Pair of Barn Owls in our box

2024 breeding season. We now have seven eggs

Nesting birds(June)

Nesting birds(May)

Nesting birds(April)

ID for bird!

6/18/2020

Yellow warbler

The little warbler is nesting in metal birdhouse.

ID please!

8/24/2023

Birds Carrying Nesting Material, Part 2

A few more of my favorite photos from this breeding season of birds carrying nesting material. I monitored the Mourning Dove nest for Nest Watch.

Birds Carrying Nesting Material

These are some of my favorite photos of birds carrying nesting material during this breeding season. I was only able to monitor the Fish Crow nest all the way to fledging. The nests of the other birds were either not used, not finished, or I wasn’t able to locate it.

Female Ruby-throated Hummingbird.

8/24/2023. Long drinker.

American Gold Finches

Lucky day to spot the male & female American Goldfinches together. Hoping they are a mated pair. 8-14-23

Hummingbirds.

Hummingbird time.

8/8/2023

Backyard Barred Owls

I built a barred owl house based on the NestWatch specs and put it in my backyard. First watched a raccoon size up the box. Then a few rounds of squirrels. Pretty exciting to then see barred owls investigate the box periodically in early morning hours. Then one day I saw “Beatrice” the barred owl looking out of the nest in the middle of day. She stayed continuously in the nest for over a months with regular food deliveries from “Barry”. Soon after that we noticed Beatrice leave the nest for brief moments maybe for a bit of reprieve or to help with hunting for the growing babies. I happened to be there to take video of the first fledge and of that fledgling climbing a nearby tree to safety. Once they both fledged it became difficult to find them but once a day I would seek them out and typically could find and photograph at least one fledgling and a parent. One highlight for me was a couple weeks after fledge when I found the two babies together one a single branch. Before my eyes I witnessed for the first time one successfully fly to another treetop and the sibling immediately follow. Another highlight was watching a parent deliver a short tailed shrew to a fledgling. I sent that picture to a local biologist for confirmation of the schrew identification. Fascinating stuff.

Male American Goldfinch

Handsome male AGF stopped by this morning ~ 7-3-23. The female AGF visited yesterday.

Female American Goldfinch

The female AGF has been a bit more elusive than the male ~ 7-29-23. This is the time of year they breed in VT.

Bald Eagle!

A Bald Eagle calling in response to it’s young begging.

First hummingbird nest found!

House Finch Returns

Finally spotted this female HF and a male today. Had not seen them for couple of weeks since their nest with 3 eggs was raided. 7-7-23

Bathing(Part 3)

All between 3:54 PM and 3:57 PM in all the submissions. Except robin which was 3:49 PM. There was black birds, and I am not sure about starlings? No picture of them. 6/30/2023.

Bathing(Part 2)

Continued…6/30/2023

Bathing/robin

6/30/2023

Bathing.

6/28/2023

Birds(Part 3)

Birds(Part 2)

Birds.

6/23/2023

Famous Cardinal

June 7th, 2023. I put out some jam and I was getting my camera setting adjusted, and I looked back in to the screen and saw a cardinal there.

Egg ID!

This nest that we thought was a abandoned hummingbird nest was a least flycatcher nest when we saw that the least flycatcher was sitting on it. We were out of the house and than came back and saw two eggs. They had different patterns on the egg. One was tan-white which I think is the L flycatcher and the other one was white with brown spots which I think is a cowbird egg. The picture isn’t the best because the nest is covered with leaves. We had seen a male and female Brown-Headed Cowbird.

Birds.

6/1/2023

Blue-gray Gnatcatcher.

Stealing nest material.

Phoebe chicks.

Bluebirds.

Phoebe.

Cardinal.

Speckled Eggs

Two speckled eggs in what started out as a black capped chickadee nest. Either chickadee or wren eggs…not sure. 5-23-23 You can also see the eggs in a previous pic I posted titled “whose nest?” I missed them earlie r~ well hidden.

ID Please!

Global Big Day Birds.

