The TJTwitter

[hazelrunpack]

We've got a nest of phoebes on the downspout, too, and there will be pics later. Right now we're busy plotting on how to keep the raccoons from wiping out both the phoebe and the catbird nests... Cross your fingers--the raccoons have successfully staged lethal raids on the phoebe chicks just before they fledged for two years in a row now.

[hazelrunpack]

Oh, obc, you might enjoy these from our last banding session, too:

The olive shoulder patches of a one-year-old male American goldfinch (in an older bird, the shoulders would be bright yellow):


A newly banded male Red-winged blackbird:


A newly banded female Blue-winged warbler:

[ownedbycats]

Wow. Gorgeous pictures as always. Always so nice to see the babies arriving. Sound like your house is a permanent banding sight now.
My neighbour has swallows nesting, but they chose a corner that is too dark for good pictures, and I won't disturb them by using flash or a spotlight. And once they start flying all I get are blurs. They are fast!

[hazelrunpack]

Ya, swallows are not the easiest subjects!!

All 5 phoebe babes have their heads above the edge of the nest this morning. When mom sits on them at night, she's pretty high up! Looks like if someone shrugged, they'd push her right off! Sorta like the dogs and us on the bed!! I have pics as soon as I get a chance to do some editing.

Just spent an hour trying to lure a hummer out of the garage. Luckily we feed them here so they know what a feeder looks like. She finally came down to a feeder we hung out there when we noticed her. After she was done drinking, linked a couple of 9-inch hangers together to drop the feeder another foot-and-a-half to put her below the level of the open door where she could see the trees outside. Took another half hour before she needed to drink again, and when she did you could almost see the lightbulb go on her head. "Aha! That looks like the way out!" And away she zoomed!! Yay!

Odd how birds always seem to fly up when they're stressed, even though the light source is from below.... At any rate, she's none the worse for wear. I just hope her eggs are okay--she was off the nest for somewhere between an hour and two hours as far as we can tell....

[ownedbycats]

I rarely see hummers here, but they are even faster than the swallows. It's a good thing they go semi-still when feeding or I wouldn't get to enjoy the pictures of them you post.
Now I've got some free time, I'll be watching the swallow's nest. I'm waiting 'til the babies hatch. I think the parents will likely lure them to a nearby telephone line, then I can get pictures of them out in the open.
This is why I haven't been stalking the birds as much: http://www.pets.ca/forum/showthread.php?t=81245

[hazelrunpack]

Just edited it...had to share

[ownedbycats]

Hazel, that's gorgeous. I can see every feather in his wings and it appears to be looking straight at me. What a great shot.

[hazelrunpack]

Thx, obc. It's the best one I've managed to get so far this season. He was displaying at a bird coming in to the same feeder over my left shoulder.

[hazelrunpack]

I thought this shot was interesting. It's a shot (from a fair piece away so it's highly cropped) of the courting display of a ruby-throated hummingbird. Look at how far he has his gorget (the red on the throat) expanded:


And in case you're having a little trouble figuring out what he's displaying at, the fem might be a little easier to see in this version--they're both in color--she's in the patch of green in the lower right-hand corner:

[hazelrunpack]

And a few more hummers:

[hazelrunpack]

Did your tree swallows ever hatch, obc?

[ownedbycats]

The barn swallows are still sitting on the nest. My neighbours tried to see into the nest and think they saw three eggs. (I'd complain about them disturbing the birds, it's not nice to bother nesting birds, but the swallows did choose to nest directly above their house door and this is a busy noisy family. If human activity was going to disturb them they probably would have left before the nest was even finished.)
I'm not even sure when the eggs were laid so I have no way of estimating when they will hatch. I figure as long as a parent comes swooping out off the nest to catch insects every morning while I stand waiting for Sunshine to do her business, there's a good chance I haven't missed seeing the babies.
In the meantime, to make up for the lack of swallow pictures, here's a pair of red-winged blackbirds to look at

[hazelrunpack]

Purrrdy!!!!! Nice capture on the fem! I find them hard to photograph--they don't come around as often as the males do and they tend to be more shy when they do come.

Barn swallows don't seem to mind busy places. I hope you manage to get some pics of the babies!! They're adorable. I've never managed to get any pics, though.

Here's a few of the phoebes that just fledged:

Maybe nine days after hatching:


Getting really big a week later:


The last two chicks just minutes before they flew the coop for good:

[hazelrunpack]

Another hummer pic:

[ownedbycats]

Hazel, with no hummers here, if you stopped posting I'd never get my hummingbird fix

I have lot of bird pictures to share. The first two are of a baby robin. We came home to find him sitting in the middle of the road. I chased him to the sidewalk, and then used my long lens to take pictures while keeping an eye out for neighbourhood cats. The parent showed up, so I hope this one made it. Also, our sunflower (planted by the birds, 'cause we didn't put it there!) has attracted a visitor.

