Life's a Bit Tough for this Purple Finch

One of my many Goldfinches, a Pine Siskin, and a visually challenged female Purple Finch sharing niger seeds at the finch feeder.

Looking at the finch from the other side, you'd never know there was anything wrong with her.

Another Brief Encounter of the Oriole Kind

He just dropped by a for a few minutes and no sign of him since. Perhaps my oranges were too old. I put out a new one right away, but he wasn't around to see.

A Brown Thrasher Sings

The video isn't much to look at, but I love the song. He (she?) sang almost nonstop for about three days, but I fear he may have moved on. Maybe he doesn't like our resident Merlin?

Today was the most beautiful day this year. Warm, mostly sunny, mostly calm. I got up earlier than I needed to, given it was a Sunday and there were no lunches to pack, and then I went looking for birds. I found several, including this Clay-coloured Sparrow. The most exciting thing I learned today was that if a person sneaks up on ducks very slowly, they won't fly away. In fact, after a while they float by as if the person is not there. Thus I took some of my best duck photos ever. this is a lovely Lesser Scaup.

This is a Northern Shoveller.

A pair of Blue Winged Teals.

A pair of Canvasback DucksAnd a Horned GrebeA more unusual, but also slightly more distressing discovery today, was this Merlin. I wasn't distressed to see him, just distressed to know he lives on our farm. I'd seen him pass over the yard a few times, but today I saw where he hangs out. Now if only he would confine his bird predation to pigeons and grackles, we'd be good friends.

This week's birds

May 19th while making supper I glanced out the window to see this young Baltimore Oriole checking out the feeders. According to the Crossley guide, he is a first summer male. I find that a bit odd, as I thought he would be starting his second summer now, but maybe he was born late. After he flew away, I added oranges to my feeder offerings, but haven't seen him back. Oh, well, another one should show up. We often have a pair nesting here.



There is still one lone White Crowned Sparrow checking in at the spilled seed on the patio several times a day. Three female American Goldfinches joined the males yesterday. There was one the day before, along with 8 males. I am curious to know if my whole population changes each day as they migrate or if there are several birds here for a few days, coming and going between the feeders and other parts of the yard. The first female Goldfinch I saw this year was Wednesday the 18th. I also had 8 males that day, the most I've seen at one time so far.A pair of Barn Swallows was an unexpected site at the feeder this morning. As I haven't been adding flies or mosquitoes to the seeds, I can only assume they just were checking out a new part of the yard as a possible home site, or maybe they just wanted a rest.

The most exciting site of the week came on the 18th when this guy stopped for a very short visit.

When Jeanette reported a couple in her Manitoba yard, I was excited for her, but didn't expect one here. But here he is. I just glimpsed him as I sat down at my desk Wednesday, so immediately grabbed the camera and ran outside. He obligingly perched in the saskatoon bush long enough to snap this photo and three or four blurry ones! I tried to track him down again, but haven't seen a feather. Oops, sorry, almost forgot. He's a Rose-breasted Grosbeak. Ali and I saw one at Buffalo Pound a few years back, so this guy is number 2.

Who's Visiting Our Feeders This Week?

An American Goldfinch, looking a little faded in spite of the earliness of the year. We've had 3 males around this week, no females. This fellow is definitely the least brilliantly coloured.

A Brown Thrasher. They often like to root around under the bushes in my yard. Actually seeing one at the feeder is less usual. Mind you, he wasn't eating there, just looking around.

One of many White Throated Sparrows that have been eating the seeds thrown out of the feeder by the messy little House Sparrows. Their whistle is one of my favourite spring songs, partly because it is so beautiful, but also because they are here such a short time before they leave for somewhere more northern.

A Harris's Sparrow. There have been two males here this week. I don't recall ever seeing them in our yard before, so this is very special. I understand they have a pleasant whistling song as well. Maybe I've heard it and didn't realize it. They aren't singing when they hop around on the patio.

Mystery Bird: still mysterious

When Ray and I saw this little guy, it was a mystery. After four emails from the more experienced birders on the Sask Birds list, the possibilities are a Say's Phoebe or an Eastern Phoebe. Very pretty bird. When I looked in the book on my own, I thought it didn't have the right markings for a Say's, but the Eastern doesn't have the peach tummy. Some suggested diet as the possible reason for the colouring being different, my thought now: can it be a cross?

Pointy black bill, peachy abdomen, rounded notched tail, dark eye, very faint wingbars, light coloured throat. Photographed west of Goodwin House at Sask. Landing Park.

Sunday May 1

Red Breasted Merganser, Snow Bunting, Tundra Swan.