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| White-crowned Sparrows in our yard |
May is the best month for birders and it would be lovely to spend it at any one of the birding hotspots on the north shores of Lake Erie or Lake Ontario. The weather this week was dominated by cold north winds but migrating birds were finally aided by a southerly flow over the past couple of days. Spring migrants are passing through our neighbourhood too and I enjoyed a couple of outings this week.
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| Am Tree Sparrow, Baltimore Oriole, E. Kingbird, Yellow-rumped warbler, White-throated Sparrow, Mallard Duck |
I rode my bike to a nearby nature area and saw my first warbler and Eastern Kingbird. Our yard is hopping with sparrows and in just a few minutes on the deck one evening, there was an American Tree Sparrow, a Chipping Sparrow, Song Sparrow, White-throated and a White-crowned sparrow. The House Sparrows that are nesting in the light standard in front of our house don't count.
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I generally sleep with the window open and am awakened at 4:30 AM by chirping Robins. By 5:30 AM they are joined by a chorus of Cardinals, Blue Jays, Chickadees, Doves and White-throated Sparrows. The sun doesn't rise until 6 AM right now but we do not need to set our alarm clock. I cannot complain about the noise as it is far less jarring than a rooster call in Mexico.
We left the house just after sunrise this morning to check on the second nest of Bald Eagles we found two weeks ago. The first Eagle nest adjacent to the Osprey nest was abandoned this week. Hopefully they find a new place with kinder neighbours. These Bald Eagles appear to be getting along famously and hopefully they will be successful in raising a family this season.
It is the season of motherhood and life is springing up everywhere. Happy Mothers' Day to all!
I love spring and all the birds that return to the area.I agree about being awakened by singing birds.I don't mind at all.
ReplyDeleteYou must be feeling so good about the weather and seeing the birds. It has been a nice day ehre too.
ReplyDeleteLove all the birds! We are seeing much the same birds except for the tree sparrows! Ours have all moved north by now! You have a nice photo of one in this post but I think you mis-labeled it as a chipper. Take a look and tell me what you think.
ReplyDeleteHi Kathie, I do think I mislabelled the sparrow in question. It did not have a breast spot nor a bi-coloured bill so I ruled out Tree Sparrow. I was surprised to see a Tree Sparrow in our yard because they should be gone north like yours have. The area where the other Sparrow was is home to many Field Sparrows in the summer. I think that may be what my ex-chipper may be. "Tell me what you think." ;-)
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