The pair of wood ducks were checking out a duck house this morning, before the snow came so I wonder if they will head south now. And the spring birds are not the only birds having trouble finding food this evening as even the winter birds had problems locating seeds in the snow covered feeder.
Snow Covered Feeder
I think the chickadees were happy with the sunshine, which melted the snow off the tree branches, but there still was a steady stream of birds coming to the feeders even though the temperature where slightly above freezing. If they eat this much on a warmer day, I might not have enough bird seed to last the cold month of January.
Sunny Chickadee
The snow storm sure moved in quickly as only a few small flakes were coming down when I filled the bird feeders. But twenty minutes later, the snow was coming down rather heavy and plastered snow over the bird feeder covering the seed tray. The one chickadee looked confused why the seed disappeared so I know once it stops snowing, I will have to remove that white stuff.
Seed Lost in the Snow
The chickadees seemed extra cheery this morning and I suppose it was because the sun made a brief appearance. Although the steady flow of chickadees stocking up at the feeder all day has me wondering if they know about the colder temperatures coming again.
Chickadees Stocking Up
This weekend is the Great Backyard Bird Count, which started yesterday and goes through Monday, where people from around the world count birds and submit their data for research. But counting my finches and redpolls seems like an impossible task with them coming and going so quickly to the feeders and back to the trees.
Counting Birds
The 35 below wind chills made today not fit for man nor beast, but for some reason the little chickadee still sounded happy when it came to the bird feeder although it seemed like they were making additional trips for seeds. I sure hope they can cuddle in a bird house or a cavity in a tree to stay warm.
Chickadee Needs Warm Home
A string of little chickadee were busy coming to the bird feeder as I filled it this afternoon. I suppose they were happy that my presence was scaring off the larger birds like blue-jays allowing them to get some sunflower seeds.
Happy Chickadee
When I took a walk through he woods yesterday afternoon, there was several chickadees singing in the trees. They always sound so cheerful and happy no matter if the weather is nasty or nice.
Cheerful Chickadee
Now that the summer birds have headed south again, the year round resident birds are more noticeable, like the cheerful Chickadee, who are visiting the feeders very frequently on this chilly morning.
According to Cornell Lab of Ornithology, every autumn Chickadees literally “allow brain neurons containing old information to die, replacing them with new neurons” so they can adapt to change in the next season. And with a fresh mind, which I don’t have, the Chickadee can hide seeds to eat later. Each item is placed in a different spot and the chickadee can remember thousands of hiding places.
Black-Capped Chickadee
The bird feeder this morning looked like a busy airport and it may need air traffic controllers to route the birds in. With a very cold start of the day at -18ºF, the birds (and squirrels) are trying to fill up on seed.
Air Traffic Controller Needed
