"I ahve to say you ladies are REALLY good, maybe we should skip to the first fall warblers???? " Ladies, we are in trouble. Check your Peterson guide on confusing fall warblers to bone up for the challenge! Actually the guide is pretty good by putting them in sub-sections by field marks and color. You can then proceed by process of elimination until you get down to the correct bird. Then check the Cornell's site for other photographs for further positive ID markers. Local variations and light in the photos make if tougher too but if you find most of key ID points it is probably that bird. According to my SMAS group the Blue Jay is considered partially leucistic, not albino, and is exhibiting other feather abnormalities related to genetics. In another communication, Arlene Ripley commented that she has seen many albino birds but none have exhibited the fur-like structures of this Jay's feathers. I did some of my own research on fur-like feathers and every site pointed to something called proto-feathers which were exhibited by some early dinosaurs before true feathers emerged. It's exciting to imagine this bird may be exhibiting an ancient genetic throwback to prehistoric times which upholds the common belief that birds evolved from dinosaurs as they first took flight. There has been a call to ask everyone on the local site if there is a scientic name for this feather anomaly and this call comes from a man that works for the Smithsonian Institute and really knows birds. So far, no reponse, so the local bird community here may be stumped. There was sentiment regarding hope the bird survives. Jean, has this bird been a regular at your feeder for any length of time in which one could make the assumption it has survived nature with this variance? Arlene suggested the photo be posted on websites dedicated to leucistic and albino birds and see if more information could be obtained from readers. PapaSmurf is a rare Blue Jay indeed. CT

I was very fortunate that it did very little damage, fell away from the house and only one trunk was resting against the roof, and it did no damage to the house. I will watch the perennials that are in that side of this bed to see if any of them will require moving. I haven't been able to get my helper in that bed since this incident because it has been too wet, and we will be getting more rain the remainder of this week.....................so hopefully, the creeping jenny won't be too bad by the time we can get in it. Thanks, Marti, it will get better as the season progresses. I love this bed as it is the first thing I see when I look out the window when I am at the computer.

It looks like there are rings scribed into the back posts at the top and bottom of the back slats. This is the way a chairmaker would mark where the slats go. This is usually the sign of a handmade chair. Shakers did this; so did other craftsmen. You should have an antiques dealer look at them. Are there pegs in the back of the posts to keep the slats in place? That would also be a good sign. The finials and feet are nicely turned and graceful; is there wear to the bottom of the feet? However, I'm curious about the lead paint thing. I don't see any paint on the chair seats. Lead was added to make whites really white and to provide better color opacity. What I think I see is the protective varnish on the rush beginning to flake off. Have you bought a lead test kit (available at HD and Lowe's and other hardware/paint stores) and checked to see if there really is lead paint? So, if the seats are actually painted with lead paint, they can be re-rushed and the problem removed. That would certainly be less expensive than buying new chairs.

I'm still going with Yellow-bellied Sapsucker based on your location. Follow this link to pics of yellow-bellied sapsucker and scroll down through the pics of immature/juvenile birds. One in particular (the 16th down I think) shows a bird that looks just like yours and even has a hint of yellow on the underside just above the tail base. If you look closely at your photo, your bird also has this touch of yellow. Hope that helps.