Wild Bird Wednesday

Northern Flickers today.   I've had them on here before ...but, hey.... I only get so many birds to the feeder and in the yard and I'll be darned if I want to go looking for them elsewhere when it is -20C... although, today the sun is shining....so it seems pretty nice even if it is cold.

These are from a few days back...

These two didn't seem to mind sharing, although it rarely happens.  If another one shows up when one is already on the suet cage... the first guy usually flies off.   Maybe they are buddies ... I wish there was a way to tell the difference between all the birds.  I don't know if many come once or twice or if a few hang out here all the time... all I know is there are several different males and females flying in and out during any given day.   They love the bug and peanut butter suet....
Click on any photo to see them up close and personal....

Waiting for a turn on the suet ... with all the sparrows that litter the wall and trees.....

They love the heated bird bath and water.... it gets a thick icy ring around the edge...but, that doesn't bother them... and I knock it off daily.
I love this picture.

The sparrows wanted to be in on the photo shoot too....
A little fuzzy as it was through the blinds in the window....

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My sweet little Northern Flicker

This little gal spent hours hanging onto the rocks on the sunny side of the house.  I was pretty worried by the time 4 hours passed and she had only moved a few rocks over.  Well, actually I was worried long before that ... but it was at least 4 hours til she flew off and went to the suet feeder and also got a drink of water at the heated water bowl.  I felt somewhat better then...

It looked like she was sleepy.. because her eyes kept closing.  There was definitely something not quite right with her though, because usually they fly off if I even move anywhere near the window.  This day, I was even able to remove the screen inside the window to get a better photo of her and she just hung there.  By then, I was not sure if I wanted to take her photo... because I felt it wasn't fair.  If they are injured or sick ... I always feel like that.  It is like having an unfair advantage over them and I feel bad about it.

Silly me I guess.  But, later, at dusk, when she did fly away to the nearby Poplar tree and then...on to the nearby golf course trees....I felt a bit better about her health.  She was back in the morning and only hung out on the house side for about 2 hours and then... hasn't been hanging onto it since.  Maybe she just had a headache from pecking something too hard,  or was sick for a few days or something....  I hope that's all it was.

Anyway....I did take several great photos of her and I wanted to post them today.

Here she is  ...  my beautiful little Northern Flicker girl.  Please do click to 'embiggen' and see her lovely face right up close and personal.  So gentle looking... and, I'm sure she sees me, but doesn't appear too concerned about me at all ..... maybe she knows I'm harmless.

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Soft and Downy

Isn't she just?  Look, there are even lots of little feathers all around the base of her beak.  I don't know if those are what they term 'rictal bristles' or just some soft, downy feathers... either way I think they are cute.

This is a little lady Downy Woodpecker that comes to the suet cage for her favourite.  Peanut butter and bugs.  Suet cakes I buy at the bird feed shop.  They, and the Northern Flickers get on there and hang... literally ... sometimes it appears as though they are snoozing...but, sometimes, maybe they just refuse to get off and give anybody else a chance.

There is a "pecking order" too it seems.  If the little Downy is on there and a big ol' Northern Flicker shows up....well, the little one flies off for a bit.   But, she comes back... and so does her boyfriend... I've never seen it the other way around.  No Flickers leave if a little Downy shows up for grub.  Big Meanies.
Don't forget... click to make larger to see details if you like.

Waiting patiently for me to finish shovelling so she can come into the patio for her suet cage.  Not too nervous at all...unlike the big Flickers... who take off the instant I go out there.  They may be big meanies in the bird world...but, they are afraid of me.  Hah....

Here is one of the big Flickers...  all fluffed out so he looks even bigger.  It is -25C these days and they puff out their feathers to keep warm I guess.  And...below...... ...the little lady Downy so you can see the size difference.  Sorry they are a bit soft focus looking... almost fuzzy... they were taken with the venetian in the way...but, didn't want to scare them off so left it.

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"A gentle expression"

That's the phrase the bird books uses when describing the look of Northern Flickers.  It's so true.  Look at this guy...or maybe it is two different guys ...I can't say for sure.
All I know is ...they hang out ...literally..on my suet cage.  We buy the 'peanut butter and bugs' one and they seem to love it.

Here he is on a cold day.. perched on top of the feeder pole in the sunlight.  Definitely looks like a gentle expression to me.

