Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Hunter's Campfire Mix at the feeder

The first bird pictured, I'm 99.9% sure is a Downy woodpecker, though they look just like the Hairy, but I think the Hairy is bigger.

There are always at least a pair of them here. Still my favorites are the Chickadees and Titmouse.

We are supposed to see a red breasted grosbeak around here any time now but none so far. Catbirds showed up this week along with small woodpeckers. I haven't had a chance to identify them yet. I had a pileated hang out on a dead tree by my treestand in woods near Pageland, SC for years. What a stunning bird.

Certainly a Downy, and one of them woodpeckers that generally makes an honest living hammering on trees, well twigs anyhow.

Downy woodpeckers are regulars at our feeders pretty much year around. They seem to prefer black oil sunflower seeds and peanuts. I don't know for sure if they are hiding the seeds or cracking the hull to get to the meat but they'll get a sunflower seed in their beak, fly to a nearby tree and start pecking away on the tree then come back for another seed and repeat.

I will confirm such sightings...from Weatherford, TX!

Very nice photography sir.

Funny you mentioned the Rose Breasted Grosbeaks. I saw one at my feeder 2 years ago and it disappeared. This year we have 2 males that have been here 2 weeks. I've identified 29 species of birds at our feeders or in the yard.

We've had no woodpeckers at all for the past 2 years and now have 6 on the place. It's good to see and hear them again. Our bees are just now showing up in mass, too. A bit late but, again, good to see.

Nice pics, Steelie.

Steelhead, I take it you are not actually in Azerbaijan. Where are you located? You are seeing many of the same birds that I get at my feeder here in SW Michigan.

I finally got a photo of a Pileated in my back woods area of the property last weekend. I have seen them several times. We have Downy and Hairy and Red-bellied all the time. I have seen Redheaded a few times but not on the property yet. Just saw my first ever Yellow-bellied Sapsucker recently.

We have photographed (among many other species) Baltimore Oriole, Indigo Bunting, Rose-breasted Grosbeak and Scarlet Tangers at our feeders but have seen none of those yet this year.

I am looking forward to participating in the 30th annual Berrien County Birdathon on May 19th. I participated in that event last year and had a great time. Fortunately I was on a team which included the naturalist at a local Botanical Garden who really knows birds (and as Birdwatcher mentioned vocalizations). We are able to count the bird if we can hear it and identify it by the sound. Our team of 4 saw/heard 105 species in one day and the winning team logged 129. We will see how this year's friendly competition goes.

I saw my first ever Painted Bunting while on a birding trip to the Lake Yojoa are of Honduras in early February of this year. What a beauty!

I have been taking walks in the woods behind the vineyard where I work (Tabor Hill Winery) after work and it is fun seeing first of the year species. Yesterday I saw a White Throated Sparrow, not seen since last year.

Enjoy the birdies, Brian

I just saw my first of the year Rose-breasted Grosbeak at my feeder. Also saw a Swainson's Thrush this afternoon and several Yellow-rumped Warblers.

2 male painted buntings sitting at the feed pans right now. Pretty birds.

Lots of birders on here which is good to see. I've been watching the live feed of two pairs of peregrine falcons in nesting boxes at the Green Bay and Wausau WPS power plants. They have hatched 92 falcon chicks since 1993 from those boxes and the Green Bay pair has three more just hatched out this week. You can watch both nesting boxes at the same time if you Google: Watch keep tabs on peregrine falcons nesting boxes / WLUK There sure aren't as many pigeons in these parts as there was a couple decades back. Neat birds. Have any of you northern guys ever seen a great gray owl? I've only ever seen two and that was up deer hunting in the NW part of the state. I've got a birder friend from Illinois that said she would jump on a plane just to see one somewhere. Huge owls.

Yes? You knocked?




DMc

DMc, that's a great picture.

I saw and got a good photo of a Great Gray Owl a few years ago in the Blue Mountains east of Walla Walla, WA when I lived there. I also got.a great picture of a Northern Pygmy Owl in the Huckleberry Mountains of NE WA State back in 2008 while moose hunting.

West Tennessee.


Saw a Pileated Woodpecker yesterday and a bobcat.

I can spend hours watching the birds. My monthly sunflower bill is silly.

Painted Bunting and a Golden Finch at the feeder yesterday. Sorry for the poor quality, but they were taken through the window pane.

The Bunting is great.

Thanks

Same here. Something about it....

Great pics, esp like the indigo and painted buntings. Several years ago I saw this guy hopping around with a broken wing off a service drive by a grocery store. Ended up catching him and taking him to a raptor center.

I like that red, yellow and blue bird. Beautiful, never seen that kind of bird.