Welcome to our blog!
It's all about our discoveries in our private Shady Oaks Sanctuary for birds, pollinators and wildlife. We gauge our success by the diversity of species we observe and document with our photography.
We hope you are inspired to create your own refuge!
August, birds are preparing to migrate! 8-13-24
August, a time of frenzied feeding.
Birds must put on weight to be ready for their long migratory flights.
Salvia 'Black-and-blue' is a perennial that blooms from mid-May into mid-October in our garden. It is one of my favorite non-native plants because it feeds so many Ruby-throated Hummingbirds. Its nectar has about 30% higher sugar content, which the birds and bees love.
This young hummingbird is using a bare stem as a perch to reach the blossom. As it does, pollen is being deposited on its forehead, which the bird will carry to the next blossom.
I noticed some tiny bee activity around this bloom while I was waiting for the hummingbirds. Look closely, not just one bee but next to the metallic green bee is an even tinier native bee inside the bloom. Another benefit is revealed!
Ruby-throated Hummingbirds will be moving through with each cool front now through October. They drink nectar and sugar water to fuel their need to catch insect food. I had a question from my friend, Jan Conant who enjoyed the photo with the hummingbird's tongue in the last post. She wondered how do hummingbirds really drink? In 2011, researchers published the results of studying their amazing tongues. This is very specialized behavior!
How the hummingbird's tongue really works
Now, on to a different species of bird entirely. I have been seeing an adult Mississippi Kite soaring over our yard and around the neighborhood. One day, I heard a second bird answering with its "Phee-phew" call, but I only got a glimpse of it. I started checking early in the morning and last Thursday, 8-8-24, I found a juvenile bird perched, obscured in a nearby oak.
I watched it for some time before it decided to glide away and I lost sight of it.
The next two mornings, I was able to observe it calling, preening, stretching its wings and finally an adult called to it and brought in some insect food. Handoffs were very quick! Sometimes, the bird was facing away, "mantling" or hiding its prey. Studying the photos, the insects looked to be large grasshoppers and annual cicadas.
As you can see, the young bird looks very different from the gray and white adult, to help it blend in with the trees for protection.
As soon as I'd open the front door, I could hear it begging. Back inside, get the camera and try again to capture this feeding behavior. Here is a four minute video with some of the clips. I've slowed down some of the action so we can really see what's happening!
It rained most of the day yesterday after I got some initial images. I couldn't find the birds in the afternoon and wondered if they had moved on. But by 8:10 a.m. this morning, the juvenile was back on its open perch, preening, stretching its wings and calling. Didn't hear the adult, but after about 20 minutes, the juvie took off to the east, over and around to another part of the neighborhood. Perhaps it has several perches like this one where the adult will come with food. This bird must practice its flight maneuvers, too.
It won't be too long before these birds begin their journey south. After rearing their chicks, they fly all the way to central South America for the winter! Read all about this fascinating bird:
July, a busy time if you're looking! 7-29-24
July is the time for young birds to learn about their world!
The juvenile Northern Mockingbird and Gray Catbird have been coming in for the Rough-leaf Dogwood berries. The catbird secretly checked out the bubbler one day, working its way around it.
On Sunday, 7-14-24 three birds dropped in at the Bubbler. Larger than Common Grackles, but a bit smaller than American Crows, I thought they were new species #127 for the Bubbler, and my very knowledgeable birding buddy, Connie Alwood confirmed them for me. Fish Crows had been calling the previous week, a nasal "ca-ha" or "uh-uh", or a single "cah", not the drawn out "caw, caw" of the American Crow. So, they had been in the neighborhood a while. These birds are very adaptable to human modified environments, even stealing food off of golf carts says my friend, Tina! The Fish Crow has greatly expanded its range in the last few decades, moving up the Mississippi River into its tributaries. Actually, that's not too far from us, "as the crow flies."