Global Big Day Birds.

Cleaning out

This House Wren ? is removing nesting material from the bird box that the Black-Cpapped Chickadees built a nest in. The House Sparrows tried to take over the Chickadees. When the House Sparrows lost interest the Chickadees started to visit their nest again…but now the Wren seems to want to take over. 5=15=23

Mama House Finch

Mama House Finch on five eggs. Not the best lighting..taken from inside by house through a window. 5-6-23

Nests update.

Robins ~ Finches

American Goldfinches showed up today ~ mated pair I hope. Cute little Robins foraging about. Four House finch eggs in nest number two. Am quite certain number five is there today…will check later in day. also going to check BC chickadee in birdhouse for eggs…lots of fluffly nesting material ~ that nest sure looks comfy!

Cowbird egg in House Finch nest located in front porch wreath

Titmouse attempting to use my hair for her nest

While sitting on my deck watching the birds visit my feeders, a small Tufted Titmouse decided my hair would be a perfect addition to her nest. She (the smaller of the pair) hopped on my arm, up my shoulder, onto my head, and tried to pull out tufts of my hair. She worked at it for about 3 full minutes. Sadly, I don’t think she was successful!

New nest and egg

This new house finch nest was built in the same wreath in a different spot while the two reluctant fledgings
were still in the nest in the top of the wreath! First egg today 5-1-23

Bluebird nestlings and a Titmice birthmarks

Photo #1 – April 18, 2023
This is a Tufted Titmouse on our umbrella pole; Its nest is in there. Last year, we had Titmice raise a successful brood of 6 in there, and looks like they’re going to nest again! The thing about this specific Titmouse is that, if you look closely, it has a black mark underneath its left eye. While this could just be something that smudged its feathers, I believe it is a permanent birthmark-like mark. The female from last year (photo #5) had a mark like this beside her right eye, so I think this is one of her offspring that inherited the birthmark. What do you think?

Sitting Dove

Dove sitting in a Red Cedar tree. She allowed me to approach. My photo is not great but it was a lovely encounter. She never moved.

Black- Capped Chickadee Nest

Black-Capped Chickadde nest in Bluebird box started exactly one week ago today ~ 4-28-23

Nest Condo

This is indeed a different female house finch building a new nest in the lower part of the wreath. As she was building her new nest this AM the male and female house finches flew to feed the fledgings on the nest in the top of the wreath. 4-28-23

Phoebe Building nest.

Unknown Sparrow Nests!!

Two sparrow nests found in a field, ID needed!

House Finch fledgings

These fledgings don’t seem in a hurry to leave. Mama was chattering on the nest at them as if to wake them up for a feeding. 4-26-26

ID for a warbler!

Hummingbird.

House Finch Nestlings

These House Finch nestlings (eggs) were laid March 26-30th and the first two hatched Aprill 11th and the last three on April 12th.

Hummingbird, Robin, Eastern Bluebird eggs, & Tufted Titmouse.

The perfect home

Male Tree Swallow perched on top of a Bluebird box

Mama House Finch

Mama House Finch taking good care of her nestlings. 4-16-23

Hummingbirds.

Chickadee nest, first egg of Bluebird.

A Male Canada Goose Chasing Off An Intruder.

Empty bluebird nest.

Chickadee nest.

Bluebirds on chickadee house.

New Bluebird nest!

I went to check all of my nest boxes and when I got to my first one, a female Bluebird flew out of the box! I checked on the inside and found this nest, I’m hoping we’ll have some Bluebird babies this season!
The nest is made of twigs and dried grass, and is inside a nest box roughly 6 by 6 1/2 inches wide and long. The box is about 10 1/2 inches tall with an entrance hole about 1 1/2 inches. The box is facing Southwest.

Mr. and Mrs. Starling collecting nesting materials

Pairs

Spotting lots of pairs. Carolina Wren visited with another. Spotted a Cardinal pair feeding one another on the ground this AM. 4-1-23

Eggs ~ nests

Another house finch egg today ~ usual number is five. A couple of nests I spotted while out and about.

