Feeder running on empty

I had to buy another large sack of sunflower seeds today. There is a lot of traffic all day at the feeder. There are now quite a few young house sparrows but also plenty of pine siskins, goldfinches, and even chipping sparrows. I saw one starling and also what I believe is a young cowbirds as well. Cowbirds lay their eggs in the nest of other birds so the young cowbird probably grew up with young of a different species.

The photo is of one of the local crows finishing up our chicken scraps!

There is a baby crow that fell out of its nest and was being tended by the parents. So far no cat or dog has found it. Today the parents were nowhere around so I tried to feed it myself and this evening put it in a cage so it could not be gobbled up by a local cat or whatever. However, the parents appeared later so I set the crow out where they could tend to it if they will. I will check in the morning to see if it is still around. I left the cage door open.

There seem to be less hummingbirds visiting at present but there are still some especially near dusk.

Pine siskins

The last few days there have been many pine siskins at the feeder. I took a couple of photos but I don;t think that my zoom was on or it did not work. The feeder is very busy these days. The last two days there are plenty of house sparrows. They seem to be young birds, perhaps the first batch of the season. I understand sparrows have a number of clatches each season.

There are still goldfinches around as well as chipping sparrows and of course the chickadee. There was a starling on the ground with the other birds yesterday.

Eastern Kingbird

I forgot to mention that a couple of days ago when we went to Shoal Lake, I took the opportunity to take a walk by the lake. I saw several Eastern Kingbirds by the banks of the Oak River where it runs into the lake. I was able to observe them closely through my binoculars. These are the first kingbirds I have noticed this season. I have not seen any back in Oakburn although they are common enough in this area.

Loon seen at Child's Lake

We went for a picnic with a friend and his family at Duck Mountain provincial park. Of course nothing is free any more. It requires a 25 dollar sticker even to go into a provincial park now, but at least it is good for a year. They also are portable now so that you can move it from one vehicle to another. It simply hangs on your inside mirror.

There were a few blackbirds, various ducks, and many crows along the way. I also saw for the first time this year several mourning doves along the roadway. There were one or two magpies as well.

At the park there were some tree swallows but there were few birds in the coniferous forest that I saw. On Child's lake however we saw our first loon of the season. The children went down to the beach towards it. Of course it dived and emerged far from shore and ultimately disappeared from view.

There were a few herring gulls waiting for picnickers to leave morsels for them.

First Baltimore Oriole this season.

We drove to Shoal Lake yesterday and on the way back I saw my first Baltimore Oriole this year. It is quite easy to identify them by their bright orange and black. I include a photo (not mine). Each summer there are usually a few orioles that appear but they are not all that common.

A baby crow fell out of its nest in our spruce trees. I left it in case the parents are able to somehow get it back in the nest but they seem to have abandoned it. It has feathers but its wings are nowhere near enough developed to fly so perhaps the parents consider it a lost cause.

There are still plenty of hummingbirds at the feeder. The regular feeder is busy as well. THere seem to be a lot of juvenile birds feeding. I thought that the juveniles were goldfinches but I think that they are mixed with some goldfinches and some other birds perhaps song sparrows. There are also a couple of juvenile house sparrows. They seem to all come together a real mixed group!

American Avocet

Since the weather was decent for a change yesterday I walked over to the two lagoons at the south end of the village. I took my bincoulars with me. There were quite a few ducks on the lagoons but I did not get close enough to identify them. However I did see a very colorful large wading bird. It has a brown head, a long thin black bill, long legs, and a white body with large black streaks in the wings. There were two birds.

I had difficulty identifying the bird since my bird book does not include a photo or description. It is on a checklist of birds in Manitoba and Saskatchewan though. However, I looked at the site of the Manitoba Museum of Man and Nature and they list it with a photo. I was looking under sandpipers plovers etc. so I was lucky to find it. It is listed under stilts and avocets!

Hummingbird refill.

I refilled the hummingbird feeder yesterday as it was almost empty. The hummingbirds are still coming regularly. The feeder has its regular visitors: chipping sparrows, goldfinches, and the odd chickadee. I put a photo of a chickadee on today's post.

I fed the crows some old fish that had been in the freezer a long time. My wife cooked them first and chopped them up into larger pieces. However, the crows were able to grasp the pieces firmly and take off to feed in a nearby field at their leisure.

There was a pine grosbeak visitor again today as well as a few house sparrows.

Immature goldfinches

There are abou half a dozen immature goldfinches that seem to all visit the feeder at the same time. They are just beginning to get yellow colouring but they are almost the same size as the adults. We still have chipping sparrows every day and lately there are a couple of house sparrows as well. A male pine grosbeak has been visiting most days.

I fed the crows an old ham that was still in the fridge at my other place when my son moved out. At first they had a bit of trouble with it but then I split it in pieces with a bolo knife. It then disappeared like magic as they had pieces they could carry off.

There were a couple of robins in the yard today. The hummingbird feeder is still going strong. It seems busiest just before dark. I will have to replace the liquid wtihin another day or so.

More Hummingbirds

Hummingbirds are now regularly visiting the feeder. Half the liquid is gone within a few days. It is good that it is not get too stale or ferment in any event. The hummingbirds are rather pugnacious. If one is feeding it is often driven off by another hummingbird.

