One of my Cooper's got one of my Cardinals this afternoon. I understand the nature of things and I'll get over it by tonight.

It's always sad, Pat, to see a bird you've fed be killed, but you have the right attitude. I notice the cardinals are most numerous as the sun goes down, like now, and I've always figured it's after the hawks have gone to roost so it's safe to feed.

I keep telling myself "don't take sides, don't take sides...."

Claire

Jane

Absolutely stunning picture, Jane.

Jane, I love the color echo of the male's feathers with the berries and buds. Is that your hawthorn or a Viburnum or . . . ?

Not to mention but the composition is terrific too.

Claire

Thanks for the kind words about the picture. NHBabs - it's aronia, chokeberry. Bought a few American Beauty natives a few years ago specifically for the birds and it worked. However, poor little finch tried tasting a berry and the little guy literally spat it out. Felt sorry for him as he wiped his beak on a branch. His wife didn't taste any.

Jane

Edit note: I've answered my own question via Google. Apparently, yes, some birds do show compassion. Had I thought, I knew this about corvids. Lost my head there, sorry.

Speaking of compassion, two things:

(1) I just got my first issue of LivingBird from Cornell and the article "Look Out!" about the alarm call system between birds has just about blown me away. Did not know about that.

(2) I hope all you New England people and your birds are doing well after your awful storm this weekend.

Thanks, Pat. The storm was heavy on wind and moderate on snow here on the southeast MA coast. The temperatures hovered around freezing so the snow ended up as two to three very dense inches of a hybrid wintry mix/snow glop. I was out early in the morning shoveling to clear the ground for some panicky birds (the hanging feeders were full although the windward sides were iced up). Some of it couldn't be shoveled so I broadcast seed on top for the birds that don't use the hanging feeders

After dealing with the birds I had breakfast, then freed up the car.

All is calm now - tomorrow I'll see how the area away from the immediate coast fared. Cape Cod and the South Coast got hammered and parts of Connecticut and Rhode Island too, but nothing near what happened to the mid-Atlantic.

Claire

Pushing the envelope again but in case you have pandas in your yard, I just saw a video from NPR about a Giant Panda at the National Zoo in Washington playing in the snow (WATCH: Giant Panda Revels In D.C.'s Giant Snowstorm).
The link also has an earlier video of more pandas in snow.

Claire

This little guy is all over the net. He is SO happy, the joy is contagious.

I'm at a point in life where I'm wondering if there will ever be joy again because on Jan. 10th I lost my spouse of 47 years. This morning this Carolina Wren was outside my window and for the time it took to capture its picture, I was not in pain. There is much to be learned by watching Nature's ambassadors sing and planting what they need to be sustained. Photographing and feeding birds and any other critter that crosses my path, may be my way into another tomorrow. They are part of our joy,. . . each poster on this forum.

Only the males sing, according to Cornell:Carolina Wren Songs

Jane

I'm very sorry to hear of your loss, Jane. I am glad I had a chance to meet you both in happier times.

You've suffered a terrible loss, Jane, and the fact that you're continuing to post wonderful photos is a testament to your strength and resiliency.

You said: " Photographing and feeding birds and any other critter that crosses my path, may be my way into another tomorrow."

Please keep photographing and feeding - this is a gift to us too as well as to yourself.

Claire

Jane, I am so sorry. We've been married almost 46 years. I hope the visiting birds and coming spring give you some joy. Last night the full moon was beautiful. My bathroom on the second floor of our old farmhouse has one of those windows on a slant so it would fit between the roof and the roof of the adjacent ell. The full moon was my nightlight when I got up.

I have been negligent about checking in here. Today's motivation was seen bluebirds for the first time this winter. There were also two starlings. We don't usually get buejays but they were at the feeders, too. One year bluebirds ate the berries on my spreading cotoneaster but it's still full of berries. We have bluebirds in the summer. The local birder said the ones we see in winter are different from our summer ones. The wild turkeys have only recently started visiting our yard this winter. Apparently they can still get a lot of wild food. I can still see a good bush of winter berries from my window.

My sincere sympathy to you, Jane. I hope the natural world continues to bring you such times of peace.

