Welcome to JOYFUL REFLECTIONS. Also welcome to MARCH!!!! My header picture this month is a photo I took of the pretty Crocus blooms in our yard... The Crocuses and Daffodils are the first signs of spring here in Tennessee. I am definitely ready for SPRING...

Thursday, July 14, 2011

July Backyard Birds

I've been home from our trip since June 28 -----and I'm just now doing a "Bird Blog"....  What's up with that??????  ha ha..... WELL, first of all,  I put all of my bird seed and feeders AWAY for the 3 weeks we were gone...(I knew that the raccoons would get them the first day or two anyhow!)  SO---when we got home,  I had a little fear that the birds would forget me and NOT come back.  Many people had assured me that they WOULD return --but I wasn't totally sure.  Guess what though?????  They did return!!!!  Yeah!!!

SO---since I know you are yearning for one of my famous bird blogs (GAG),  I am going to show you some of my sweeties who posed for the camera this week... Above is one of my good buds,  a PILEATED WOODPECKER. We have 3 of them --who flit around the trees in the backyard  --taking turns at the suet feeder... SO CUTE!!!!




Next is another favorite woodpecker of mine,  our  NORTHERN FLICKER.  This one is a female since she doesn't have a mustache.





Here's a regular visitor also, and is our tiniest woodpecker,  the DOWNY.  I think she was the first one back to the feeders when I put them up on June 29.  It's as if she was 'watching'... She does not have a little red spot on the back of her head like the males do.




Another frequent visitor is one of our noisy BLUE JAYS.  They are pretty birds and are with us except during the winter... I don't know where they go ---but they leave my home! Male and female Bluejays are VERY similar in appearance.





Always a favorite,  the AMERICAN CARDINALS frequent our area --and they were happy to see me come home I'm sure.  They have been busy (like most of our birds) having babies. They are the first birds at the feeders early in the morning and the last ones to come at night.
Above is Daddy Cardinal ---and he looks a little bedraggled since I took his picture after a rain storm.  He also is beginning to molt. BUT--he's still a beautiful little bird.  Wonder what that is in his mouth????  Looks like a green leaf....?????





More colorful summer beauties are our GOLDFINCHES.  We have had many Goldfinches around this summer.   This one is a female ---as she is duller than the males and doesn't have black on her head.




This little beauty,  one of our MOURNING DOVES,  loves to 'take over' the big plate feeder ---and protect it from other birds.  They are at the feeders in the late evenings more than any other time of day.  The plate feeder is close to our door--and I was taking the picture JUST  inside the door. He was 'watching' me --but didn't fly away when I got so close. The males have a blue head/nape and the females have a brownish gray head/nape.






Finally,  here is one more CUTIE PIE for you...
WHOOPS----how did this one get in this blog post??????  Goodness Gracious.... Maybe I will name her a "DEER-BIRD"... ha ha ha.....  (Just couldn't resist putting this one in for you...  She was having a staring contest with me when I took this picture recently.... I was telling her to stay away from our Lilies and Roses!!!!  Think she will listen??????)

Hope you enjoyed seeing some of my little Cuties....

Remember NOT to miss my blog post on Friday....  It's one which will probably make you say  "WOW"... At least I hope so!!!!!

Hugs,

49 comments:

Ms. A said...

That doesn't look like a leaf to me, looks like a bug with legs. Gorgeous photos!

MadSnapper said...

your deer bird looks just like the ones here in FL. we have cardinals and jays and doves, but the little yellow one i have never seen. glad your bird friends returned, i know how much you love watching them. and no, the deer bird will not listen to you for sure

Reanaclaire said...

The cutest is the last picture! lol.. yes, keep staring and see who will lose... if I were there, I certainly will lose out to her..! lol...

Anonymous said...

Nice bird pictures; glad they came back! Love the deer photo as well.

penny said...

