...and in with the new! 

On this last day of 2024, here are some highlights!

Many individual Yellow-bellied Sapsuckers were in our yard last winter. Males have the red throat.

1-16-24 Four E. Bluebirds 2-20-24 Eastern Bluebird pair checks nest box

3-29-24 Eastern Bluebird eggs

4-28-24 Eastern Bluebird fledgling

Eastern Bluebirds were present all through the year and raised three broods with five young in each.

3-2-24 Eastern Phoebe

3-28-24 Eastern Phoebe with alpaca fibers
 

5-11-24 Eastern Phoebes

Eastern Phoebes returned late in February and raised two broods. The young were fed cicadas when they were at their peak! 

5-13-24 Cicadas on Smooth Hydrangea

Periodical cicadas were everywhere on the plants for about six weeks. These insects were a feast for many birds and mammals.

3-28-24 Carolina Chickadee

5-4-24 Adult tempts chick with caterpillar food 5-4-24 Chickadee fledgling has flown to a perch and is fed
Chickadees (Carolina x Black-capped) had at least one successful nesting, and fed the young fat, juicy caterpillars.

1-1-24 Pine Siskins

1-29-24 Pine Siskin Composite with Green Morph

3-25-24 Pine Siskin, green morph in Blackhaw Viburnum

Pine Siskins were here last winter and stayed into April. The Green Morph type in the photos is a rare plumage that shows in 1% of males.

Further study needs to be done to understand why this happens.
 

1-21-24 Pileated Woodpecker and Northern Flicker composite

An impressive male Pileated Woodpecker came in to the suet feeder one day.

In this composite photo, it's easy to see the size difference compared to the Northern Flicker.

7-11-24 Brown Thrasher composite photo 7-13-24 Northern Mockingbird composite

When the Rough-leaf Dogwood berries were ripe, both Brown Thrasher and Northern Mockingbird juveniles came in to eat them. 

In these photos, we see adult and young birds.

7-14-24 American Crow and Fish Crow composite

July was a busy month! Fish Crows investigated the bubbler for species #127 there.

The comparison photo shows size and plumage variation between this species and the often seen American Crow.

8-12-24 Mississippi Kite juvenile is brought insect food by adult

Another cool observation was seeing this young Mississippi Kite as it hung out in a nearby yard, begging for food from the adult bird. 

Of course, it was fed a diet of cicadas!
 

In May of 2023, a male Mourning Warbler came to the bubbler for the first time in 17 years.

I have to wonder if this young male seen in August might not be an offspring! 

Twenty-six warbler species were heard and seen this year. 

If you'd like to see those that were photographed, a new page will open here:

2024 Warblers

One last sighting of note was on 12-13-24 when a Bald Eagle,

our national bird, circled over the yard twice for species #115 for the year.

1-22-19 Bald Eagle

Here is an archive photograph of a Bald Eagle from a sighting on 1-22-19.

12-25-24 Bald Eagle nest at Simpson Park

On Christmas Day, we drove to nearby Simpson Park to look for eagles.

It was a dreary day, like today, and we did not see them, 

however we did document the nest in a large sycamore. We'll be back!

Happy New Year to you all!

May you find awe in nature each day of the year.