Pine siskins, house sparrows and chickadees

On the New Year's Eve morning there seem to be three species at the feeder: black-capped chickadees, pine siskins, and some house sparrows. No doubt there are some red breasted nuthatches around but I did not see them this morning yet.

Snow buntings

We drove to Brandon and back yesterday. Although the wind was driving drifting snow the roads were not bad. We saw a number of ravens, one magpie and two flocks of snow buntings. The snow buntings are the first I have seen this winter season.

Thieving magpies!

We regularly put out scraps for local stray cats but sometimes there seem to be none about. I looked out yesterday morning and lo and behold instead of stray cat a magpie was taking away the scraps. In the summer we often have crows eating the scraps but this is the first I have seen a magpie doing so. There are only a few around the village. I see them most out in the countryside and they are not all that common even there.

Another white-breasted nuthatch

Another white breasted nuthatch appeared today although the photo is borrowed from the internet. I could not take that good a photo! There are even more red-breasted nuthatches and plenty of chickadees. As well there are plenty of house sparrows and there are pine siskins visiting as well.

Pine siskins back again..

Pine siskins are appearing again as winter settles in. They usually stay for the entire winter in the evergreens around the yard and are frequent visitors to the feeder. They manage to compete with houseparrows!

DOwny Woodpeckers again..

I certainly have not been able to get anywhere near as good a picture of a downy woodpecker as this one I borrowed from the Internet! I saw several today working away at the spruce trees looking for frozen bugs! The weather is perishing. One actually came to the bird feeder but the visit was so brief I could not snap a photo. The only other birds about at the feeder are the ubiquitous house sparrows and numerous chickadees. Oh I should mention that there are also quite a few red breasted nutatches.

Plenty of chickadees

This is a photo of a chickadee a few days ago before the snow came. They are still here since the snow. In fact they visit throughout the winter one of the most faithful of visitors.

Fuzzy magpie...

Magpies do not come to the feeder but they do occasionally visit the yard. I had to use the zoom and that resulted in a shaky photo and a fuzzy magpie but you can at least make out some of the black and white striking colours of the magpie. Because of bad habits and raucous voice this bird's beauty is not appreciated as it should be.

Geese Still Flying South

Yesterday when driving back from Brandon we saw a large flock of Canada geese flying south. This morning I could hear the honkers when I stepped out onto the deck. The geese seem to leave for the south over several months starting in September. This is rather late. I thought all had been gone. There could be no geese as in the photograph since all the sloughs are frozen as of now!

Unphotogenic Downy Woodpecker.

This is actually a downy woodpecker on his way up the feeder post to the feeder. I don't think the photo will win any prizes. This is the first downy I have seen in some time. Nuthatches are quite common but the downy is only an occasional visitor so I do not get many chances to photograph it.

Chickadees still visiting.

Although there are more house sparrows at the feeder than any other bird there are still quite a few chickadees visiting regularly. He is one little fellow resting for a few brief seconds. They do not stay long but flit off.

Whitebreasted nuthatch

I managed to get my own photo of the whitebreasted nuthatch although it cannot compare favorably with the one I found on the net! The last day or so I have seen only red breasted types.

White breasted nuthatch

I was surprised the other day to see a nuthatch without a red breast. I thought perhaps it was just an immature red breasted nuthatch but then I discovered there is a white breasted nuthatch and that was obviously what I had seen. I have seen one several times although the red breasted type is more common around here. Both types of nuthatch stay here all year round but are usually more visible in the fall and winter. This is not my photo unfortunately!

Several magpies.

We went to the next town shopping this morning. The snow is long gone and there is a strong drying wind so that some farmers with crops still unharvested are hard at work combining. There are few birds about but we did see several lone magpies both on the way and coming back. We saw one crow or perhaps a raven by now as the colder weather is coming.

Less juncos all the time..

