Wednesday, January 12, 2011

Seeing Red...and Burgundy


Here's a better photo - still a bit dark to be "true" in terms of the color.   Anyway, I've continued working on "Winter Walk" - I took a break from the border and have been stitching the snowman's burgundy hat.

For my Outdoor Wednesday post, I thought I'd show you all the different kinds of woodpeckers I've seen in the last week or so.  My Monday sighting was particularly exciting!

First off, a female Hairy Woodpecker - the male looks exactly the same, but with a bright red spot on the back of the head.

This is a male Downy Woodpecker.

He has a much smaller, shorter bill than a Hairy Woodpecker, and is smaller in stature.

And this is a Northern Flicker - I love the feather pattern on the body and the shocking red-orange color of the throat.

But my big excitement (literally and figuratively) came on Monday morning, when I was out on my bird-feeding patrol.  As I fed the California Quail and brush bunnies, I realized I could hear the maniacal laughter of a Pileated Woodpecker! 
I looked down the property a bit to a snag at the edge of the woods...and there he was!
(Guys have a red line by their bill, gals don't).

You can see the red line by the bill in this photo. 
Pileated are large - 15"-19" tall, and are such striking birds.  As they are mainly insectivores, I don't ever expect to see them at my suet feeder.  I generally spot them at the edge of our 2nd growth Douglas Fir forest or in a snag in a forest clearing.  

I hope you have an opportunity to enjoy an Outdoor Wednesday - ours is dark, and gray, and mild with rain showers.  

8 comments:

Unknown said...

I love the border on Winter Walk the colors are great!! And, another amazing group of photos of your feathered visitors. Beautiful!

Eliza @ Appalachian Feet said...

I have terrible luck photographing woodpeckers and I'm really impressed with your pictures! Nice needlework, too. :)

Donnie said...

Your cross stitch is very nice and neat. Mine never seems to look that neat.

Loved all your bird photos. Really good.

Chocolates4Breakfast (Terri Malinovich) said...

Your woodpecker photos are awesome and your wip is lookin' good!

Ranae said...

I love the woodpeckers pics, we have all of them except for the pileated :( I use to post pics of them but stitchers probably got tired of seeing them, lol
We live in the woods by a creek, so I am a big fan of bird watching
My log cabin WIP is a Prairie Schooler # 40
Thanks for visiting and the comment
Now to go browse your blog

Donna@Conghaile Cottage said...

LOVE,LOVE,LOVE the birdies!!! God must have stood back and smiled the day he created them...
Warm Winter Hugs to you,
Donna

Annemarie said...

Oh my goodness, your birdy pics are stunning! well, the birds are stunning and pics are nice :o) I've never seen a woodpecker in real life, and I live in the woods! Maybe I should get out more?

I love the border on your stitchy project. You always seem to find the perfect projects for the time of year, many of which I've never seen before, which makes it even more fun to visit here!

Gabi said...

Your bird pictures are again awesome. LOVE the Northern Flicker. So beautiful.
Your Winter Walk grew nicely too. :)