Wild Wild Woods

This female Hairy Woodpecker is finding insects or larvae in the folds of bark on the elm tree.  She can probe into the crevices with her ...

Two varieties of dogwood brighten the edge of the wild wild woods.  Cornus alba 'Ivory Halo' displays dark rich red twigs in the wi...

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

 A new feeder, filled with dried mealworms.  Within six minutes, this White-breasted Nuthatch Sitta carolinensis arrived to grab the best...

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

Maple Acer rubrum buds The trees sent out new twigs and lengthened their branches last Summer. During Autumn, leaf buds were set on th...

This morning was cold again, with snow flurries swirling on light breezes. Two Red-bellied Woodpeckers Melanerpes carolinus, one ...

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 ...

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 ...

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...

This week, some Common Redpolls joined the guild of mixed species in the wild woods.  Their perky attitude and bright red caps made them s...

At first I thought this little round white bird, roosting early this morning among the House Finches, was an owl.  But closer inspection t...

There are usually groups of finches in the wild woods.  Most often, they are the rosy House Finches and gold or olive Goldfinches.  Occasio...

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...

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...

Instead of snow today, rain and fog.  But the Northern Cardinals looked especially vibrant as they moved around and nibbled on the seeds ...

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, Down...

   near the wild woods today --

After several inches of snow overnight, the feeder stations are all more difficult for the birds to use with their usual carefree twittering...

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

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 t...

  This "shelf mushroom" was growing on a tree in the woods all summer.  This type grows on trees that are probably rotting in...

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 ...

The American Goldfinches Spinus tristis were feeding this morning on seeds of the birch trees.  This Goldfinch looked unusual because of ...

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...