Last weekend there was an night-time visitor in the back field, a coyote hunting for voles, successfully I hope. The shallow snow is perfect for leaving tracks and makes hunting easier than many winters.

The snow has blown off the corn field, so I can only ski in the woods, but I am enjoying it even though I am retracing my steps (slides?). Today I heard a barred owl and realized that it is mating and nesting time for the owls now. There were many tracks in the woods as well since we haven't had any fresh snow for more than a week.

Grouse (edit) and rabbit or squirrel

I found myself wondering about shelter and how the little critters avoid having the predators just follow the footprints back to their shelter. There were several spots that had multiple sets of tracks all in the same area or following paths multiple times, and a coyote had been all over in here.

No idea of who left this - something that hopped, but not even sure if it was a small mammal or a bird

snowshoe hare

Stream scenery

Kindest thoughts and hugs to you, Jane. Please stay engaged with your birds so we all benefit from your gorgeous pictures and wonderful commentary.

My gift of wonder for today was 4(!) eagles over the field at once for perhaps 15 minutes. One pair seemed to be flirting, almost colliding midair and then making their almost blue-jay-like pump handle call. The other two just seemed to be catching updrafts

Wonderful indeed!

Claire

Out for a walk along the road in today's un-January-like weather of 40 degrees I noticed this dead tree which seems to be getting a lot of attention from the pileated woodpeckers.

It looks like the woodpeckers have found a treasure trove of insects in that tree!

Claire

That's a LOT of attention, NHBabs. Good for you catching the eagles, very nice and it is definitely a gift to watch birds soar.

The robins are trying the holly and chokeberries. I have a series (maybe post tomorrow) that shows 6 frames in one second of a robin sampling a chokeberry and spitting it out...berry was not ready. Makes one wonder why they pull it off. However, some berries are going down some gullets.

Chokeberry bush (aronia)

In Blue Princess Holly

I like the picture below - he did eat it.

Great pics, Jane - the second pic of the robin in the holly looks like the bird has been lying in ambush waiting for a berry to pass by.

Claire

Jane, such detail in those photos! I especially like the last one with the tongue in the process of helping to move the berry.

The woodpecker tree has been dead for quite a while, but when it cracked at the base, it fell against another tree, so I imagine that it has quite a population of insects in the well-rotted trunk.

I thought this article might be of interest, particularly the linked page of animal drawings. I also enjoyed the list of different terms for snow which puts our limited list of words to shame. I seem to recall discussion of the subnivium here in previous winters. For this winter, I think the warmer than average temperatures are probably a plus since there isn't a whole lot of snow.

Excellent article, thank you, NHBabs.

Good reminder of the subnivium world, NHBabs. Our winters here on the coast often produce minimal snow cover, except for the deluge every four or five years, like last year. I remember being surprised last year on a cold day when I dug out a birdbath lying on the ground under a few feet of snow and discovered it was filled with slush, not ice. If exposed to open air it would have been solid ice - an excellent example of snow insulation.

I've always left a lot of leaf litter as winter mulch insulation to make up for the lack of snow, and a few brush piles probably also help as protection for the critters and birds. I'm hoping the piles of English ivy I pulled last fall are inhabited by native sparrows and wrens.

Claire

Life around a local pond:

notice that the female is leading...just sayin'

Having a green head and orange shoes is kinda nice

Jane

Great pictures, Jane! It also looks like the wing beats of the geese are synchronized - all down at pretty much the same time. No individualists there.

The green head and orange shoes is striking, but some of those guys have blue heads with orange shoes. Are they all mallards or maybe some are Northern shovelers? Ducks confuse me.

Claire

Claire, Northern Shovelers have a shovel style beak that is dark. Not sure I've seen one in person. I think it's just the iridescence of their feathers and the light on certain heads that make the mallards show the bluish cast.

There were 6 pictures in this series, but I cut it down to 3 of this robin that I thought had a discerning eye.

Taken 1/27/16, 5:16:52 PM. Thought for sure the berry was going down the hatch.

Still 5:16:52 PM - along with 3 other pictures of him holding the berry

at 5:16:53, he spat it out. And we'll never know why.

