carpingdiem

carpingdiem, 1 day ago to Birds

It rained all day and was cold. All the usual suspects were at the feeders including the red headed woodpecker, who is now a regular. #birds #birding #birdsofmastodon #birdphotography #nature #woodpecker #HoosierMast

carpingdiem, 4 days ago to Birds

The rose breasted grosbeaks and the summer tanager seem to have departed, and the Baltimore orioles never showed up, so it's just the usual feeder birds today. However, I am expecting the first brood of bluebirds to fledge any day now. #birds #birding #birdsofmastodon #birdphotography #nature #HoosierMast

This red headed woodpecker comes to the feeder every day now. Red heads are uncommon, so it's good to see it.
On the left is a male hairy woodpecker on the feeder and on the right a fledgling house finch has landed. Normally, the larger hairy woodpecker does not share the feeder with other birds, but it tolerated the fledgling, probably because he knew it was clueless.
This is a female American goldfinch in summer feathers. It lacks the neon yellow feathers and black cap of the males.

carpingdiem, 6 days ago to Birds

The first fledgling of the year at the feeders: the house finch! #birds #birding #birdsofmastodon #birdvideo #nature #finch #fledgling #HoosierMast

A fledgling house finch awaits its parent on the railing next to the feeder. When its daddy lands, a vigorous feeding session occurs.

carpingdiem, 8 days ago to Birds

Sunset tonight was at 846pm and that is exactly when the male summer tanager came to the jelly feeder. The house finch also likes jelly, but will visit it only in the early evening. And an unwanted visitor was eyeing the jelly feeder, too. #birds #birding #birdsofmastodon #birdphotography #raccoon #nature #tanager #finch

A male house finch (red streaks on head, rest of body brown and beige) likes the jelly also.
A raccoon spent a few hours in the tree nearest the jelly feeder, waiting for night so it could grab the contents. Hubby foiled its nefarious plan by taking the feeder in soon after sunset.

carpingdiem, 10 days ago to Birds

More feeder birds. Read ALT descriptions for details. The next 3 days are supposed to be stormy and rainy, so there will be more birds coming to the feeders. #birds #birding #birdsofmastodon #birdphotography #nature #HoosierMast #woodpeckers #grosbeaks #cowbirds

Compared to the flashy male rose breasted grosbeak who is red, black and white, the female is a muted brown and beige. She has the same big eyes and pink nut-cracking beak, though. The males are easy to spot, the females are not so much. I found this one on the ground, waiting for the males above her on the feeder to toss down seeds.
This male pileated woodpecker is ready for his closeup. With his red crest, red mustache and loony laugh, he looks and sounds like Woody Woodpecker. He's pretty big, too, bigger than a crow.
This plain brown bird with the dark brown beak is often mistaken for all sorts of other birds. It's a female cowbird and it lays its eggs in other birds' nests, leaving them to rear its young. I have always wondered how baby cowbirds know they are cowbirds if they have never seen or interacted with their cowbirds prior to fledging.

carpingdiem, 11 days ago to Birds

"To the left, to the left
To the left, to the left..."

A male American goldfinch and Papa Bluebird are showing me the direction of the door.

(Apologies to Beyonce.)
#birds #birding #bindsofmastodon #birdphotography #nature #HoosierMast

Papa Bluebird, with his blue head and wings and cinnamon colored chest, points with one wing to the left.

carpingdiem, 13 days ago to Birds

It's been cool, it's been hot. Sometimes it rains and then an hour later the sun shines. It's April. The usual birds are here the grosbeaks are still hanging about, and I glimpsed a hummingbird, however it didn't stay and I don't have a picture. #birds #birding #birdsofmastodon #birdphotography #bluebird #goldfinches #grosbeak #HoosierMast

The male American goldfinches look fine in their neon yellow feathers (with black and white wings and black caps).
The grosbeaks are still here, but I'm sure they will be on their way shortly. This mature male has black and white feathers with a big red splotch on the front of his chest.

carpingdiem, 16 days ago to Birds

More rose breasted grosbeaks have come to the feeders today. Two mature males and at least one female. #birds #birding #birdsofmastodon #birdphotography #grosbeaks #HoosierMast

