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.

💗

Sweet Mourning Dove couple

★

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!

☆

☆

☆

☆

☆

☆

☆

☆

☆

☆

☆

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

Sweet Cardinal Couple

Sweet Cardinal couple. It's mating season so there are several pairs of them around here. My very favorite bird...

❤

❤

❤

❤

❤

❤

Courting at the Bird Feeders

This pair of courting Northern Cardinals were at the bird feeder this morning and were feeding each other sunflower seeds.  I noticed the male left the female a couple of times, but returned within a few seconds with seeds from another feeder which he then gave her.  Their bonding behavior is normal during breeding season.  It's such a sweet thing to watch :) 

Love, sweet love

March Photos of Cardinals

During the early days of Spring, our Cleveland Pear tree bears its beautiful white blooms.  When they begin to fade, the Cardinals will sometimes eat what's left.  They seem to love it.  

The males are brilliantly red right now.  I've noticed the past couple of weeks that the Cardinals have all been sparring quite a bit.  Maybe it's because nesting season is near and they're trying to find mates and establish territorial boundaries.  Whatever the reasons, they're very active these days-  constantly chasing each other through the trees and being more dominant than usual at the bird feeders.  Grumpy birds.  

So What If It's Raining?

Said the back yard birds...

Tuesday was the first time I'd seen fledgling bluebirds in our yard.

Three more bluebirds

Perhaps they were looking for worms.

I should put some meal worms out for them.

These two were huddled together during a break in the rain.

Aren't they cute?

Shake it off!

Here Comes the Rain Again...

A young cardinal gets a taste of wet suet from its mama.

I doubt there were any dry spots to be found that day

The Juvenile Cardinals Have Arrived!

While recuperating from back surgery done last week, I've been sitting on my back porch a few minutes each day, observing the newcomers. I've been expecting them and knew they would arrive sooner or later. 

I've observed several juvenile cardinals at the bird feeders.  One group of them appear older than the others.  Additionally, it appears there are more females than males; however, it's not uncommon to err at this young age because immature males may be mistaken for females.  

Juveniles are fun to watch- their flight skills need further development and they're sometimes clumsy. They also fight frequently over the feeders- they don't like to share.  

They remind me of human behavior observed in own our children and grandchildren.  

Thank you for dropping in.  Have a beautiful Sunday!