Backyard Birds: May 2020

Photos of our backyard birds taken during May

(birds that aren't posted elsewhere):

First of all, my favorite bird pic this month is this gorgeous Northern Cardinal male...

There are tons of Mourning Doves in our backyard. They visit throughout the daylight hours, often as couples. I sometimes feel sorry for the females because the males constantly chase them down and pounce on them. It certainly doesn't appear to be a courtship behavior although it may be. I haven't really researched enough about the behavior of these birds. I love to hear their soft gentle calls during the day.

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Sweet Mourning Dove couple

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Female Northern Cardinal

The bluebird parents have been doing a little bit of house cleaning lately. Maybe they're preparing for their next family :)

Male Eastern Bluebird

I was excited to see several Tufted Titmouse fledglings at the feeders. There's probably 5 or 6 of these babies. It's so much fun to watch them developing their flying skills. They meander around the feeders while trying to decide how and where to land. They often land in some precarious positions on the pole or hangers. I love their bushy little eyebrows and tiny tufts on top of their heads. They're so stinking cute!

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I've seen several Carolina Chickadee fledglings but haven't had the opportunity to photograph them yet. There are babies everywhere right now!

Bluebirds Learning Independence

I've literally had the pleasure of watching these bluebirds grow and learn from their parents. They're often in the tree tops of our small fruit trees in the field, watching and waiting for something to move in the grass below. Sometimes it's a worm, sometimes a cricket or grasshopper. Sometimes it's only an illusion. It's amazing how fast they grow and learn- but necessary because birds have many, many predators.

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Bluebird Babies

I've enjoyed watching these precious Bluebird parents caring for their young the past couple weeks. They are back and forth countless times to and from the nest box all day long, every day. Both parents equally share the responsibility of bringing food to their nestlings and carrying away their waste. Bluebirds are among the first songbirds to produce offspring in early spring. I've noticed that Chickadees and Titmice also nest early in spring.

The nestlings will probably fledge within a couple more days. They're getting pretty cramped inside the nest box and I often see them crawling atop each other and trying to get a peek outside. They're so stinking cute!

This is pretty gross but it's all a part of the ways of nature- when the baby bird has to poop, it will turn its back to the parent and discharge a poop sac. The poop is contained within a white sac which helps to keep the nest clean and provides an easy way for the parent to carry waste away from the nest. This behavior, in turn, helps prevent the attraction of insects like ants and flies around the nest. It is nature's way of housecleaning. 

More about them later.

Bathing Bluebirds

I was briefly entertained by a bluebird family as they bathed in the fresh, clean water in our birth bath.  There was a total of four bluebirds, probably the parents and two juveniles.  The younger birds flew around the bird bath and close to the water but instead of landing on the rim, they landed on the flower stems surrounding it.  I'm not sure why they didn't dip into the water with the others.  Maybe they haven't fully developed their landing skills.  I wish my camera had been set up to shoot a video of them.  They were so precious to watch!

"The air is crowded with birds; beautiful, tender, intelligent birds

to whom life is a song".

Bathing Blue Birds

There were 5 bluebirds in the bird baths a few days ago. The water level in the baths were extra low which is perfect for bathing birds. I enjoyed watching them splash around in the water- love my bird visitors! Oh yea, I've since replenished them with water. Birds depend on a good source of water year around, even more so when we are in drought situations.

Digital photo art is my "therapy".   Sometimes I like to get a little more creative and play around with my photos.  The photos below had either too much light or too much dark in their backgrounds and I couldn't edit them to my satisfaction.  With the help of PicMonkey I washed the backgrounds with color which made them appear softer.  I like the results.  What do you think?  

I hope your day is a great one!