I saw another pine grosbeak today and for the first time I had a brief sighting of a cowbird on the ground near the feeder. The are the usual chickadees, chipping sparrows, and goldfinches as visitor and a couple of house sparrows. A goofy crow visits too engaging in acrobatics to try and reach the seed while balancing on the feeder.

Many ruby throated hummingbird visits

Throughout the day there were visits by several hummingbirds. One looked to be a juvenile as it lacked a red throat. There was never more than one at a time but the visits were reasonably frequent.

The feeder has its regular visitors: goldfinches, chipping sparrows, the odd chickadee and house sparrow. A pine grosbeak visited again today. I saw a couple of robins looking for worms brought to near the surface by the wet weather we are having.

First Hummingbird!

I took down my new hummingbird feeder. It was polluted with insects that managed to get in and end up dead in the reservoir! I put some duct tape over the cracked are in my old feeder and it did not leak. Air was getting in before and the liquid simply dripped out! Last evening I happened to glance at the feeder and a ruby throated humming bird was feeding. It was getting on towards sundown. Now that the feeder has been discovered I expect that there will be regular visitors although there are plenty of flowers at the moment so perhaps they will not be all that frequent. Chickadees are faithful feeders as well.

A pine grosbeak visited the feeder again. Also, chipping sparrows (as pictured) are also frequent visitors along with American goldfinches. I saw several house sparrows visiting yesterday. A couple of robins explored the lawn while I was sitting outside yesterday.

Many mallards!

On the way to shop at the next town only 14k away we saw about a half dozen pairs of mallards most in separate sloughs(ponds)but one pair waddling in a field! The most common bird seen were red-wing blackbirds. They seem quite numerous this year. On the other hand I have yet to see a yellow headed blackbird. There are usually a few to be seen as well.
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The feeder is still visited by chickadees, chipping sparrows, the odd house sparrow, and goldfinches. Today there were about half a dozen birds that I believe were immature goldfinches. One or two had a hint of yellow developing but the wingbars look just like the adults.

Thunderstorms and Heat

There was another northern flicker on our lawn today. On the way to shopping saw several pigeons that seem to have made their home in or around a couple of metal granaries just at the highway intersection outside of the village.

As usual there are American goldfinches frequenting the feeder as well as chipping sparrows and some chickadees. I am still awaiting the first hummingbird at the feeder. I also saw a house sparrow pair at the feeder today.

Another pine grosbeak

Quite a few American goldfinches have visited today. I include a photo. There was also a pine grosbeak and a house sparrow as well as a few chickadees. There are still chipping sparrows visiting. A crow has taken to visiting the feeder even though it has great difficulty balancing on the feeder and reaching the seeds. Maybe it is hungry or it is just a diversion. My wife wants to shoo it away but I tell her to let it be! It goes away after a short visit.

Red Winged Blackbird Babies!

I went for a walk in Shoal Lake in a park where the Oak River joins the lake. There are tall grasses at the side of the river. The river itself is little more than a creek but is a bit wider where it joins the lake. I disturbed a nest of red-wing blackbirds. The young were old enough to fly and managed to make it as far as the lower branches of nearby trees. The parents made a huge racket and flew over my head calling down curses upon me. The birds must mate as soon as they arrive to have young already on the wing. Maybe they are intending to leave early this year or perhaps they can manage two broods a year.

There are still plenty of chipping sparrows and goldfinches at the feeder as well as an occasional chickadeed. I fed the crows some chicken bones. They cleaned them up in less than half an hour.

A few magpies about!

Magpies like crows are not too popular around here. I like both. I even feed crows leftovers at times. Magpies are not plentiful this year but I saw a couple on our way shopping at the next town. There are many more red-winged blackbirds.

The feeder is mostly frequented by chipping sparrows and goldfinches with a few house sparrows every few days and chickadees more frequently. Yesterday I saw a pine grosbeak. They are not very common this time of year. I see them more often in the winter.

A bit more variety!

There was a Harris sparrow clearly visible in the grass by the feeder. I haven't seen one for quite a few days. I saw a house sparrow as well. It is strange that what used to be such a common bird is not all that common around the feeder this winter and spring. I also saw a couple of chickadees. As well there were the usual goldfinches and chipping sparrows.

No Hummingbirds yet

We drove to Winnipeg and back yesterday. There were many ducks on sloughs including mallards as in the photograph. Red-Winged blackbirds are very common as are crows. I saw Canada geese on some sloughs, usually just a couple.

At the feeder goldfinches continue to visit as do chipping sparrows. A northern flicker visited our lawn. It was busy finding something probably grubs.

So far we have not seen any hummingbirds visit the feeder. Of course we have not been here all the time. Certainly many small flies have visited and ended up in the reservoir of liquid somehow!

My hummingbird feeder is up!

I had to buy a new hummingbird feeder. I hope the one I bought is meant to attract humming birds and not just human buyers!

We went to the dump yesterday and out in the country today. There are plenty of red-wing black birds and a few crows here and there. At the dump there was a magpie as well as a few starlings but not gulls or crows.

The feeder is being visited by many goldfinches as well as chipping sparrows and white crowned sparrows but that is about all these days. I have seen a few chickadees but there havent even been house sparrows lately.