This immature Bald Eagle left his perch and flew along the reservoir toward me. This is the same one that was soaring with an adult earlier in the afternoon. He and the adult were hanging out together in a large pine tree.
My 3 year old grandson Colin and I built a snowman outside our dining room door. We used sunflower seeds for the eyes and apple slices for the mouth and ears. Five different bird species dined on the seeds we spread on his hat: Blue Jays, Chickadees, Tufted Titmouse, Juncos and Tree Sparrow.
The Blue Jays can fit only one un-shelled peanut in their beak, so I was really surprised to see this little Tufted Titmouse fly off with one in its beak. I expect it kept her busy for quite awhile.
While making my breakfast tea this morning, I looked up and noticed our Sharp-shinned Hawk looking right at me. He was perched on the backside of our used Christmas tree looking for his own breakfast. There was not another bird in sight.
At times, one of the group of eight Horned Larks would wander out onto a totally snow covered section of the cornfield. Their movements are quick runs much like a Sandpiper you would see running along a beach.
All 24 of our Blue Jays were active during a recent heavy snowstorm. They were madly grabbing sunflower seeds for their caches. This one made a brief stop on a perch on his way into the feeder area.
Our dominant male Northern Cardinal has decided our used Christmas tree is a nice place to munch on sunflower seeds. He stops in multiple times a day along with the female. She stays more hidden in the middle of the tree while he frequently comes out on a branch.
This pair of Common Mergansers created a bow wave in front of them as they swam against the current. Notice that with this species, the female has a crest while the male does not. The male's head is iridescent, appearing either black or green depending on the light.
Tree Sparrows prefer to ground feed, I rarely see them on any of the feeders. This one was scratching in the snow to uncover white millet and black-oiled sunflower seeds.
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