In this last photo, look carefully, it's not easy to see the difference between these two species. (Scale is approximate.) The Fish Crow is substantially smaller (on average 270-300 g vs. 500 g). Both are similarly proportioned, but the Fish Crow has a more slender bill, smaller feet, shorter legs. The American Crow shows a longer-legged look with thicker feet. Feathers on the back of the American Crow show a decidedly "ringed" effect in the right light. That's simplifying things, but it gives one an idea of what to look for. It's not always easy to tell them apart even when they're near each other. Begging American Crows can sound somewhat similar to the Fish Crow but do not have the same abrupt ending that Fish Crow calls do. "The only reliable difference between the two is vocal: The Fish Crow sounds like an American Crow with a bad cold." (From Birds of the World) The joys of bird identification are many!!
The Fish Crow was Bubbler Bird #72 for the year and the young Barred Owl was #73.
Another young Red-bellied Woodpecker has been eating some suet and it has an almost ghostly gray appearance right now. It will gradually get in more colored feathers. The little Northern Flicker took its first bath from the safety of the small rock it was clinging to, how brave!
While chatting with my neighbor, Bob, the other day, he noted that I've mentioned seeing hummingbirds. Yes, we do see them all summer. Part of that is due to the native plant nectar that is available. Though I have not found an actual nest in our yard, there's a very good chance of one here. We see males and females all summer. They've been at the bright red Cardinal Flower that has recently started blooming.
That flash of the red gorget tells us it's a male Ruby-throated Hummingbird.
The striations on the throat of this bird indicate a probable young male. So, young birds are out and about, we're occasionally seeing one chase off another.
Photo from 8-4-21
I was watering the front porch pots a few days ago when a young bird got right in my face! It was telling me to back off from its new patch of Coral Fuchsia "Gartenmeister". This is an annual flower, but it comes on strong as the native Coral Trumpet Honeysuckle (Lonicera sempervirens) slows its growth and has fewer blooms. Feed more birds!
Here's a male, on a favorite perch to protect its patch, ready to zoom in and chase off intruders. See its tongue reaching the sugar water? Slurp, Slurp! It's time to get feeders up! Hummingbirds will be on the move soon, heading south.
A Great Spangled Fritillary butterfly has been visiting the Purple Coneflower (Echinacea purpurea) in the garden, which is home to many insect pollinators right now.
The garden is at its peak, with drifts of Purple Coneflower (Echinacea purpurea) and Orange Coneflower (Rudbeckia fulgida). The Ironweed (Vernonia arkansana) is just beginning to open its purple flowers. All attract pollinators including hummers looking for tiny insects or nectar (Ironweed).
Cardinal Flower (Lobelia cardinalis), Spotted Jewelweed (Impatiens capensis) and perennial non-native Black-and-Blue Salvia (Salvia guaranitica x Black-and-Blue) fill in and attract hummingbirds, too.
We took down the Eastern Bluebird box this morning. The third clutch of birds fledged on 7-23-24. I missed the actual fledging, but around 2:00 p.m. I did see the male calling to the nest box while five speckled fledglings followed to watch from surrounding branches!
Enjoy the sights and sounds of nature in your yards!
Rain, berries and birds! 7-13-24
How does our garden grow? With sun and over 10.73 inches of rain so far in July.
Joe Pye (Eutrochium fistulosum) now stands about 12 feet tall in comparison to our wind sculpture, well above the normal 5-7 feet.
Joe Pye with its massive blooms attracts pollinators like crazy. They're always buzzing around and getting into the flower heads. A Blue-gray Gnatcatcher was seen chasing some tiny insects on these flowers.
Purple Coneflower (Echinacea purpurea) is another pollinator favorite. A tiny carpenter bee (Ceratina spp.) visited this bloom. There it is on the upper left side of the cone.
The pale blue flowers of Downy Skullcap are showy right now. It attracts small bees and hummingbirds, and is deer resistant. It's just out of my usual view, so I'll have to keep an eye out for hummingbirds around it.
Paw Paw (Asimina triloba) and American Filbert or Hazelnut (Corylus americana) are expanding in size every day. Some of the largest paw paw fruit have already been taken, a favorite of opossums and raccoons.
American Elderberries were nearly ripe a week ago, an Eastern Phoebe and House Finches were going after them yesterday.
