Sage Grouse
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'When I got on the bus for my first road game at Duke, I saw that every player was carrying textbooks or laptops. I coached in the SEC for 25 years, and I had never seen that before, not even once.' - David Cutcliffe to Duke alumni in Washington, DC, June 2013
I've seen this from squirrels. They chew the ends off and sometimes drop them. Even saw one once that was on the wrong side and came down with the branch tip. (Apparently had the wrong acme saw.) He collected first himself then the branch, and went back up a tree.
-jk
Had the cutest little baby limpkin chick in the yard for the past three weeks. Always walking around with mother. Today mom is here with no baby. Too many gators.
Saw a rose breasted grosbeak on Cedar Key in my yard today. It was in a cabbage palm eating the berries after its flight across the Gulf. I have never seen one. It was quite beautiful.
Saw fully yellow goldfinches today which is a nice sign of spring. They’re year round here and go dull in winter.
Had a couple of bald Eagles cruising lately. Wondering if a nest is nearby.
Yesterday afternoon while fishing between two small islands in the Gulf, we saw a bald eagle floating on the water. A gull flew overhead with a small fish. The eagle shot up after the gull causing it to drop the fish. The eagle then swooped down, picked up the fish, and off it flew towards the island. Another first, I have never seen one actually floating on the water.
Exactly why Ben Franklin was opposed to it being the National bird. One of his reasons was they steal from the hard-working ospreys.
Franklin would have been a regular poster on Ymm, Beer for sure. The ABV of his craft draft would probably be the cause of his relentlessness.
I came into the kitchen at the normal early hour and looked into our back yard. A full-size bear was sitting above the rocks, and the four bird feeders were strewn all over the yard -- all empty. I yelled at him, and he moved off a ways, but then came back. He ran away when I sounded the portable air horn.
That was it for feeding birds.
It was probably the best winter we have had for seeing and feeding birds here. The main reason may have been that we were here every single day and kept the feeders filled. The last month has been notable in the large flocks of Evening Grosbeaks, Pine Grosbeaks, and Goldfinches. We also had Cassin's Finches, Spotted Towhees, the usual Corvids, both Nuthatches, both Chickadees (Mt. and Black-Capped) and -- for four months -- a Juniper Titmouse -- an uncommon bird but rare in our mountain habitat of Gambel's Oaks and Aspens.
Sage Grouse
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'When I got on the bus for my first road game at Duke, I saw that every player was carrying textbooks or laptops. I coached in the SEC for 25 years, and I had never seen that before, not even once.' - David Cutcliffe to Duke alumni in Washington, DC, June 2013
It’s prime lovemaking season for the birds where I am. Lots of flittering about. My houses are starting to get tenants.
My garden box is getting a house wren pair again. I really like them. Very neighborly birds, beautiful calls.
woodpeckers (hairy and downy) attacking the suet box like barbarians at the gate...
our hummingbirds return, on average, on Mother's Day...can I assume most of you have them already?
There used to be a fabulous migration map which showed their progress every year, but Google Maps found a way to screw it up...
The migrants are coming through now. I took a trip Saturday up to Moses Cone on the parkway to see if I could see any. Here are some pics...
P1030607.jpgCanada Warbler
P1030594.jpgBlack Throated Blue Warbler
P1030584.jpgHooded Warbler
P1030561.jpgNorthern Parula
P1030635.jpgChestnut Sided Warbler
Also saw an American Redstart, Black and White Warbler and several others but wasn't able to get good pics.
"The future ain't what it used to be."