1:37 AM – We had quite a bit of activity at the feeders this week, and a pretty good crop of videos. We’re skipping Retro-Sunday this week and presenting a few of new ones.
This pair of Blue Jays are furious eaters – and one of them not too careful where he gets his seed. There’s plenty to go around, why take food from the beak of his buddy? Probably just Blue Jays being Blue Jays.
While we’re on the subject of Birds Behaving Badly, here’s a Mourning Dove that’s not interested in sharing. Not at all.
And finally, a female Cardinal with a punk-style crest and a bad attitude.
2:17 AM – Another bird identification problem. I think this is an unusually colored House Finch. The Cornell Labs website had an image of one that looks like this – the yellow markings on the breast and back, but no vivid stripe near the eyes. The beak is the right shape, and the tail is slightly notched – both features of the House Finch. Also, he was in the company of a pretty standard female Finch. If anyone has a better guess, I’d like to hear it. In the meantime, here are some videos. This is the first time this bird has been here, hopefully not the last time.
Another video of that probably House Finch on the Squirrel Buster feeder. He stands up to a Cardinal that tries to run him off.
1:37 AM – There are always some Bluebirds on the mealworm feeder. We have at least a half dozen of them, probably more. That’s why we keep posting videos of them.
Blue Jay really doesn’t want to share with feeder with the Cardinal. No hesitation, as soon as the Card gets close the Jay runs right at her. Oh, well. It will be the Cardinals’ turn in a few minutes. That’s the nice thing about having multiple feeders.
3:06 AM – Nice video of a male Cardinal eating sunflower seeds. Since the molting season seems to be past, the Cardinal’s feather’s really look good.
One Chickadee after another. They rarely stick around, just pick up a worm and fly off. They’re the smallest bird we’ve got in the yard, except for the occasional surly, combative hummingbird.
12:17 AM – Cardinal and Mourning Dove, getting along for the moment. The dove seems a little more comfortable than the Cardinal, who’s watchful and alert.
12:26 AM – More Bluebird excitement on the mealworm feeder. About three quarters of the way through the clip, a juvenile Bluebird lands next to an adult. It looks to me like he give the grown-up a little back talk, followed by – well, take a look. A slow-motion version is included.
Cardinal flapping and displaying to Mourning Dove. It doesn’t do any good – the dove isn’t going anywhere.
3:01 AM – Here’s a Cardinal flapping his wings and quivering. He can’t be too distressed – he keeps eating all through the performance. Presumably he’s displaying to some bird we can’t see in the video.
Activity at the mealworm feeder. Carolina Chickadees are regulars there, but they are usually hit-and-run feeders, picking up a mealworm and flying off. In this case, the Chickadee stays around for a while and eats on site. Next, the Carolina Wren stabs at the worms so fast it’s hard to tell if he’s eating them, or just knocking them down on the ground. A slow motion view (not shown) revealed that he’s doing both.
4:05 AM – Noisy Blue Jay opening seeds while a cardinal looks on. What the video doesn’t show is a long showdown between the two birds, with some impressive feather display by the Cardinal. Didn’t do him any good, though. Blue Jays prevail.
Mrs. Cardinal posturing on the Squirrel Buster. My favorite part is at the end, when she bends over and shows us her bird rear end before flapping away. Take that, video camera!!
2:41 AM – Now that we have the camera pointed at the mealworm feeder we’re getting lots of video of the bluebirds. In this one, it’s a couple of adults, but there are a lot of juveniles around too (video of them to come soon).
Here we have Mrs. Cardinal – looking good in richly colored brown feathers – displaced by Mr. Cardinal. A Carolina Chickadee shares the feeder for a little bit. That loud noise that startles Mr. Cardinal, and makes him so vigilant, is a hickory nut hitting the deck.
3:47 AM – It’s a tale of two wrens. Carolina Wrens, that is. One of them has tail feathers, the other doesn’t. Both of them navigate the feeder just fine.
It looks like molting time is over for the cardinals. Here’s one that has almost all his feathers back, and they’re really bright red.