The biggest draw has been the berries of the Rough-leaf Dogwood (Cornus drummondii). A young Gray Catbird has been fed by one of the adults the last few days. Notice the gape on the young bird in the first two photos.
These dogwoods were in the seed bank, so to speak, we didn't plant them. Dogwoods feed 94 species of Lepidoptera or moth and butterfly caterpillars. These caterpillars in turn feed birds during spring and fall migration and during the nesting season. The flowers benefit many pollinators and now the fruit from that pollination is feeding birds. What a great example of a hard-working native plant!
American Robins with their speckled young are there throughout the day, sometimes grabbing a berry on the fly.
Eastern Bluebirds, also thrushes like their American Robin cousins, love this fruit! The lighter the berry, the riper it is and some will continue to ripen into October.
A young Brown Thrasher came in on its own to feast on the berries. It's a bit tricky balancing on a bobbing branch and grabbing the berries! Like the Gray Catbirds, the Brown Thrashers are known for their secretive, stealthy behavior. It made my day to know that this young bird felt safe and comfortable enough to come out in the open to feed.
As I checked my photos, I found that this was the first time I had photographed young birds of both of these species.
This composite photo shows the plumage differences in the adult and immature birds. This little one has to grow into that tail!
Young birds are frequently seen at the bubbler, finding their own way around. A Northern Cardinal, Tufted Titmouse and Eastern Phoebe are just a few.
Young Blue Jays and a Red-bellied Woodpecker are learning the ropes, too. Finding water and food is now essential to these young birds. They will soon be completely on their own! They're fun to watch as they scratch their heads and figure things out.
The immature Gray Catbird was back this morning, grabbing berries on its own steam. It's hard work, and it took a wee "catnap."
Dan repaired the copper fountain so it's up and running again. The male Eastern Bluebird had gotten used to the simple bird bath and wasn't so sure about this fountain at first. But, it has gotten comfortable with it again. The bluebirds are busy with their nestlings now, carrying insects often to the nest box.
Stay cool...Oh, wait!
Just finished the blog post when I went downstairs and found this bird in the Rough-leaf Dogwood. It's a juvenile Northern Mockingbird! That makes a third species of young birds that I've not photographed before, and all three are in the Mimidae family, or Mimics.
That's a lot to smile about...
Summertime! 6-27-24
Sights and Sounds of Summer 2024
Our somewhat peaceful surroundings have been full of human noise lately. Street crews, roof installers, lawn crews, driveway sealers, moving vans, ice cream trucks - you name it, they've been here! What amazes me is how the birds and other critters do their best to carry on.
We think the second brood of Eastern Bluebirds fledged on 6/10/24. Roofers were here all day on 6/11/24. The adult pair were soon back watching the box, waiting on housekeeping service! As soon as we confirmed the box was empty, we swapped it out for the clean one on 6/13/24. The female wasted no time building a new nest with cypress needles first, then pine needles from trees across the street. The nest cradled the first egg on 6/19/24.
Here is the female on the morning of 6/23/24 as she goes in to lay the fifth egg. It's wonderful to see these birds work together to raise their young. Depending on the heat and timing, this third brood should fledge around 7/11/24.
Last week, on 6/20/24, I had been at a friend's house in the morning. When I returned, I went to check the phoebe nest, knowing they would probably fledge that day. Well, the nest was on the ground! I was a bit concerned, but later saw an adult taking food to one of the young. Perhaps the chicks were rambunctious and raring to take off from the edge, toppling the nest.
The chick was definitely a new fledgling! I watched it fly a good 35 feet to another tree.
An immature bird from the first brood was seen at the dripper bath, then in this hydrangea on 6/24/24.
Young birds will often come to the bubbler for a drink when it's hot. Common Grackle chicks are a bit smaller than the adults and have brown eyes, as opposed to the yellow eyes of adult birds.
Finally, young Northern Cardinals are coming out of cover to be seen. Their bills are still dark, and eventually will turn bright orange.
One species that loves to make a big splash is the Northern Flicker. The yellow shafts of its tail feathers are easily seen in the second photo. The Western subspecies of Northern Flickers have red shafts. They will hybridize in the area where the two meet. Read more here:
This Blue Jay and the flicker have earned their vigorous baths. It's hard work to defend territories and raise chicks in the good old summertime.