Jane - from outside my window

Jane, while the birds may not like the Aronia since they keep spitting the berries out, I love that you (and therefore we) get to see lots of birds who come to check out the berries. Does the fruit get eaten eventually, either due to sweetening up with freeze/thaw or because by late winter the birds have eaten everything else and so this becomes their default emergency food? Also, how far is this from your window? I'm thinking I need one of these as a replacement for the Viburnum carlesii that succumbed to a combination of voles and last year's cold weather.

NHBabs, after the freeze/thaw has "cured" the berries to perfection, that shrub is usually cleaned within an hour or so by robins and cedar waxwings, usually by mid-February. It is a very dependable, albeit suckering, shrub. I just clip the suckers each year because it is in a small garden. The shrub is perhaps 8 feet from the house, faces east and south, is roughly 6-7 ft. high and has nice dark green leaves in summer and it turns red/orange/gold in autumn. Not sorry I chose this native. When on my PC, not iPad, I can post autumnal pictures for you.

NHBabs, it seems that I concentrate more on what chokeberry does for the birds rather than what its foliage does for me. Only found one picture showing its fall leaf color and that's because a chickadee was the focus. Google has great images of aronia's fall color - much better than mine. But, I can certainly attest to the berry attraction for many birds, especially robins and cw's.

Jane

Here are two photos of a small flock of Monk Parakeets visiting our bird feeders this morning. I took these through the kitchen slider. Considered damnable nuisances by shoreline residents, monk parakeets construct enormous nests around electric transformers and are noisy and messy. Impossible to get 'rid' of (U.I. tries, periodically) and more likely to breed in greater numbers here with the warming climate. We always cringe whenever we see them at our feeders because our neighbors have a huge fir tree, the kind they often use as nesting sites.

moliep - why is it when I show up at your house you only have sparrows? Glad you got the shot. As is often the case, it started because of a human: Monk Parakeets in CT

It's "Deja Vu all over again!" (thank you, Yogi Berra). Monk Parakeets are considered nuisances now, but a couple hundred years ago there were native parrots, Carolina Parakeets, living
in North America in pretty much the same range.

According to Cornell Lab of Ornithology:

"The Carolina Parakeet inhabited deciduous forests and forest edges in
the eastern United States as far north as the Great Lakes region, as
well as wooded river bottoms of the Great Plains as far west as
Nebraska."

They got killed off for the same reasons as people hate the Monk Parakeets and are now extinct.

Claire

Interesting reading about the parakeets. I had seen news items about the Monks in NYC, but hadn't realized that they had wandered further afield.

Thanks, Jane, for the additional information on the Aronia. I have a purchased Aronia melanocarpa, I think 'Autumn Magic', that hasn't impressed me with either its foliage color or its flowers, and it doesn't form fruit - perhaps it needs a partner? I know that there are some wild Aronia here, but haven't checked whether they are A. melanocarpa or A. arbutifolia like yours or A. x prunifolia AKA floribunda, which also exists in New England, though I don't know of it being sold commercially. (It might be a cross of the other two, though sources aren't consistent.) 'Brilliantisima' will definitely go onto my list, particularly since where I want to put it, the suckering will be a plus since it will be more likely to survive the cursed voles.

Edited to add that according to both the USDA Plants Database and the the Biota of North America (BONAP) North American Plant Atlas say that A. arbutifolia isn't native in my county, so my wild plants are probably A. melanocarpa.

NHBabs - all of mine are Brilliantissma - ABNatives link - the blossoms smell great.

I heard him across the street in the woods so I donned my rubber shoes and coat and caught him flying over my head. Pileated woodpecker.

Jane

Beautiful woodpecker shots, Jane - it looks so powerful in flight. Usually you see pics of pileated woodpeckers in one stationary spot looking like a nutcracker.

Back down to earth, there was essentially no snow on the ground this morning (aside from a few remaining clots) but there were a lot of turkeys acting as groundcover. They mostly stayed away when there was snow on the ground.

I love the sun reflected off the feathers.

Claire

Fantastic shots of the Pileated Woodpecker, Jane, especially because of the perspective from underneath. As for what happens when you come here, there's no way of knowing who will show up at the feeders, but we're very hopeful that the two osprey platforms on the river will have "takers" this year. You are always welcome.

