H.J. Ruiz - Avian101 | "My Backyard Visitors" – All about birds – The world is my backyard!

What’s Up? – Birds are back! Is Winter over?

Birds are back! Is Winter over?...

It may sound farfetched but I have the felling that winter is over for us in Georgia.

I was on the road yesterday on my way home from shopping, when I saw a several home lawns teeming with probably over a thousand birds, the majority were Brown-headed Cowbirds an some European Starlings. I did not have my camera with me but to shoot any of this.

At home, I got my cameras ready just in case the flock of retuning birds would land near my home (It has happened in the past). They did not this time.

However, I shot some pictures of a pair of Brown-headed Cowbirds being the very first of this kind to return this year.

Saw a pair of American Goldfinch flitting around and stoping to eat at the feeders.

I was also thrilled to see a male Eastern Bluebird, interested and checking for a home to build a nest. This bird was the first of its kind to arrive this year.

Does this return of birds an indication that our weather is going to change? I certainly hope so!

Photo Gallery

American Goldfinch

Brown-headed Cowbird (F&M)

Eastern Bluebird (M)

© HJ Ruiz – Avian101

Tags: American Goldfinch, birding, birds, Brown-Headed Cowbird, Eastern Bluebird, nature, photography, photos of birds, What's Up?

Sanderling

It is somewhat unlike other sandpipers in appearance, which has led to the suggestion that it should be placed into a monotypic genus Crocethia. A more recent review (Thomas et al., 2004) indicates, however, that the sanderling is a fairly typical “stint” or small sandpiper and should be separated from the large knots with its closest relatives in a distinct genus.

This bird is similar in size to a dunlin, but stouter, with a thick bill. It shows a strong white wingbar in flight, and runs along the sandy beaches it prefers with a characteristic “bicycling” action of its legs, stopping frequently to pick small food items. It eats small crabs and other small invertebrates. In spring, birds migrating north from South America consume large numbers of horseshoe crab eggs in the Delaware Bay area.