Wordless Wednesday: Artemisia

GBBC Bird Count

Since Bob asked how many birds I ended up counting, I figured I might as well make a post about it...

First, the notes:

1. I didn't do the count on Friday (I wasn't home) and Saturday because I was too busy getting ready for a party we had that night.
2. I am lazy about putting bird food out during the week so it's not uncommon for me to put food out on a Saturday morning, and not really see a variety of birds until Sunday morning.
3. During the GBBC, I had put out food on Wednesday (so by Sunday it was all gone), and I didn't refill the feeders until Sunday morning.
4. I only counted birds for half an hour on Sunday and double that on Monday (though honestly I kept looking throughout the day on Sunday and there just weren't that many different birds.
5. Sunday's count was birds at the feeders (or otherwise close to them), whereas Monday's count was birds in the yard - Grackles and Red Bellied Woodpeckers have never come to any of the feeders, but will sometimes hang out in the yard.

Second, the meat:
On Sunday (7 types):

• Yellow Rumped Warbler
• White Wing Dove
• European Starling
• Blue Jay
• Northern Cardinal
• House Finch
• Downy Woodpecker

On Monday (15 types):

• Yellow Rumped Warbler
• White Wing Dove
• European Starling
• Blue Jay
• Northern Cardinal
• House Finch
• Downy Woodpecker
• Mockingbird
• Rufous Hummingbird
• Carolina Chickadee
• Dark Eyed Junco
• Lesser Goldfinch
• Red Bellied Woodpecker
• Grackle
• American Goldfinch

Great Backyard Bird Count Photo (2 of 2)

Male Downy (RJ) at the suet feeder.  Sadly he's little and has to wait his turn when the starlings are around.  Thankfully I've found that the starlings aren't big fans of the Scott's Woodpecker Treat suet.  I think it's probably a mix between the Woodpecker Treat not having any millet and that it's not the Wild Birds Unlimited Suet (which makes me sad because it seems like all the birds prefer the WBU suet - next I'll have to try the C&S to see if the birds like it any better than the Scott's).

Wordless Wednesday: Spurred Snapdragon

Great Backyard Bird Count Photo

Male Cardinal at feeder...too bad it was so gray outside (thus meaning the ISO was set to 1600 - thus the grainy).

I went out on Monday morning and tried to get some pictures of the birds, not too bad...not too bad.

Projects done

What better way to spend President's Day than to put up some things for the wild beasties?  Above:  A blue bird house from my sister.  Below:  A butterfly feeder, also from my sister.

Great Backyard Bird Count

Get your pencils ready!  It's the Great Backyard Bird Count.

I will be participating, but seeing as how I'm having a party Saturday night and the house is a mess, I may not be participating Saturday, so Sunday and Monday it is.

By the looks of things, it seems like this should be pretty easy - they even provide PDFs of the types of birds you're likely to see, printable instructions and the data form you need to fill out.

But you'd better believe that I'll be filling my feeders to make sure I get the most birds possible (which means I should probably try to stop by the store and pick up more suet).

Finally

I finally planted the Mexican Buckeye tree.  yep.  Out in the cold...because it totally made more sense to do it today in the sleet instead of yesterday in the sun.