SNOW BIRDS

There are a lot of birds in this post.  There are Cardinals, White-breasted Nuthatch, Dark-eyed Juncos, Blue Jays, Goldfinches, House Finches and Carolina Wren.  

We didn't have a heavy snow and a lot of it melted today.  

Thanks for looking and have a great day.

DECK CAMERA VIDEOS AND PHOTOGRAPHS

Many of the birds in this post are House Finches, but there is a female Cardinal finally, Dark-eyed Juncos, a White-breasted Nuthatch, Tufted Titmouse and a Red-bellied Woodpecker, either in a photo or video.

I have to say that I am getting so much enjoyment from the deck camera.  It gives you a closer peek into these birds that visit every day.  I have seen a Carolina Wren but haven't gotten a real good view yet.  One of these days.

Thanks for visiting and enjoy your day.

BIRDS FROM THE DECK CAMERA

The Blue Jays visit every day...

The Red-bellied Woodpecker visits but less frequently.

Mourning Doves are here daily.

The Blue Jay and the Red-bellied Woodpecker seem to get along quite well.

The camera caught an incoming Dark-eyed Junco and the Dove doesn't seem to mind.

In this frame there is a White-throated Sparrow in the background, with the Dove and the Dark-eyed Junco a little bit closer.

I find it interesting that I haven't seen a female Cardinal in quite a while, just the male with its bright red plumage. 

And that's it for today's deck camera birds.  My little Dark-eyed Junco with Leucism hasn't been seen since the last time I posted about her/him. I find myself developing attachments to these birds, and hope she/he is okay and off visiting some other bird feeders in another area.

Happy day to you all and thanks for visiting.

WISE WORDS

"Every day I see or hear something that more or less kills me with delight, that leaves me like a needle in the haystack of light."

~Mary Oliver~ 

1935 - 2019

DECK CAMERA MINI MOVIES - BIRDS AND SQUIRREL

A few mini movies and photos from the deck camera.

Our little visitor, the Dark-eyed Junco, who comes every day now.  This is the one with Leucism that I posted about here.

He even beat the squirrel to the seeds.  Usually they are at the head of the queue.

A Male Cardinal, especially handsome with all the snow around.

Blue Jay

Red-bellied Woodpecker

Thank you for visiting and enjoy the rest of your week.

A DARK-EYED JUNCO WITH LEUCISM

When I shared photos of my other snow birds at this post, I mentioned that an interesting little bird had joined them.  At first I thought it may have been a White Warbler, but now I think I was wrong.

He visited again today with several other Dark-eyed Juncos.  I was able to take photographs this time, and when I studied them on a larger screen, the more I thought he actually looked like a Junco.

  His feathers were definitely different, but in the back of my mind I had heard of a condition, maybe some form of Albinism, but that wasn't quite right. I would be very interested in what other more experienced blogging friends know.  I found the following on this website describing Leucism.  If you would like to visit the previous link in red, you can scroll down to the second paragraph and perhaps you could let me know what you think?  There is a also a lot of other interesting information.

It says, "The outward appearance of leucistic individuals can vary considerably.  "Leucinos" may appear virtually pure white but still possess "normal-colored" eyes and skin; they may possess only a single white feather but otherwise appear normal; or may exhibit partially white plumage anywhere in between these two extremes.  Many older publications refer to this condition as "partial albinism" but the correct term is leucism."

There is another website here with super photos of other birds with this condition. Even if they are very different from their families, I think those differences make them unique and beautiful.  

There were a few other visitors today.  I was happy to see them.

A male Cardinal.  Cardinals seem to be here in every season, but it's lovely to see him in the colder months too, and I often see the female.

A Dark-eyed Junco who perched on top of the bird house..

There were at least half a dozen Junco's with him.

A Tufted Titmouse, another sweet little bird.

I know she is not everyone's favorite, but I do love our Grey Squirrels.  Always full of mischief and if you study them long enough, all with different personalities.

She looks a bit cold doesn't she?

More snow photos of the trees.  I am wondering if I will ever get tired of seeing snow covered branches.  Maybe, but not now.

Stay warm everyone, especially those who are caught up in the middle of this Polar Vortex.  It is 11 degrees fahrenheit where we are, and going to dip down to 4, a heat wave compared to other parts of the US I expect.  I just read that there will be a 75 degrees warm-up by this weekend for some.  How crazy is that?