Stashing Seeds

Redheaded Woodpecker stashing his sunflower seed in pine bark- do you think he'll remember where he placed it? I had to google it and read that birds that store food may hide hundreds or thousands of seeds every year. Many species not only remember their hiding places, but what kind of tidbit they hid in each particular place. Some are extra cautious and may re-hide seeds if they think another animal saw the hiding spot.

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The Red-Headed Thief

One by one, he (or she) retrieved the nuts and stuffed them into a hole in the power pole. He likely made two or three dozen trips back and forth to the feeder. No wonder my bird seed bill has edged upward lately :)

A Few Spring Migrants

I missed most of the spring migrants that fly through during the month of April because I was super busy doing other tasks. I did spot a few of the usual migrants...

Male & Female Rose-Breasted Grosbeaks:

One afternoon, there were about 4 male Grosbeaks at one of the feeders. By the time I grabbed my camera and went back outside, they were gone. The female directly above was fairly nervous about my camera clicks. She stared directly at me for several seconds then vanished.

 Male Indigo Bunting:

My favorite photo of the day:

The Red-Headed Woodpecker seemed to dare the Rose-Breasted Grosbeak to stop at the feeder. The Grosbeak flew by him then took off in the opposite direction.

Red-Head & The Peanuts

The Red-Head went back and forth, back and forth.  Grab a peanut, stash it and repeat.  He ordinarily makes himself welcome to several peanuts when they're available. It seems as if he and the Jays compete to see who can gather the most.

One of his favorite places to stash the treasure is within the deep holes on the electric pole.  He pushed the peanut as far into the hole as he could.  He must have felt pretty confident that his treats were well hidden and would be there when he was ready for them.

However, one must be careful when hiding treasures, for we never know who might be watching and waiting for the perfect time to snatch them...

Ugh! Don't you just hate it when somebody steals your stash?!!!
(In this case, it would be easy to forgive such a sweet little thief)

Red-Headed Woodpecker and Brown-Headed Nuthatch

Perhaps "Nut-snatch" is more appropriate :)

Sharing with Stewart at Wild Bird Wednesday- Thanks for hosting, Stewart!

Watching the Red-Head

I watched the Red-Headed Woodpecker as he (or she) went back and forth...

from the bird feeders to a light pole near my back porch.

He watched me, too.

He took turns at cracking open the sunflower seeds and peering at me...

I think he was bothered by the sound of my camera as I clicked away...

But for a little while, he continued his round trips from the feeder 

to the light pole.

Until he became fed up,

then decided to travel to another pole across the yard.

These are not the most attractive photos, but the experience of watching this beautiful bird was fun and I wanted to share it.  There's no way I can capture the absolute beauty of this woodpecker- the stark contrast between the red, white and black is amazing, especially in flight.  

I think I was seeing "double" a couple days ago.  For an instant, I saw a flash of the same colors in a tree not far from the feeders.  I might get lucky and capture the two of them together-

Wishing you all a wonderful weekend!  I plan to do a little shopping today then visit with a couple of family members.  Tomorrow afternoon I plan to work in the flower gardens and plant a few trees. The weekend weather is expected to be perfect- sunny with temperatures in the low 80's- I love it!

Red-Headed Woodpecker

There's a new bird in the hood and I'm not quite sure as to whether I want him (or her) to hang around or not- perhaps just long enough to capture a few more photos.  This gorgeous Red-headed Woodpecker has been visiting our back yard consistently for the past couple of weeks.  So far I have only one half-decent shot of him...

Since this species is new to me, I did some online reading to learn more.  According to the information, the red-heads are aggressive, particularly during breeding season.  Many bird species are, so that's nothing new.  What worries me most is that they may remove the eggs of other species from nests and nest boxes or destroy other birds’ nests.  Also, they sometimes raid bird nests to eat eggs and nestlings; they may occasionally eat adult birds.  I know it's nature, but still it bothers me. Only a few weeks ago a Sharp-shinned Hawk stalked and attacked some of the birds at the feeders- a daily occurrence until I temporarily took some feeders down and moved the others.  I haven't seen the hawk around in several days and I hope he's moved on.  Perhaps this red-head will find plenty of insects, fruit and seeds to satisfy his appetite and he'll avoid preying upon other birds and their eggs. I'll be watching him as much as possible...

We'll soon be over the hump of this week.  I hope yours has been a good one thus far.  Thank you for stopping by and leaving your comment- they are much appreciated.  

Linked with Stewart for Wild Bird Wednesday-

I invite you to visit Stewart's blog and browse through the great posts

and gorgeous images of birds from all over the world- you'll be happy you did!