I always enjoy seeing all the beautiful birds that visit your yard, Betsy. I can't help but wonder if cutie pie Deer-Bird will learn to fly :D

be well and happy
hugs,
Pam

Anonymous said...

All the pictures are wonderful but I love the goldfinch! Hope you have a great day Betsy.

Arkansas Patti said...

Boy I wish I had some of those deer birds.
I never thought about it but you must hate seeing them close to your house with all those flowers. I would probably sleep outside with a water hose in my hand.
Stay cool. We are getting a break this week with just mid to high nineties. Jacket weather.

Ruth Hiebert said...

Your birds are beautiful as ever.Life without birds would be very empty.The deer fits right in as it is also very lovely.Your posts often make me say 'wow', so I can't wait to see what Friday brings.

Kim@stuffcould.... said...

I hope your birds forgave you for their time without you :) Love the detail of each bird. The deer bird looks beautiful too...

Kcalpesh said...

Nice shots!!

Pixellicious Photos

Sarah Knight said...

What a lovely cast of characters : )

TexWisGirl said...

love all of these shots! pileateds are SO cool! such a sweet deer ignoring your warnings... :)

linda m said...

Great pictures as usual. I love it when you post them.

Out on the prairie said...

I take a feeder with me when i camp.Nice to see they all remembered you.

Linda at To Behold The Beauty said...

I love goldfinches and have seen several this year, but they're very hard to photograph (without a feeder). :) These are lovely photos of your bird friends.

Connie said...

I thought the green thing in the cardinal's mouth was a bug too--maybe a katydid or something similar. Great pictures, Betsy. I love the one of the deer. Looks like she'd be pretty good at a staring contest. :D

Snap said...

Really pretty deer-bird! :D :D :D

Lovely feathered friends you have!

mamahasspoken said...

Because of you (and some friends on fb) I got a bird feeder too. However mine is more decorative then functional which has made for some fun bird watching. Especially when the large birds try to get on it to eat. What I've notice is the little birds will knock out the seed to the larger birds that are on the ground waiting. Makes me wonder if they have a pack thanks to my bird feeder :o/

Big Dude said...

Great shots as always Betsy. Could you advise what you have in the suet that attracts the pileated and show a shot of it's locale - we have them here and would love to see them on a feeder.

Beth said...

I have missed your bird posts, so am smiling this morning.
My favorite of these is the little goldfinch--such a cheery color.
The dove looks a bit nervous and the deer looks brazen. :>)
Lovely shots!

Lynette Killam said...

These are lovely shots, Betsy! And what a great selection of birds. Here in Vancouver, we also get the Finches and Woodpeckers at our suet, but it is the big Stellers Jays that want to get at it the most! When we emigrated to Canada, I grew very gond of the Cardinals in Ontario, but unfortunately they are not native to the West Coast.

I've been remiss about visiting but will stop by again soon...:)

Ginny Hartzler said...

LOVE the little surprise you gave us at the end! Oh, the dove picture, I adore it! We have many here, but for some reason, I have not been able to get a decent picture in two years! I'm working on it! I love the way you captured the blue jay's bright tail! When we put the suet out, a cake is gone in one day! I have two suet feeders, but we may have to stop putting suet out, except in the winter, it will just be too expensive now. We found a mother grackle sitting on the pole feeding her baby the suet, darling! But the flock of starling have found it now, and seem to gobble a cake a day. I will hate to get rid of it, but maybe for now! Plus something keeps taking the whole cage off the hook and dumping it on the ground.

Lola said...

Great pics. Love the last one too.

Pat @ Mille Fiori Favoriti said...

Betsy, I am sure all the birds were wondering were you were while you were away! The message that your birdfeeders were out again made them very happy, I'm sure! :)

When I miss a few days of filling up my birdfeeder the birds let me know by sitting on my house rain gutters and hitting them with their beaks as if to say: "Hey, we're hungry!" :)

Fred Alton said...

