I guess my reply disappeared into the wind. I saw Ginny had replied and that disappeared also. Ginny, that was definitely a male bunting in the photo you had. A female is a beautiful all green color. I assume the other bird you showed was a hawk of some kind. Marsha could probably ID it better. Scott, glad you're enjoying your backyard visitors. We usually get great crested flycatchers every summer. This is the first year with thistle socks, and that is the definite preference, and it's enjoyable seeing them hanging on sideways to it. Like Marcia, some will also eat seed also. Last year they seemed to love sunflower seeds. Do you have a nice pair of binocs to watch them with? Marcia, I hope your birds find a safe way to visit you more often. I notice my front feeder empties most quickly, even though I see birds less on it because it is less convenient to watch. I haven't seen many yellow rumped warblers, but perhaps they're staying more on the periphery than where I can easily see them. Gary

They have a beautiful song, Linda. It took me quite some time to know where that "sound" was coming from as I had never heard it before. My first painted bunting appeared at my feeder on Easter Sunday of 2003 and they have appeared randomly since then.

GORGEOUS! The male is my No. 1 "wanna see" bird! I was lucky enough to see two females several years ago (way out of range here in ATL) and they really are pretty, too. Thanks for including the photos of the females, I rarely see any photos of them.

Hi there, Not sure about which part of Texas you are in, but I have 2 friends in Texas who host Painted Buntings each year. They adore White Millet. You can buy a bag of pure white millet at WBU or Tractor Supply has a mix which is largely white millet with sunflower seed mixed in.