Thanks for the link to the Monk Parakeets (above). Their presence in CT has certainly generated a heated debate. While I wouldn't want to harm them, I also wouldn't want to have them live nearby because of the noise.

Claire, I really like the closeup of the turkey coloration in the sun's reflection. Sadly, we no longer see them around our area.

Jane, I am sorry for your immense loss. I hope your many memories, your love of nature, and your friends and family will sustain you and help ease your heartache.

Your passion for life and your strength are evident in the many beautiful photos and stories you share with us. I always find such pleasure in seeing your nature photographs. You have a great eye for composition and framing, and an incredibly steady hand. And I love the way you hear a pileated woodpecker and quickly don galoshes, jacket and camera to capture him overhead. We must hold onto all that magic! Keep sharing your beautiful world with us, Jane.

starsplitter, you have no idea how much I needed your words right now. My heart is heavy with thanks. Very kind of you to write. Timing is everything.

Jane, those pileated photos are gorgeous! In addition to their beauty, I love how the first two really give a feel for the way woodpeckers fly.

Claire, I admire the way you capture the detail of the turkey's feathers and their iridescence as the light hits them. Our turkeys have also returned this week as the field has slowly begun to emerge from the snow, but no photos.

starsplitter, here here!!!!!

The thread is way long so I'm starting a new one. As always, feel free to continue the discussion here if you like.

Claire

I am catching up with this thread before going on to the
latest one.

Jane, I am so very sorry to hear about your loss. I can’t improve upon the messages by starsplitter
and others who have expressed it so well.
I echo their feelings about your contribution to this site. I always look forward to your posts, as you
have great talent, skill, insight and information...and your photos are so
charming. I hope you will continue to
share with us. Most recently, the Carolina
wren (I can almost hear it singing), robins, ducks, and the pileated in flight! Awesome.

Molie, I’ve never heard of monk parakeets. So interesting and a pretty color. Too bad they are a nuisance.

Nhbabs, 4 eagles…Wow, I'd like to see one! Love your scenery too.

Claire, the turkeys surely do love your place.

Susan

Jane, I'm glad that my simple words gave you comfort. The approaching evening might be a difficult time for you -- it often is for those recently (within years) bereaved. And with dusk, those birdies leave for the night -- except, do you ever notice how the cardinals are often the last to call it a day? And in the summer, those hummingbirds also come after dusk as well. Hold on, Jane. Take all the time you need and grieve how you need. Be gentle with yourself on this awful rollercoaster trip. Time does temper the heartache, but before that, it seems to take forever to find release from the crushing loss. (A friend once described the pain of grief as being also physical pain for its intensity.) But, even if someone has a miracle pill, it wouldn't really help hasten what needs to take time, reflection, remembering and tears. But remember that you are not alone in many other ways.

Words are inadequate, but it's all many of us can offer. We need to offer as much as you might need to receive.

Claire, I meant to tell you how much I loved those turkey shots. Beautiful. I used to have turkeys milling about, but not so much in the past couple of years. I'm curious what they are looking for on the ground (to eat?). Do you put corn or seed out for them? I just love wild turkeys. Seeing them feels like "everything's gonna be just fine" even if the world seems crazy from one week to the next. One late afternoon I got to watch a group of them fly up into a tall oak and settle in. I don't know if they stayed there all night or only until Leno was over.

Susan, love those goldfinches, but you're are so yellow only their hairdresser knows for sure.

Starsplitter, when they are flying around their color looks dull, but when they land up close the yellow neck areas show up. I thought they were brighter than last year's flock too, but when I look at old pics, they don't seem to be. No Clairol involved. lol

starsplitter: I put mixed seed and critter mix on the ground for all of the groundfeeders, including native sparrows, their relatives, and squirrels. The turkeys think this is just fine. If they happen to be around when I spread the seed in the morning they probably think it's for them alone (they gather around clucking and wait for me to broadcast it).

Claire

Maybe we were game keepers or farmers in another life. Made a mistake buying 3 cans of the wrong cat food that Ivy refuses. The possum will be very happy tonight.