dogwood in January

Two varieties of dogwood brighten the edge of the wild wild woods.  Cornus alba 'Ivory Halo' displays dark rich red twigs in the winter.  Cornus sericea 'Cardinal' glows with bright crimson bark, quite brilliant in the sunlight against the snow.  They both provide a fine tangle for the red feathered birds (Cardinals, House Finches, Redpolls) to hide in plain sight.

waterplay 2

40°F is warm for January here.  The Bluejays took advantage of the thaw to bathe (and play) in the water bowl.

nuthatch cache

 A new feeder, filled with dried mealworms.  Within six minutes, this White-breasted Nuthatch Sitta carolinensis arrived to grab the best ones.  Then, I noticed where he was taking them!

color in the wild woods

The Mourning Doves Zenaida macroura, usually appearing drab from a distance, are extremely colorful up close and against the white snow.

The female Northern Cardinal Cardinalis cardinalis is a study in contrasts with her bright orange beak, orange striped wing primaries, and perky peaked cap.

The Dark-eyed Junco Junco hyemalis, in formal black and white, looks striking among the soft colors of the frosted branches and hanging samaras.

trees in January

Maple Acer rubrum buds

The trees sent out new twigs and lengthened their branches last Summer. During Autumn, leaf buds were set on this new growth.
Now, in January, those buds on the deciduous trees in the wild woods are dormant. 

The buds are actually embryos packed into a protective outer scale. Each tree species' buds are a different shape, size, texture, and color.

In Springtime, they will all open to become flowers and leaves.

Larch Larix laracina buds and cone

cold morning comfort

This morning was cold again,

with snow flurries swirling on light breezes.

Two Red-bellied Woodpeckers
Melanerpes carolinus,

one male and one female,

live in the wild woods.
They come to the suet blocks at the

feeder station to load up on fat

and supplement their diet of insects

gleaned from between the crevices of tree bark.

 

Today, the male rested a while

with his head tucked down

among the feathers on his shoulders.

All we could see of his head was

a small red circle.

 

Then, he popped his beak out

and took a look around,

making sure all was safe

for a few more minutes of cozy rest.

 

post-lunch nap 2

Another day, another hawk.  One of the dangers for songbirds at feeder stations is the hawk that knows it is a good spot to prey on smaller birds.  While I am sorry to see the little birds threatened, the hawks are also interesting to watch.  This Cooper's Hawk Accipiter cooperii appeared around noon, sitting in a tree crotch exposed to the sun.  For nearly an hour, he stayed there even though the Chickadees and Finches scolded him continuously.  We watched several smaller birds go back and forth between the feeders and branches just six feet from the hawk.  Surely they knew he was there.  And surely he was not hungry, or there would have been a different scenario.

would-be thieves

The wild woods is home to many Gray squirrels and a few Red Squirrels.  This little guy tries every day to jump from a branch to the bird feeder.  But so far, no success. 

The squirrels do try to climb straight up the poles to the bird food, but the "slinky" toys suspended on each pole are too scary from below.  The squirrels stand at the bottom, climb a bit, reach up, and touch the bottom of the slinky, but run away as soon as it jiggles.

down underwear

When it gets cold near zero F, birds fluff their feathers out to hold their body heat among the down beneath their larger feathers.  This little Downy Woodpecker Picoides pubescens was seeking insects along the bark on the Boxelder tree, but paused to rearrange his downy underwear for maximum heat retention.

Common Redpoll

This week, some Common Redpolls joined the guild of mixed species in the wild woods.  Their perky attitude and bright red caps made them stand out among the other finches.  Usually nesting in the arctic tundra and boreal forests, they come south for warmth in winter. 

albino House Finch

At first I thought this little round white bird, roosting early this morning among the House Finches, was an owl.  But closer inspection through the binoculars make me think it is an albino House Finch. 

rosy finches

There are usually groups of finches in the wild woods.  Most often, they are the rosy House Finches and gold or olive Goldfinches.  Occasionally, I see Purple Finches among them.
 

waterplay

A sunny day today, with temperatures between 24 and 30 F.  The sparrows decided to bathe.  The whole flock took turns, and they seemed to be having fun.

post-lunch nap

Mid-afternoon.  We noticed the Sharp-shinned Hawk Accipiter striatus sitting in the sun on a branch at the edge of the wild woods.  Usually when we see this bird, he is hunting, scanning for prey, and on the move.  Today he sat for almost one hour, sunning himself, eyelids occasionally drooping.  We wondered -- why so languid?  Then we noticed the subtle splotches of red blood on his bib.  No need to hunt with a full belly and warm sunshine.

samaras

Instead of snow today, rain and fog.  But the Northern Cardinals looked especially vibrant as they moved around and nibbled on the seeds hanging in the Boxelder Acer negundo tree.  The Boxelder's samara "winged fruit" are an important source of food for birds and mammals because they stay on the tree through winter, when other food resources might be scarce.

snowy woods

Although the 14 inches of snow that fell here on December 8 and 9 made the bird feeders more difficult to get to, the Dark-eyed Junco, Downy Woodpecker, and Red-bellied Woodpecker were able to find their way through to seed, suet, and bugs in tree bark.

snow critter

   near the wild woods today --

FeederWatch

After several inches of snow overnight, the feeder stations are all more difficult for the birds to use with their usual carefree twittering.  The chickadees were the first to start burrowing through the snow shelf covering the seed spouts on each station.  The seed in the tray was totally snow covered.

I put a chunk of suet on the tray but
it soon became covered with snow. 
The intrepid Juncos made little tunnels to reach in and nibble the suet.  They are ground feeders, preferring to walk and kick loose the seeds they can find among grass and leaves.  I also put some fresh seed in a pot turn on its side in the tray, so they could get sunflower seeds there even though the snow is coming down more heavily.




The birds' water bowl is heated just enough to keep it open for them to drink. 

all-season cabana

My backyard "cabana" is an arbor for the hummingbirds in summer.  Now, with a frosting of snow, it is still the perfect place to sit and watch into the wild woods.

the mushroom tree

First snow for this season; an inch of fluff last night and more on the way.  This tree, viewed from along the path through the woods, is the fallen elm that supports an assortment of fungi (including the one below).

shelf mushroom

 

This "shelf mushroom" was growing on a tree in the woods all summer.  This type grows on trees that are probably rotting inside, so there may be a new woodpecker tree in our future.  The mushroom looked vital from all angles, so I snapped photos thinking I would draw or paint it later.  Now, after some frosty nights, it is even more interesting.  Which one to draw . . . ?

Northern Shrike

Uncommonly seen, a young Northern Shrike Lanius excubitor sat in the Maple tree twitching his tail up and down as he watched for a vole (prospective lunch) below.

white spot Goldfinch

The American Goldfinches Spinus tristis were feeding this morning on seeds of the birch trees.  This Goldfinch looked unusual because of the white spot on his head; it may be an albino variant, or a molting mistake.

boxelder seeds

The Boxelder Acer negundo tree has dropped all its leaves, but the seed pods remain for the birds to enjoy all winter. This cluster, dry and golden in the sunlight, hangs among fading red sumac Rhus leaves on the edge of the woods.  The background green is the last-to-drop leaves of the invasive buckthorn Rhamnus.

larch cones

Although a conifer, the larch is a deciduous tree.  In summer it has lush green needle-like leaves; it will lose these golden leaves to the autumn winds as the needles dry out.  This tree, Larix laricina, is more than twenty feet tall; it grows on the edge of the woods in the low swale that is constantly moist.  This tree is also known as Tamarack Larch or American Larch.  Larch are used as a food plant by the larvae of a number of butterflies.