This is a photo taken a while ago while we still had some snow. It is long gone now. In fact it is dry enough that some farmers have been able to start harvesting again. These are juncos and house sparrows. The juncos are beginning to disappear but the house sparrows stay around for the entire winter and at times are the only visitors to the feeder.

Mystery bird

I knew what this bird was when I took the photo but had forgotten by the time I downloaded it. The snow has been gone for over a week now. However, it has not dried up enough for everyone to finish harvesting. This bird is either a Harris Sparrow or a Purple finch with its colour not evident because of the lighting.

Purple finches still about..

This is a photo before the snow melted away. The purple on the purple finch is not too visible because of the lighting.

They have been around for some time now. Juncos are still here as well. There are even flocks of geese still migrating south.

Juncos are still here..

This photo was taken about a week or so ago when there was still snow on the ground. It is all melted now but there are still juncos at the feeder and feeding on seeds on the ground.

Magpie briefly visits

A Magpie briefly visited the yard. They are not all that common this year but I have seen the odd one around town and out in the countryside. I find them a very attractive bird but they tend to be unpopular around here because of their noise and they are supposed to drive songbirds out of the area. There are still plenty of slate coloured juncos and purple finches around the feeder.

Harris sparrows aplenty.

These are two photos of Harris sparrows. The second does not show the big black bib. There have been more around the feeder the last few days than I have seen in ages and certainly this whole year. Perhaps they are on their way south along with lots of juncos.

Nuthatch in the snow!

We had quite a bit of snow the other day. I was finally able to get a photo of a red-breasted nuthatch. There were no other birds visiting the feeder so the nuthatch stayed long enough for me to take his picture. They are around all winter but are seen only occasionally. Usually they are busy running upside down on the spruce trees digging into the bark.

Yes! There is definitely snow!

As can be seen in the fuzzy photo we have had snow. We are to receive between 5 and 10 cm today but this is the result from overnight. My camera was not functioning properly but you can still see there are definitely two chickadees on the feeder. They do not mind the winter and are faithful visitors for most of the year. The other bird may be a house sparrow but it could be a female purple finch. There are lots of purple finches around just now.

Juncos return..

The last few days slate-coloured juncos are re-appearing on their way south. This morning they should be a bit surprised to find a skiff of snow on the ground but as of eleven oçlock it had already disappeared. New birds are beginning to appear at the feeder. I will post more photos in the next few days. Of course house sparrows still predominate at the feeder.

Chickadee and Purple Finch

This is a photo of a purple finch and black capped chickadee sharing the feeder. As usual it is a bit blurry because the person who took the photo(me) manages to shake a bit and that combined with the fact that the zoom factor is rather large makes quite a few birds blurry! The chickadees are still visiting regularly but the purple finch has disappeared.

A purple finch again

While the feeder is mobbed by house sparrows much of the time, here is a photo of a lone purple finch that has the feeder all to itself. Geese are flying south the last few weeks in large flocks. On the way to the next town today we saw a large flock of Canada Geese in a field and also sever flocks overhead as well.

Returned Squirrel RIP

Our squirrel met a tragic death a couple of days ago. We have two large plastic garbage pails in which we collect rainwater. One is mostly covered. I noticed the suqirrel sitting on the cover and drinking the other day. However the other pail was half full of water and the cover was not on.

My wife the other day was going to dump out the water when she saw our poor drowned squirrel inside. She placed the body in the middle of the lawn. The next day it was gone. Something had a squirrel dinner.

A Squirrel is back..

For the last week or so a squirrel has been back at the feeder. One was around throughout most of the winter but then disappeared in mid-summer for some reason. But now there is a squirrel back and living in one of our sheds it seems. The squirrel thinks it owns the feeder and chases flocks of sparrows at times when he comes upon them.

Canada Geese flocks flying south..

This is not a photo of the flocks but it is cute photo of goslings from National Geographic.
For the last several days I have heard and seen many flocks of honkers on their way south. They also can be heard as they gather in fields near the edge of town. It should not be too long until the juncos start to appear also on their way to the south.