An immature, speckled Eastern Bluebird from the second brood is still tagging along with the adult male.
Ruby-throated Hummingbirds are seen every day, sometimes at the feeders, sometimes at flowers, like the Coral Trumpet Honeysuckle (Lonicera sempervirens). This is a female, though males are seen, too.
This Gray Catbird has been heard calling and finally stopped in at the bubbler for #71 for the year. They can be very stealthy, but it's been hot! Birds need fresh, cool water.
On 6/24/24, the hottest day so far at 99.7 degrees, this doe ventured into the garden to browse. This doe may have just one fawn. There is another doe that has two. On two mornings, I've watched the five of them leave the swampy thicket after having spent the night bedded down in dry leaves.
Today, I watched two Blue Dashers chasing each other in the water garden. This one is displaying in an 'obelisk' position. They're usually seen here in July.
TAKE CARE ~ STAY COOL!
Late spring update 6-9-24
Let's begin with a video of clips from our Stealth Cam since February.
Look for deer, rabbit, coyote, Rusty Blackbirds in snow. Listen for toads singing in April and cicadas in May.
Watch the fawns, one is concealed as the doe feeds it. Yearling bucks race to the woods away
from the noise of a dump truck, unloading gravel for street repairs. The video will open in a new page for you.
On Friday, 6-7-24, American Crows were upset and calling loudly in the woods. I looked from upstairs and saw a raccoon climbing a small oak. Dan was watching downstairs and caught sight of a red fox, leaving the woods. He was unable to get a photo. The last time we recorded a fox was in the fall of 2017, the same time that we first recorded coyotes. Foxes typically move out when coyotes move in. They cannot compete with the larger animal.
Red Fox 10-20-17
Red Fox at the Bubbler 10-22-17
We have a bounty of bunnies this year. I've watched them eat numerous native plants such as woolly blue violets, Virginia creeper, Purple Coneflower and even poison ivy. The third photo shows it weeding for me! Eastern Cottontail Rabbits are the first choice on a Red Fox menu. Perhaps that is the lure?
Both Woodland Voles and Eastern Chipmunks are often taken by Red-shouldered Hawks and voles by Barred Owls. They are also on the list for the foxes. Small mammals make up an important part of the food web by eating plants and insects, then transferring that energy by becoming food sources for larger predators such as these. It's the circle of life!
Cicadas have been a food for many mammal and bird species this spring. The last of them are still heard on warm days as they complete their life cycles. We're now into the sixth week since we saw the first one.
The tallest plant in our water garden has gone from bud to bloom, Water Canna (Thalia dealbata). Bumble bees are finding nectar at the flowering Pickerel Rush (Pontederia cordata). These are both hardy native plants, and hummingbirds visit them.
On the west side of the water garden, Sensitive Fern (Onoclea sensibilis), River Oats (Chasmanthium latifolium) and the white blooms of Lizard's Tail (Saururus cernuus) make a lush grouping with some variegated Solomon's Seal.
Great Spangled Fritillary butterflies are seen often in the garden now. This one is enjoying nectar of Purple Coneflower (Echinacea purpurea).
Young Eastern Phoebes chase each other as they explore the woodland learning to forage on their own. They seem to enjoy playing in water!
With some species, it's easy to tell young birds from the adults by the gape, the fleshy hinge at the base of the bill. (Look at the Phoebe again.) This Tufted Titmouse is one of at least four from a clutch.
Immature Downy and Hairy Woodpeckers both have red feathers on top of their heads, which are not always easy to see. Both species will come to suet, and both quickly learn how to find insects in decaying logs or under the bark of stumps.
Eastern Bluebirds will have their second brood fledge any minute now, I can hear the male calling! The female Eastern Phoebe is sitting on a second clutch of eggs. There is always something to listen for, something to observe and learn from here in our Shady Oaks Sanctuary.
A month ago, the Copper Iris (Iris fulva) were in peak bloom.
Sweet moments like this in our gardens and in our lives are treasures!