Hunkered down and all fluffed out on the top of the patio wall
.. still looking pretty gentle.  I wanted to say 'chill' or 'cool'...but, ..hahahha it is cold and snowy and those words seemed not quite right.  Somebody may have thought I was trying for a pun or something..

This is the type of weather we are having ...   it is still snowing, so I will definitely be out there again this afternoon putting in some more shovelling time.  Did over an hour earlier, so I don't think I'll bother with the treadmill today..or the weights... I have sidewalks, a patio and a double driveway to shovel... that'll be another good hour of exercise, so I can opt out today.  ...  maybe just some good stretches later.  Or.....not..........................

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Wild Bird Wednesday

I've shown you a Northern Flicker before...but, this is different.

Last week I bought a birdie feeder.  It's called a Squirrel Buster.  It has a mechanism that prevents squirrels from getting the seeds.  They weigh more than any of the birds I want to see on my feeder.

The factory setting is about 2.5 ounces to 4 ounces or something like that.  I'll have to read up on it again.  It's difficult to determine exactly how much I turned the screw to increase the weight allowed before it closes down now... ..although, I do have a gram scale and will eventually test how much I now have it set for...

For the first few days I left it at factory setting.  This happened.

( Click on any photo to "biggify" )

The poor guy (or maybe now that I look closely at my own photo..this is not a guy)...I'm not totally sure. Anyway.. she/he gave it his best athletic chin up performance and the feeder closed down ... darn it.  I still want Flickers and Jays to be able to get some seeds... so I will have to figure out weights ..

He did immediately look around on the ground under it and got some for sure.... they are messy little guys, those chickadees and sparrows... and...a nuthatch and a Mr. Chirpy (that would be a house finch for those that didn't see my other post)...  so far that is what I've seen hanging around.  He also hung around for ants and other little tasty bits in the dirt in the garden.

The next day he came again... but, I looked closer, and, well, it isn't the same one.  Anyway... this time he didn't bother with the feeder... but, hopped right onto the edge of the bird bath.

I think somebody's Mummy forgot to tell this poor guy that he isn't a sparrow.  He tried to talk with them... but, they weren't having any of it.  In they jumped and splashed water all over him... how rude...

He tried to fend off the major splashes... ... but, they just kept at it..

Finally it got to be too much...

He cannonballed 'em.... hahhahah...they got outta there!! That guy on the right looks like a flying lobster!

But, they disappeared and then he was all alone.  He just sat there looking around....
One of them hid out under the bath...

Hey, where did you guys go??...

He played quietly for a bit...then sat there some more...in the middle of the bath... all alone....
Finally, one little sparrow showed up and they had a chat...

Then, a second came and the Flicker hopped out to give them room......
 In they both went.

And, then..... a whole flock of them started hopping in and out of the water ... I think he felt a bit overwhelmed .. he flew off and left them to their own wild splashing...

By the time they finished...I had to add more water!

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Wild Bird Wednesday

Made it!  And, I better hurry up... got a golf time in an hour or so...okay... maybe it won't upload to blogger before I leave....sigh...it is still sitting here with an error message saying nothing "published"..arrghhhhh!!!

The other week I was thinking about which bird I could capture next and even though I don't have a huge list to choose from here .... I did think about sneaking up closer on a Flicker.  They keep swooping down onto my neighbour's front yard. He has a big infestation of ants...in his lawn.  Actually...those Flickers were enjoying it all over his front yard, not just at the edge of the sidewalk where they usually dig a lot.

But, then... I noticed some movement just outside my front window the next day...oooh... quick, the camera!!  I got it and crawled closer to the window on my knees... and, both of us stopped dead... he looked at me....I looked at him.... and, snapped this one!

So cute.

He was looking right at me!  A male Northern Flicker...probably still a youngish one... that throat patch doesn't look quite coloured in yet...

After he checked me out and I didn't budge an inch.... he must have figured I was a figment of his imagination and... he continued on with his investigation of my sidewalk area... picking in the crevices and having a great time.

I had to snap about 20 shots to get one of him with his head lifted.  He was so quick...up..down...peck, peck, peck....up, look... down!   Man... my finger got a workout...but, finally got one of him upright... whew.....
Thanks little guy....

Head over to Wild Bird Wednesday to see some amazing birds.  I am always wowed by the colourful ones that inhabit warmer climates.... wish I could see some of those in real life...