There were no new birds in the yard in September. I missed catching a photo of the Great Blue Heron that flies up the creek and the Cooper's Hawk that flies through the yard at rooftop level with a shriek that sends a chill down my spine. Last month I saw the Flicker flying erratically through the yard sounding panicked. She was followed by an uninterested looking Cooper's Hawk who acted like he'd seen it all before. This month the hawk came through close enough for me to hear his wing beats. It would be nice if he could roust the greedy sparrows out of the bird feeder.
Black-headed Grosbeak
Black-headed Grosbeak
The Black-headed Grosbeak returned to the feeder after a month's vacation in September.
Black-capped Chickadee
Near the end of September the Chickadees are beginning to feed on the sunflowers that volunteered under the bird feeders and have finally ripened . It is close to coming full circle as I really began this project trying to catch them in flight as they were coming for the sunflowers last fall.
Black-capped Chickadee
Black-capped Chickadee
I am using larger images, when I have the resolution, to frame the birds in their environment or to show their habits in an attempt to do more than simply identify them. With only three months left to the year, this has gone on too long not to see the year out so I get to invent ways to keep it interesting enough to finish with an entire year.
Black-capped Chickadee
Black-capped Chickadee
The suet feeder has run out as I was only feeding Starlings and Jays. The young male Flicker is an infrequent visitor to the yard. He digs in the paths and the flower beds for ants. I have enough garden destroying ants that I'd like to see more of him.
Young Male Flicker
Young Male Flicker
At the beginning of September the young male Pileated Woodpecker came to the yard sounding manic like a street person calling at the top of their lungs on the street corner. There seemed to be nothing wrong that a few Oregon Grape berries wouldn't cure. The berries are gone now and this woodpecker is gone as well.
Pileated Woodpecker
Pileated Woodpecker
Pileated Woodpecker
If this is the young Towhee his plumage has changed.
Rufous-sided Towhee
Rufous-sided Towhee
Song Sparrow
The Song Sparrows have been greedy all summer. It takes a slamming door to get them to budge from the feeder.
Most of the House Finches in the yard look a bit scrawny and a little the worst for ware. The one below,however, is so fat he can hardly fly.
House Finch
House Finch
House Finch
House Finch
The Green backed Goldfinches have been coming to the thistle seed all summer though no longer in the numbers that came in spring. The sunflower leaves are below the thistle feeder and catch the fallen seeds.
Green backed Goldfinch
The Bushtits still roam the trees in chittering packs
Bushtit
September's performers of the month were the pair of Nuthatches that seemed to run relay races to the feeder and back to their nest.
Nuthatch
Their persistence and their acrobatics made them entertaining.
Nuthatch
Nuthatch
I could distinguish between the pair because one was the rumpled bird I'd noticed earlier in the year and the other was usually better groomed. They were both acrobatic and fun to watch.
