Martins (at the Monastery...they always have a nest in the same spot!)
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| American goldfinch |
Brown thrasher (did you know that every state has a state bird...Georgia's state bird is the brown thrasher!) This bird was sunning itself, spreading the wings out in the sun. No one knows for sure why they do this, they think it could be because it gets rids of insects...I think it is because it feels good to them!
Mourning doves
Richard took this shot of the male cardinal feeding his young...the cardinal's beak is bright orange and he is really pushing that food into the young one's mouth! See how his head is black? That is where he has lost his feathers...his head is usually red.
We think this was a red shouldered hawk...a young one. It was on the roof of the house across from ours. It was such a sight!
Want to know how to build the best bird bath? The Audubon Society has some very simple instructions to do so and we love it since that is what we have been doing for years! Read all about it just here! Trust me, our little bird baths are VERY popular.
Do you enjoy birds? Richard and I love them!
And if you want to read a very interesting book...you know I have one for you! "John James Audubon: The Making of An American" by Richard Rhodes is an excellent biography.
Mourning doves have always been a favourite bird of mine. Love that soft cooing call.
ReplyDeleteThey have the same birds in England too, the same cooing sound reminds me of being there too!
DeleteGoing to check out your birdbaths. Love our mourning doves -we have 3 batches of babies here every year. xo Diana
ReplyDeleteThese birdbaths are small, but perfect for our little patio and our birds!
DeleteThe little finch is so pretty, always get excited when I see a hawk.
ReplyDeleteWe love our birds! And to see (and hear) a hawk is very special.
DeleteWe have doves that build very flimsy nests in our attic vents, and the babies fall out and have to be taken to the wildlife hospital. They are beautiful but not very bright.
ReplyDeleteLovely photos!
Oh no, poor little dove babies!
DeleteThank you, Richard takes most photos, as you know. If you see a photo that is slightly crooked and out of focus, that would be mine! :-)
It's never boring, is it, looking out for different species of birds and maybe even recognizing a particular bird you have spotted before.
ReplyDeleteWe really love the birds that come down to our patio. And we notice them wherever we are!
DeleteVery good. Lovely birds there.
ReplyDeleteYou have pretty birds also, I always look out for them when I am in England.
DeleteWonderful to see so many different sorts of birds!! Great photos!!! The Robin - English one, not American which is different - has recently been voted the British national bird! xx
ReplyDeleteOf course, Amy, I know the difference between the English robin and the American one! I think I have written about my love of both birds in my posts before. And I think I even mentioned that I saw on the BBC that you had voted for the robin as your national bird. I love that!
DeleteI fell in love with the English robin at the age of 8, when I read "The Secret Garden" for the first time. xx
Oh my, Kay, this is a post after my own heart! That photo of your cardinal feeding his young is really amazing!!! I love that. And it's so cool that you get to see the scarlet tanager. Yesterday Alain & I watched our "resident hawk" swoop down, catch the little field mouse that lives on our berm and fly off with it safely in one of her talons. We couldn't believe it and are still talking about it today!!!
ReplyDeleteWe loved seeing that male cardinal feeding his young. We thought it was funny that the male does this but not the female...is she making sure she eats enough getting ready for the next brood? I am not sure but we never saw her feeding the young, only the Dad!!
DeleteWow, that would have been something to have seen that hawk catch that mouse. I have read that they can see a mouse from 100 feet. Wow.
So good to see your comment here, Audrey! Hope you are having TONS of fun this summer! xx
You have captured a remarkable collection of birds. They are all beautiful but I am partial to cardinals.
ReplyDeleteThe cardinals are so beautiful. They are the very last to come down for seeds, sometimes it is almost dark and we will see them in silhouette but we know their shape so well, besides their little cheeps.
DeleteWonderful images and my thanks to Richard for the cardinal feeding--wonderful. I have always appreciated how stunning the color of the gold finch is. Nothing like seeing them from a few feet away.
ReplyDeletePity the poor millionaire in his great big mansion, he can't see the birds like we can! HA!
DeleteThe gold finch... there is a brief time, that they turn a dazzling white...I am not kidding, I sent a note to the Audubon Society and they confirmed it for me...they were like angel birds, I have never seen anything like it, on top of Arabia Mountain one late afternoon and we were the only ones who saw them.
You have some amazing photos there! Well done! :)
ReplyDeleteThank you. To be honest with you, Richard really has taken better ones, but these were the first ones that saw and put on here for you!
DeleteGlad you liked them
Oh my! That baby cardinal looks as big as its dad. Fabulous photos, Kay and Richard!
ReplyDeleteI know! And look how the parent bird has lost his feathers on top of his head! We think it was from the constant motion of that head going into the juvenile's mouth!
DeleteI had never seen a Cardinal untiI I went to Georgia. Glorious bird.How lucky were you to have a Hawk land so close. We used to have a couple of Merlins that nested just down near the junction of the main road but have not seen them for over a year now.
ReplyDeleteI have a pair of goldfinches that come to the bird table most days in the late afternoon - I think they alternate between Graham's bird table across the valley and mine - depending on who is supplying the best food! Your Goldfinch is much brighter than ours though. Enjoyed the pictures - thank you.
Hey Pat!
DeleteSo good to see your comment here! How are things going for you this summer?
My mother-in-law from England was so excited when she saw a cardinal on our deck! She was very surprised when I told her it is a very common bird and we see it everyday! We are lucky!
I love the English birds too, Pat!! In fact, it was the time that I have spent in England that made me into such a bird watcher. Don't get me started on how much I love the English robin...I think I could write a book!
And I think your goldfinch is beautiful too!
Say hey to Graham for me! You could attach a note to one of the birds!
HA!
I like to see birds, too, though ours are not as varied as yours in Georgia.
ReplyDeleteLovely photos.
Thanks! Would love to see Hawaii one day!
DeleteHi Kay -- I answered your etymological question in my blog comments today!
ReplyDeleteThanks, Debra! I think I have read that explanation before, maybe on your own blog! You have to forgive me, I can't remember much these days, I have a mind like a sieve. I am HOLEY! HA!!
DeleteLovely set of birds. This is the type of smaller wildlife we never get to see in the UK. It's always Yellowstone, bears, buffalo (bison) and wolves on TV here. I'm willing to bet there's hundreds of American creatures I'm unfamiliar with. Thank you for filling in the gaps.
ReplyDeleteThose animal that you mention are from out West, there are even different birds there too. Of course, we do have bears here in Georgia too. Don't won't to see one though! Hard to get good photos of birds, they are so fast!
DeleteWe've a wide variety of birds here, too. I love watching them and I have "regulars" that, like birds of a feather, hang around my cabin...they know when they're on to a good thing! However, I don't have a bird bath for them because on this property are a couple of large ponds so the birds enjoy those.
ReplyDeleteI love birds...they're wonderful creatures. :)
We also have our "regulars" and they must tell other birds!
DeleteWe also love watching them. Wildlife right at your backdoor, you can't beat that!