. Just wanted to say that I enjoyed your photos very much.

I typically don't have a lot of trouble separating the Goldfinches from the yellow warblers. The distinctive black wingbars on the goldies work for me ... the calls are very different as well.

I wouldn't worry much about the hawks taking your birds. While they will capture birds at times, it's usually something along the lines of a dove or pigeon. They prefer small mammals as a food source.

Once again ... very nice photos, especially the Carolina

---

Bob
Maryville, Tennessee

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