1:10 AM – We were pretty sure this was a Yellow-rumped Warbler, even though we hadn’t seen this particular variety. The big vivid yellow path on it’s rump was a big clue. A little research helped us ID this as an adult male version.
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Here’s the same Warbler (probably) taking turns at the platform feeder with a White Breasted Nuthatch. They’re not taking turns so much as the Nuthatch is running the Warbler off, and the Warbler is sneaking back.
2:00 AM – The mealworm feeder is busy all day, mainly with Bluebirds, Yellow-rumped Warblers and that ‘no tail’ Carolina Wren. We’ve also seen Mr. Cardinal, the occasional Nuthatch and Carolina Chickadee. This video is interesting because at about 45 seconds into it you can see a male Bluebird fly across the yard and run right into a Warbler. I guess the Bluebird was reminding the Warbler who owns the territory with the mealworm trough.
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Bluebirds were really hungry yesterday. Maybe it’s that the mealworm supply is getting low, but they’re really savagely attacking the feeder.
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And finally, one of the big ‘yard’ cats getting a drink of water.
4:44 AM – I don’t know if it’s due to the arrival of Spring (and maybe the mating season), but I’m seeing some color change in the Cardinals. Also in a Yellow-rumped Warbler. The first video shows a male Cardinal with a patch of yellow on his breast. This could be emphasized by the direct late-afternoon sun, but you can see it faintly when he’s in shadow (his back turned to the light). In the next video the female Cardinal has a much brighter red area on the wings and crest.
The female Cardinal:
This Yellow-rumped Warbler’s head and shoulders are mottled, not the usual solid yellow (ish) color. He looks like he’s been decorated by an abstract expressionist painter.
11:09 AM – We haven’t seen these really yellow Goldfinches for a few weeks. Here’s one. He’s not super yellow, but more so than the usual dull gold ones we’ve been getting:
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I thought at first that this was a new bird to the yard, because of the yellow spots on his crown, but it turned out to be a variety of the Yellow-rumped Warbler.
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This one is, in fact, new to the foodcourt. At least I think so. With Sparrows it’s hard to tell, there are so many varieties. These are Chipping Sparrows, non-breeding adults. The gray collar distinguishes them from the White Throated Sparrow that’s in the feeding pan with them.
12:29 AM – The mystery bird from yesterday has been identified as a Yellow-rumped Warbler. He came back a couple of times – here’s one visit to the suet feeder:
I think this one is a different one. Maybe not, though:
I compared him to pictures of the Yellow-Rump (love that name) from the Cornell Lab website.
Looks like a match to me. This is the first of these to show up in the yard. At least, the first I noticed. They are similar enough to the other small birds – sparrows, finches etc – that they wouldn’t stand out at the platform feeder, in a crowd. Up close on the Worm Cam, it’s apparent they’re not one of the regulars.