[ownedbycats]

I got some pictures of the swallows on the nest, and a couple of the parent keeping lookout on the nearby telephone wire. I know the bird looks like he has no head, it's just twisted very far back. I'm including it 'cause I thought the band on the tail was neat.

[ownedbycats]

I was blessed to be able to catch the swallow fledgling leaving the nest. Unfortunately for both of us, the reason I saw Baby was because it was raining, and Baby was taking shelter as close to out of the rain as it could get. We both got a little wet, and my pictures may have rain spots, but I got pics! Mom and Dad were keeping Baby company.

[hazelrunpack]

Awesome swallow shots, obc!! Your Headless Wonder shot does show the band on the tail nicely! Birds really can contort when it's preening time!

The tufts on that juvie robin's head are adorable!!

[hazelrunpack]

Oh, and I almost forgot to mention the banding session coming up on Friday. If we net anything 'exotic', like warblers, I'll post some pics.

[ownedbycats]

Great! It's neat seeing birds up close that I only see at a distance, or never see at all because they don't visit my area.
I thought those tufts around the baby robin's head were jsut adorable, too. I wanted a closer head shot, but I didn't want to scare him, more than I had to to get him off the road.

[mikischo]

I just saw a hummingbird in my yard for the first time ever. I couldn't believe my eyes. I didn't even know they ever came to my area of the city. Don't know if he is going to be back or just passing through. Such tiny little things. So beautiful. I knew they were tiny but it is amazing seeing them close up. Makes the chickadee's look like giants. I have a hummingbird feeder that I bought years ago but never used because I didn't think they ever came around. Time to haul it out and give it a try.

[Barkingdog]

Originally Posted by Melinda

are turkeys considered "wild" birds? we have four that come a few times a day to feed with or without the deer, one tom (mature male), one jake (young male) and two hens (females). my one female has developed a limp and there isn't a thing I can do about it, she worries me and daily I check for her to make sure the wolves/coyotes haven't gotten her, but she is a very strong flier.

Yes , they're wild birds , we have some in our yard , they will come and sit right on my front lawn . We have coyote that come through my yard too and I was worried about the turkeys. I have not seen for awhile so I hope they're OK.
The males are very pretty when they open up their tail and show off.

[Barkingdog]

Originally Posted by ownedbycats

The barn swallows are still sitting on the nest. My neighbours tried to see into the nest and think they saw three eggs. (I'd complain about them disturbing the birds, it's not nice to bother nesting birds, but the swallows did choose to nest directly above their house door and this is a busy noisy family. If human activity was going to disturb them they probably would have left before the nest was even finished.)
I'm not even sure when the eggs were laid so I have no way of estimating when they will hatch. I figure as long as a parent comes swooping out off the nest to catch insects every morning while I stand waiting for Sunshine to do her business, there's a good chance I haven't missed seeing the babies.
In the meantime, to make up for the lack of swallow pictures, here's a pair of red-winged blackbirds to look at

I loves red-winged blackbirds but I do not see very many anymore as they're losing the wet land is being destroyed in my city.

[hazelrunpack]

Mikischo, you might be interested in this video (it's a public link on Facebook, so you should be able to view it without having to log into FB):

Hazel Run Hummingbirds

It was taken in the backyard shortly after the peak of migration. Still quite a few hummingbirds...

Barkingdog, we have packs of coyotes and wolves and the turkeys seem none the worse for wear. They evidently have some pretty good escape strategies when it comes to predators!

[Goldfields]

WOW! I haven't been near this thread because when I was on dial up the photo's would have taken forever to download. I can visit now I'm on satellite (still when I can find time) and must say there are some fabulous shots. You all deserve congratulations. I am only putting one in, of our Golden Whistler, and simply because ordinarily I wouldn't even see this bird. He's usually high up in the forest canopy. This was only the 2nd sighting in over 30 years in our house yard.

[hazelrunpack]

Wow, he's beautiful, GF!! Feel free to post any of your birds! Australia has such colorful and interesting birds!

[Goldfields]

Okay, but I don't get many bird photo's. This one is a Long-billed Corella, who is sharing the nuts on the pencil pine, second photo, with a pair of Musk Lorikeets(last photo).

[hazelrunpack]

Awesome birds, GF!! That lorikeet is so colorful!!!

[ownedbycats]

Those virds are gorgeous, GF. And I second Hazel. Since we never see Australian birds (except at the zoo) any pictures you share will be interesting. I really like your golden whistler, he looks like a cross between a chickadee and a goldfinch.

[Goldfields]

Because I haven't a camera good enough to get the sort of photo's Hazel can, I will show you some taken by a friend here. Heavens knows how much time it took him to get these, he must have been very patient. First is an Australasian Grebe, a water bird, in breeding plumage. Second bird, with its eggs beneath it, is a Banded Lapwing. Their habitat is open grassland, bare plain and arable land. Third is one I have seen often in the forest over the road from our house, a Black-faced Cuckoo-shrike.