Yesterday Was "For The Birds!"

It snowed yesterday.


After a brief fiery sunrise, 


the clouds thickened and the snow soon began to fall.


Standing inside my window, looking out at the bird feeder...


it occurred to me how much like birds we people are when it snows.


Just like we humans flocking to the grocery store for bread and milk....
(will we die without these two items?)
the birds flock to the feeder as if it might be their last meal!

The bird feeder was filled to the max...


with more birds waiting in the trees...


and in the bushes.


Even the Cardinals, who are usually quite territorial,
set aside their protective tendencies


and tolerated each others' presence, taking turns flitting onto the feeders.


A Bluejay, who by nature is a ground feeder,


flew from tree branch to feeder several times....


taking his seeds back to the tree to crack open and eat.


All of the typical species of winter bird was present...
Goldfinches, House Finches, Purple Finches, Black-capped Chickadees,


Tufted Titmice,


 Nuthatches, Cardinals (3 male and 3 female), Bluejay,
as well as downey woodpeckers...


and red-bellied woodpeckers.


I left the farm when the snow stopped 


and ran a few miles away to a farm store
for beef cubes (it was the perfect day for beef stew).
On my way home, I noticed this fellow in a field...


I stopped the car and took a few photos.


He's a Short Eared Owl.


First one of his kind that I have ever seen!
They can only be found in Pennsylvania in the winter months...
preferring the habitat of open fields.

If nothing else, yesterday convinced me how important it is to always have my camera with me!

Comments

daisy g said…
Wow! The birds are sure getting their fill at your farm. One of the first books I need to check out of our local library is a book on birds. New to the area, I would like to be able to identify the birds I see flitting around this 100-year old house. So much to discover!

What an incredible owl!
colleen said…
Red sky in morning.....
The plus side about having a storm is all the birds at the feeder. When I see the feeders swamped with birds I KNOW there is some kind of storm brewing!! Sometimes they are more accurate than the weather man. It always pays to take the camera along...I'm glad you had it with you. Thanks for sharing.
Louise Stopford said…
Wonderful bird photo's .. what a fabulous variety of wild birds you have, so colourful. We do not get such colourful birds here in the UK in the wild. Talking of birds, we are having to keep our backyard chickens confined to their runs, away from wild birds. There appears to be a strain of Avian Flu that has come over from Europe and affected some local poultry farms and wild birds/ducks. So our girls here in UK are on lock-down by DEFRA until at least the end of February. Hope it all passes over with no more fatalities. Your farm sure does look pretty in the snow. Kind regards.
GeorgiaHoneyBee said…
Beautiful bird photos!! I too really enjoy watching the feeders year round - but especially in the winter. I am sometimes tempted to put the feeders away in the summer, but I enjoy seeing the birds up close too much! Once, while driving, I passed a bald eagle which was just sitting, perched on a sign in the median of a highway. I wish I'd had my camera because I would have pulled over and taken a photo. It was the first bald eagle I've ever seen in person. They are truly regal birds. Have an awesome day!
Tracy said…
I haven't seen such beautiful birds before, amazing photography too! Thanks for sharing
Kathy said…
Oh, that owl! I would so love to see one of those. Awesome photos. Your camera......never leave home without it!
Cindy said…
You were so lucky to see and photograph that owl! I love all of your bird pics. We have feeders here too and we love to see the varieties that come to them. Thanks for sharing!
Deb said…
Great photos, Bev. It is just as busy here with all the same birds. We can't seem to fill the feeders fast enough. I have had to add a few more feeders this year with the early winter and abundance of snow. We don't see the Tufted Titmouse in our area (Ontario, Canada). Such a sweet-looking bird.
The JR said…
Love the pictures. I keep saying my next big purchase is going to be a better camera.

how funny that one of the birds you showed is one I saw in a tree outside my deer stand window yesterday

had no idea what the little guy was. you said it's a tufted titmouse.

uug, I hate snow. The 3 days of ice in Mississippi was enough for me this year.

Happy Wednesday.
That's quite the lineup for the bird feeder -- positively a traffic jam!
WendyFromNY said…
Amazing pictures! Beautiful birds, and how lucky to catch an owl!
Anonymous said…
I'm jealous of your visitors! I have 3 seed feeders, 3 suet feeders, and 1 stacking feeder, and I don't get nearly as many visitors! I have the same variety, but I would LOVE to see my woods filled with so many feathered diners! I had 2 male Cardinals visit last weekend. I hope they stick around!

~~Ashley~~
Karla said…
I always read your blog first thing in the morning.......much better than turning on the news! The bird photos made my day but especially the owl. We're moving to a home by a lake and I am amazed at all the bird life we get to enjoy. My favorite so far has been the Great Horned owl that we hear at night, there are actually two of them. We've only seen them once just before the same came up but they are pretty magnificent!!

I love your blog!
Anonymous said…
Those are gorgeous birds!
I enjoy your posts so much!
Marcy from Atlanta
This N That said…
Wonderful Owl catch..Lucky you...We have the same birdies here...Just a lot of feeders around so I don't have that quantity too often..I have been gearing up for the same type of post the last few days.. Great pictures..Stay safe..
Jennifer B. from NC said…
Wow! Great shots of the birds and definite luck spotting that gorgeous owl and having your camera handy! I love owls!
Anonymous said…
Beautiful pictures! Thanks for sharing with us.
Donna said…
Thank you, loved the photos, the owl photos especially!
sandra said…
Well that was an amazing treat :O! All the birds are beautiful but that owls eyes.LOVE!
An American in Tokyo said…
What a wonderful array of birds you have there!!
The ones waiting in the trees and bushes as well!
I would love to sit there all day and just take pictures. =)
The owl is very lovely, too!

Now I'm in the mood for beef stew as well...yum!!
diane in northern wis said…
Just awesome pictures of your birds! I love them. You really have a ton of birds....and the pictures of the owl are beautiful too. Hope he doesn't pick off any of your bird buddies in the backyard at the feeders. We recently moved and I don't have any feeders here so will have to enjoy your bird pictures! Thanks so much Bev! Going down below zero again here soon!
NanaDiana said…
Man!!! Those are some fantastic pictures! From sunrise to the fields to the birds. What a beautiful peek at your day. xo Diana