Red Breasted Nuthatch..

This is not my photo of the red-breasted nuthatch. They seldom come right to the feeder but I saw one today. I did not have time to snap a photo though. I have not seen one for quite some time. There are few birds these days but house sparrows and a few black-capped chickadees.

Several flocks of Canada Geese..

We drove to Brandon and back today. On the way I saw one group of Canada geese in a large slough together with many ducks. However I also saw three large flocks in fields that had been newly harvested No doubt there is quite a bit of spilled grain.

I thought that all the redwing blackbirds had already gone south but in several places I saw flocks gathering. Perhaps they come from further north. So far we are still frost free.

Last Hummingbird photo of the season?

I took this photo a few days ago. The female looks to have a rosy breast a reflection from the plastic flower I assume. This is the last hummingbird I have seen. Perhaps they have all gone south already even though there has been no frost as yet. Maybe they think there should be frost. Harvest is just getting underway at present so it is rather late this year.

UPDATE: Sept. 10. I saw at least one more hummingbird visit the feeder several times today so I guess a few are still around.

Tree Swallows gathering for trip south..

Large groups of tree swallows are beginning to congregate usually on telephone or hydro wires around town. I saw them also at a farm we visited yesterday. I noticed on the way that all the red-winged blackbirds are already gone from the sloughs(ponds) but that there are plenty of ducks on them now.

Pine siskin and chickadee

This is a photo of a pine siskin and a chickadee both sharing the feeder platform. The chickadee wll not be there long. They tend to dart in and out again quickly.

Brewer blackbirds gathering again..

These are all three of the photos I managed to get of a flock of Brewer blackbirds that seem to be gathering prior to heading south. One shows our monkshood flowers as well! I have noticed red-wing blackbirds beginning to form flocks as well. The males and females of that species travel in separate flocks. There is less dissension about which way to fly when the sexes fly each in their own flocks I imagine!

Another black capped chickadee

There are quite a few black capped chickadees visiting nowadays. They usually just grab a seed and fly off but I managed to snap this one before he was gone!

Brewer blackbirds gathering to go south?

These are just a few of the Brewer blackbirds that have been around the last couple of days. They seem to be gathering now in large flocks. I believe this happens before they start south for the winter. It seems a bit early since there are still ten days left in August.

Fuzzy Nuthatch through a rainy window..

The red-breasted nuthatch shown here rarely visits the feeder but usually is seen upside down on the spruce tree trunks. This might be a younger one as the reddish colour is not visible. This is the first nuthatch I have seen in some time but they are usually here in the late fall and even over the winter..Even when they do visit the feeder the nuthatches leave quite quickly. I usually miss them when I try to take a photo.

Another male hummingbird

I was right close to the window when this male ruby throat landed and he posed while I took a quick photo. There are quite a few around these days but I imagine come late August and early September there will be more before they all leave.

Evening Grosbeaks continue to vist..

Here are two more photos of evening grosbeaks at my decrepit feeder. Maybe next year I will invest in a new one! Usually I have only seen one or two grosbeaks for a day or two at most and then they disappear but this year they seem to in the vicinity for over two weeks now, often feeding in the morning when I first get up.

Two photos of goldfinches

American goldfinches are regular visitors to the bird feeder these days. As well as sunflower seeds I have a mix of grains including canola seed and I always put a handful or two of that with the sunflower seeds. The goldfinches seem to enjoy canola seed.

Evening Grosbeaks..

For about a week now I have had visits from Evening Grosbeaks. At one time there were about three or four together and I was able to take photos of more than one at a time. Here are a couple from the other day. It looks as if they might be male and female.

Male and Female Hummingbirds

The top photo is of a female that seems to be bloated with eggs. I am a bit surprised as I thought that the young would already be hatched. There are plenty of young sparrows about and even some Brewer blackbird kids. The male is a bit fuzzy but may he is the dad!