Birding in the North of Town

Design - "August"

Chart - "123 August"

Designer - Curtis Boehringer

Fabric -32 count Antique White Jobelan

Fibers - DMC - 2 strands over 2 threads

Started - 11 August 2015

Completed - 12 August 2016

This is the second of the three charted designs for "123 August" that I've stitched this month. I like the Crayola crayon colors.

Starting in late July and continuing for three weeks, I hopped back and forth from home to my cousin's house in the north of town. 

He and his family were on vacation and wanted someone to spend several days each week with their beloved cat, Pickles.

It took a while for Pickles to stop hissing at me from atop the fridge!

I think that he finally just got so very lonely, that he decided to make due with me as his 'staff'.

My cousin and his family just moved into this older home in an established neighborhood a couple of months ago.  They are now the owners of a great house and a very large back yard with many mature trees, including several Douglas fir.  

My cousin already had set up a hummingbird feeder, and a couple of bird feeders.  Over the three weeks I tweaked his set up a bit and added a couple more feeders (I had extras) so that there now is a hummingbird feeder, a black oil sunflower feeder, a suet feeder, a peanut feeder, and a sunflower chip (hulled seeds) feeder. 

Because of the mature plantings and established activities in the surrounding yards, it was pretty quick and easy to attract more kinds of birds.      

Most mornings I was greeted by squawking of Scrub Jays. 

They hopped around on the lawn and I have hopes that they will soon find the peanut feeder.

I did see a House Finch at the sunflower seed feeder.

I was amazed by the number of Flickers in the yard.

Up to four birds working away in the grasses...

...and they found the suet.

As did the Downy Woodpeckers - at least two of them - a male and this female.

The back left corner of the yard has a good view of a Mountain Ash and a dogwood.  Most mornings a Bewick's Wren chattered away here.  

Here's the wren...

And here he is again.  I think I might have seen a House Wren perched on the back fence, but my camera battery died just as I tried to take a picture. 

Red-breasted Nuthatches enjoyed both the sunflower seeds and the suet.  They lodged the seeds into the bark of the Douglas fir trees.

The hummingbird feeder has attracted both Anna's and Rufous hummingbirds.

The Black-capped Chickadees like the shaded canopy of the mature trees in the backyard and were also active at the feeders.  

Mature trees = squirrels!

I forgot to mention that I set out two ceramic basins with water as that is a bird attraction too.  The squirrels found them immediately!

So here's who I saw and heard while sharing a house with Pickles the cat.

Up in the air: Violet-green Swallow, Barn Swallow, Purple Martin, Vaux Swift, Crow, Turkey Vulture, Cedar Waxwing, and Canada Goose.

Heard but not seen: Collard Dove, Rock Pigeon, American Goldfinch, Lesser Goldfinch.

At the feeders or in the yard/trees: Starling, Robin, Bewick Wren, Black-capped Chickadee, House Finch, Red-Shafted Northern Flicker, Downy Woodpecker, Red-Breasted Nuthatch, Brown Creeper, Scrub Jay, Bushtit, Black-headed Grosbeak, Anna's Hummingbird, and Rufous Hummingbird.

     

26 different kinds of birds! Oh and bats too! Not at all bad for an 'residential' backyard.