3-27-23

House Finch Courtship Feeding

The finches were both feeding when Mr. Finch pushed Mrs. Finch to the edge of the platform feeder, Mrs. Finch flapped her wings like a baby bird and opened her beak, Mr. Finch fed her, he also fed her in the neighbor’s cypress tree.

Displaying male Mourning Doves

The male doves have been displaying a lot

First breeding season in our new home

A selection of images of some of our backyard parents and their kids. The bluebirds had three clutches in a new house I built just for them after I noticed them interested in (but not buying) an older house I’d put up. The Tanagers were summer-long visitors to our feeders, which was a real treat, and the Broad-winged Hawk was one of three fledglings who seemed unafraid to use our birdbath during the summer heat.

Carolina Wren feeding Brown-headed Cowbird fledgling

A hungry Brown-headed Cowbird fledgling begs for food from Carolina Wren in my backyard.

Cute pair of 3

Mourning Doves

2022 Blackbirds

House Wrens

Baby Bluebirds

Young House Finch Bathing

Song Sparrows

Chimney Swifts in Summer

Red-bellied Woodpecker Pair

This appears to be a copulating pair of Red-bellied Woodpeckers, but if you look closely at the bird on the bottom in the third photo, it looks like its red crown is solid without a patch of gray like a female would have. Is this just a trick on the lighting? What do you think?
Photos taken on April 11
Camera: Canon EOS Rebel T7

Downy/Hairy Woodpeckers Copulating

I was able to witness a pair of Downy/Hairy Woodpeckers copulating. I’m unsure of where they nested or if they had any successful broods. Sorry for the bad photo quality.
Photos taken on April 13, 2022
Camera: Canon EOS Rebel T7

Sweet Pair of Mourning Doves

I was lucky enough to witness a pair of Mourning Doves copulating on a fallen tree. I was never able to locate the nest but this was still a special experience. The doves rubbed heads before breeding, afterwards, the male fanned his tail feathers in the direction of the female for a few minutes, why did he do that?
Photos taken on April 14, 2022
Camera: Canon EOS Rebel T7

2022 Breeding Birds

American Goldfinch Eating Thistles

Northern Cardinal

Taken from the window on August 15, 2022

2022 Summer Red-winged Blackbirds

Willow Flycatcher family

I was on the border of Maryland and Pennsylvania collecting data for the Maryland-DC Breeding Bird Atlas when I discovered this family of Willow Flycatchers. (Too bad I was in Pennsylvania and not Maryland!) I first discovered the parents communicating with each other and bringing food into a tree. I stood under the tree peering through the thick leaves and was delighted to find these three fledglings patiently waiting for lunch to arrive

Common Grackle Feeding

Breeding birds of Boulder

Various capture of young birds with parents from the past summer.

Female cardinal on her eggs(The brood that didn’t hatch)

The cardinals had 3 eggs in the first brood(in June 2022), & they didn’t hatch(they only had one brood)Hoping that they would nest in 2023!

Still Hungry?!

Here is a Blue Bird Dad feeding his baby. It seems he is not feeding him enough worms because is he always hungry.

Blue Birds and Hummingbirds

Hello There!

While on vacation with my family I was at my grandmother’s house sitting in the grass watching all the different birds going to and from the feeder. When this adorable juvenile Dark-eyed Junco appeared in the grass in front of me. This was the first time I’ve seen a younger Junco.

Hello Handsome

At first seeing this bird I was Ooo it’s a Summer Tanager. But with some more research I discovered this is a non breeding male Scarlet Tanager! A couple years back I was able to see the bright red one in the yard, this year a yellow one appeared!

Immature bald eagle.

Feeder birds.

feeder birds.

House sparrow.

Common loon/osprey.

We saw an bald eagle swoop down and get a fish,eat it on a branch.

We saw a osprey but we did not get a picture of it.

Cornell Lab of Ornithology

Cornell Lab of Ornithology