One of the first jobs after we moved in was to hang our feeders. In addition to the feeder containing sunflower hearts, we have a hummingbird feeder containing nectar. The first visitor to appear was not a hummingbird, but a Baltimore Oriole. We have had some hummingbirds, but they are incredibly tiny and very fast moving, so I haven't managed to get any photos.
The first bag of sunflower hearts has lasted almost six weeks, but suddenly the feeder is busy from early morning and throughout the day. The birds are now emptying it and then sit in the trees making lots of noise, or pecking around for any pieces that have gone astray. At this rate, they will eat us our of house and home!
It is difficult to get any decent photos because the feeder is shaded by the trees and seldom gets direct sunlight. When it does, the birds are easily scared away by any chance that I take to get closer to the windows for a photo opportunity. This week, we have had a lot of sparrows and the younger birds sit in the hanging baskets waiting to be fed by their parents.
The purple finch (right) is a regular visitor to our feeder, but does not usually stay long enough for a photograph, so I was fortunate to catch it one morning. The purple finch was famously described by Peterson in one of his field guides as 'a sparrow dipped in raspberry juice'.
LOVE to see the feathered-friends visiting your feeder. Fun to feed the locals! ;) ((HUGS))
ReplyDeleteTracy - it has been fun to feed the birds, though they do make an awful lot of mess, spreading sunflower seeds everywhere. We have a new strategy for dealing with this. We sweep it into a pile and don't refill the feeder until they have eaten it. It seems to be working well. Marie x
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