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...

Monday, March 20, 2017

Birds-Birds-Birds

I got this picture/quote from Facebook --and loved it.  Just had to share!!!
I realized that I haven't taken time to do a Bird Blog Post in awhile.   I still feed my Backyard Birds  year 'round --and love watching them.  Now that Spring is coming (I hope),  I'll soon get to see some of the Moms/Dads bring their little ones to the feeders..  I LOVE that!!!!!

My Bird Kitchen (on the deck) offers a nice menu for the birds:  Suet,  Black Sunflower Seeds,  Fruit and Nut Blend,  Finch Lovers/Nyjer,  Peanuts in the shell,  and Mealworms....

Today I'll share with you some of my little cuties... We probably have over 30 different varieties off and on throughout the year --but today I'll only show you about half of them.  The pictures have been taken off and on throughout several years and seasons.


Hairy Woodpecker;  We don't have many of these --but do have lots of the smaller ones,  the Downy Woodpeckers.



Our BlueJays are only with us from Spring-Fall --but I love these guys!!!  Some people say they are 'bully birds' --but that doesn't seem to be the case here.



Robins LOVE visiting the deck especially during winter when they can't dig for worms...



Mockingbird;   We don't see too many of these.   They have beautiful songs to share!!!  BUT--they can be a little domineering in trying to 'hog' the plate feeder!!!! 



RoadRunner;   We don't have these guys here ---but did see him when we were in Arkansas recently.  I hope they will make it to Tennessee sometime!!!!



Papa Cardinal;  These beauties bring their little ones to the feeders... Such wonderful birds!



Rose-Breasted Grosbeak;  These gorgeous birds visit us twice during the year during migration.   They come in April or May and then again in late Fall....



Brown Thrasher;   They are here  from Spring-Fall ---and they nest here.  One year I was trimming a bush and Mama Thrasher wanted to take a bite out of me.  Scared me to death since I didn't know there was a nest in that bush.



My FAVORITE Bird in our yard,  the Eastern Bluebirds;   As you can tell these are 3 babies begging Daddy for food....  The Bluebirds are nesting NOW --so we should be seeing some of these little ones soon.  They usually make 3 broods a year---and they are with us year 'round!



Beautiful colorful Goldfinch;   We have lots of finches (Pine Siskins,  House Finches, etc.) --but these are the prettiest I think--especially during mating season.



Purple Finch;  These Finches are rare around here ---so I was excited to see him on Jan. 26, 2017.   They are similar to the male House Finches --but much prettier I think.



Mourning Dove;   We have them around here all year ---but they have to work hard to stay away from the Hawks!!!!



Speaking of Hawks,  this young one visited the Food Kitchen on 3/3/17...  I'm no expert on hawks (I'd prefer they stay AWAY) --but he may be a young Cooper's --which are the ones we usually get here?????  (Luckily,  he did not catch anything when he visited.)



Red-bellied Woodpecker;   These guys who are quite vocal (like the Pileated Woodpeckers are) when they visit.  They are with us year 'round... 



Another hawk that visited our deck on Christmas Eve this past year;  He was a big one --and again I'm not sure what he was..  I assume a Cooper's Hawk??????   Look at the next picture to see what he got for lunch!!!!



Oh My.... The hawk caught a CHIPMUNK for his Christmas Eve Lunch.... (Not a good picture because I was inside trying not to disturb him --while I looked out through two panes of glass and a screen.)



Another of my favorite woodpeckers,  the  Yellow Shafted Northern Flicker;   These birds are so beautiful --and I"m thrilled when they come to the Bird Kitchen.



Red-Headed Woodpecker:  I LOVE LOVE LOVE these woodpeckers.   To me,  they are the prettiest of the woodpeckers that visit us...
Well---that is enough,  don't you think?    Oh how I love my sweet birdies ---and I apologize for not sharing them more often with you.

For those of you who have asked,  I am finally WELL (I hope).  My energy level is still ZILCH --but hopefully,  that too will get better gradually.  For someone who is NEVER sick,  that 'bug' really BIT me bigtime... It's so nice to sleep now without coughing....  And I'm so glad that George didn't get it.

Have a great week and thanks to those of you who take time each week to comment... Sometimes I am shocked when I read that my blog posts have been visited by over 200 people ---and yet,  so few bother to comment... Kinda sad,   isn't it???   BUT--that's just blogging (or any social media)... We all do what we can and what we are interested in doing!!!

Hugs,