A male rose breasted grosbeak peaking out from behind a feeder. You can see his red breast very well in this picture.
This is a female rose breasted grosbeak. She is brown with a brown-streaked white breast and a prominent white "eyebrow" over her eyes.
A female rose breasted grosbeak showing her white chest with brown streaks and white eyebrow.

carpingdiem, 17 days ago to Birds

The Cooper's hawk dropped by at lunchtime, looking for a bird to lunch on, erm, with. It didn't find any and left straightaway. #birds #birding #birdsofmastodon #hawk #birdphotography #HoosierMast

carpingdiem, 18 days ago to Birds

All the woodpeckers are coming to the feeders now and frequently, too. They must be feeding hatchlings. #birds #birding #birdsofmastodon #birdphotography #woodpeckers #HoosierMast

This woodpecker has a reddish-orange stripe on its head and neck, a cream colored face, neck, chest and belly with an orangish blotch on its belly and black and white polka dotted wings. This is a male red bellied woodpecker. They are at the suet feeders constantly throughout the day.
This is our largest woodpecker, with its red Woody Woodpecker crest, and black and white body and wings. Since it also has a red mustache, it is a male pileated woodpecker. It's call is a lot like Woody Woodpecker's too.
This medium sized woodpecker with its white chest and belly and black a white head, back and wings looks like a downy woodpeckers, but it's bigger and its beak is longer. It's a hairy woodpecker.

carpingdiem, 22 days ago to random

Squirrel: "Why you yell at me? Why you hate me? I's hungry and bird food just sitting there."
Me: yells louder
#squirrel #naturephotography #HoosierMast

carpingdiem, 26 days ago to Birds

Drama at the feeders. Papa Bluebird is buzzing all the larger birds who are getting too close to his nesting box (which is not too far from the feeders). The male red bellied woodpecker gets the worst of it. #birds #birding #birdsofmastodon #birdphotography #HoosierMast #bluebird #woodpecker

While Papa Bluebird is high in the trees, Mama Bluebird is in the nest box, sitting on eggs. Here, she is poking her head out of the nest box to see what is going on.
This male red bellied woodpecker has just been buzzed by Papa Bluebird. He's like, "WTF, bird?"
The male red bellied woodpecker spreads his wings and takes off from the feeder after getting buzzed again by the bluebird.

carpingdiem, 27 days ago to Birds

First migrant captured at the feeder: the yellow throated warbler. #birds #birding #birdsofmastodon #birdphotography #warbler #HoosierMast

carpingdiem, 1 month ago to Birds

I have no pictures of migrants yet, although I have glimpsed a yellow throated warbler at the feeders and I can hear a Northern Parula singing right outside my window. In the meantime, the usual feeder birds are coming to the feeders frequently... I suspect they may be feeding chicks already. #birds #birding #birdphotography #birdsofmastodon #naturephotography #nature #HoosierMast

This tiny Carolina wren, with its beige and brown coloring, has the loudest song in the smallest body. It sings me awake every morning... an hour before my alarm.
Date night at the mealworm block. A male (on the right) and female downy woodpecker share the same feeder, which is unusual.

carpingdiem, 1 month ago to Birds

The male American goldfinches have almost changed into their summer feathers. The chipping sparrows have returned. The titmice and downy woodpeckers are common visitors at the feeders. #birds #birding #birdsofmastodon #birdphotography #nature #HoosierMast #goldfinches #woodpeckers #titmouse

The chipping sparrows have returned. These little guys have a grey head and chest with a cinnamon colored cap and brown wings.
The tufted titmice are gray on the head, back and wings and tail and white on the cheeks, chest and belly. They love shelled peanuts.
The small downy woodpeckers are the most constant of visitors to the feeders in all seasons. They are black and white above and white below.

carpingdiem, 1 month ago to random

Here in Indianapolis, we had a totality around 3pm EST. The bird chatter was deafening all afternoon around the feeders, but once totality hit, it was dead silent (not one peep) until the sun came back. And the temperature dropped about 10 degrees. #eclipse #TotalSolarEclipse #HoosierMast

Here we are approaching totality.
We are almost at totality here. You can just see a thin ring of sun. It was still sunny, but the sunlight was very weak.