Thanks for all the great photos and good info about birds in our East Tennessee area. I'm learning much from you. What kind of food do I put out for that deer-bird? ☻

Sally Wessely said...

I love the varieties of birds that you have. I so want to see a cardinal someday. They are so beautiful. Thanks for sharing Daddy Cardinal's picture.

nanny said...

You always have the best collection of birds in your yard....I'll bet they were wondering where in the world you had gone to....and were very happy when you got home!

Becca's Dirt said...

Great photos of your many visitors. The deer is pretty too but in his own way of course - as long as he leaves the flowers alone.

Mary said...

Glad to see that all of these wonderful birds and deer came back :-) Sunflower seeds are so expensive right now, I may have to cut back on feeding my birds.

Betty Manousos said...

what a joyful post, Betsy!
i so love your beautiful pictures full of life and vibrant colours!

hope your day is going well!

hugs
betty xx

happyone said...

Lucky you to see all those beautiful birds in your yard. Thanks for the pictures so we all get to take a peek at them. : )

Thoughtfully Blended Hearts said...

Wow...I enjoyed these!!! Everyone was my favorite...duh ... gotta love the deer bird...beautiful photography Betsy!!!

Glenda said...

Beautiful!! I think the goldfinch is my favorite!

Chatty Crone said...

I am saying wow today! I love all those birds - it was as if they were posing for you. And deer bird too! Love that camera too!

Shug said...

Good afternoon Betsy...

How wonderful that you have all this wild life around you....The birds are beautiful, but I must say that the deer is my favorite...

Are you kidding....those little birdies and the racoons could not wait for you to get home...

Blessings,
Shug

SquirrelQueen said...

Your sweet birds forget you? Never!

They are all so cute and you have several that we don't see in this area like Bluejays and Cardinals.

Love the shot of the deer-bird!

Okay Betsy, you are really teasing us with the "WOW". Can't wait to see your Friday post.

Diane said...

Your birds are beautiful Betsy. Don't you just love the big eyes of the dove? The deer is pretty, too. Diane

Leontien said...

haha i never saw a bird with a mustache!

and yes that last one definatly doesn't have any wings!

Thanks for sharing and i am glad they got back!
Leontien

LV said...

I cannot imagine you having anything more beautiful than what you share each day. I will certainly tune in Friday and check it out. I wish I had birds like that here. Have lots of trees, but no pretty birds.

Andrea said...

Betsy, your resident birds are so faithful with you, and they are so beautiful just like your photos. They know you love them, so they will always come back. The deer feels that, so it will come back too! haha!

Catherine said...

You always have the nicest birds Betsy. Perhaps I could exchange some of my crows for your pretty little birds??? ;0)

xo Catherine

Or could I interest you in a gofer or two??

Lady Di Tn said...

Betsy
Great birds and I like the new catagory Deer bird. I will try to do more catching up later. Peace

Janie said...

Cute photo of the deer bird. She fits right in!
I really like your woodpeckers, and that's a great shot of the flicker.

Anonymous said...

Hi Betsy, Got a tiny bit of rain a few moments ago with a lot of noise from the Cicadas! I am so crazy about your pictures! I just love those woodpeckers!!! Your four footed friend is wonderful, too! Have the best Friday!

Twilight Man said...

If I am a bird, I would definitely visit your home everyday because I will be well fed by a kind photographer too. You have taught me to love the waterfalls, canyons, flowers, birds and now a deer. Thank you Betsy.

Lynda said...

I am starting to recognize some of the birds now before reading the names because of following your blog! Of course, the deer should be included. They are part of your backyard nature. Their faces are so sweet - - - even if those faces like to munch on your pretty flowers.

KathyA said...

Love your feathered friends -- the deer, not so much. :)

The Retired One said...

Betsy,
I hope you will enter one of your bird photos in my FREE PHOTO contest..July's theme is BIRDS..you have to enter!!! These are wonderful!

Annie Jeffries said...

And this is all in your backyard. I'm sighing.