As the birds return and the year around birds shed their dull winter coat, the bird sunflower feeders show a rainbow of colors. The Goldfinch summer’s bright yellow feather pop next to the brilliant blue of the Indigo Bunting. And the red patch standout among the white and black of the Rose-breasted Grosbeak.
Rainbow Colors at the Feeder
The summer blossoms have faded away but the flower seed head is providing a snack for this goldfinch, who has loss its summer bright yellow coloring.
Seed Snack
The birds were enjoying an above freezing morning as they picked at the Black-eyed Susan dried flower heads eating seeds. The flower stems bent under the weight of the birds as the junco, goldfinch and redpoll consumed their breakfast.
Birds Enjoying Flowerheads
My crafty squirrel manages to get to the bird feeder no matter what obstacles I try to thwart his efforts and so the birds have to find other sources of food, like the seed heads of the black-eyed Susans. The goldfinch doesn’t look very golden in the winter months.
Not Golden
The goldfinches stay around all year, but it is always nice to see the bright yellow color returning on the males during the summer instead of their dull winter feathers. Goldfinches breed later in the season than most in area to insure plants like thistles, produce seeds and nest building materials.
Colorful Goldfinch
The male goldfinches have lost their summertime bright yellow coloring so now it is harder to tell the males from the females and immature goldfinches. But whatever they might be, they all seem rather hungry and today with the sun finally out, they were eating seeds from the black-eyed susans, which has also lost all of its summer yellow petals.
Eating Seed Heads
My bird feeder had less activity after the summer birds left but today the activity has increased with nuthatches, chickadees, goldfinches and woodpeckers making frequent visits on this cold day. And some goldfinches, who have already lost their bright yellow summer colors, are also feeding on the black-eyed susan seed heads.
Past Pretty Flowers Providing Food
My yard has been filled with colorful birds with the return of summer birds intermixed with the year round birds; Indigo Buntings, Bluebirds, Blue Jays, Baltimore Orioles, Orchard Orioles, Scarlet Tanager, Cardinal, Yellow Warblers and the Goldfinches provide a rainbow effect outside.
The birds have been emptying the feeders at an alarming rate and there are fights at the feeders. The Goldfinches are rather strict vegetarians, selecting an entirely vegetable diet and only inadvertently swallowing an occasional insect, so there is a waiting line for the sunflower seed feeder. Sometimes it is hard at times to pick out the Goldfinches among the dandelions when they are searching for the fallen seed.
Yellow on a Stick
The Black-eyed Susans have lost their former spectacular glory which had filled the landscape with yellow and black earlier but even in their faded life, they do provide seeds for the Goldfinch to eat as winter approaches.
Seed Eating Goldfinch
