Ice Storm

We've been under a winter storm warning for the past 24 hours.  It's been much worse in our area than originally expected.  This morning Mike put out my new shelf feeder.  Within five minutes it was mobbed with goldfinches.

Pine siskin on the suet.  At any one time there have been up to about 60 goldfinches at the feeders, with about half a dozen siskins mixed in.

So icy on the round feeder that I don't see how any of the birds ate from it.  But a few got through.

 This is the wire perch that they like so much.  Not much sitting on it this morning.

After the goldfinches and siskins move out, the rest of the birds come in.  I saw the red spot on the ruby-crowned kinglet's head for the first time yesterday afternoon.  Carolina wrens, downy and red-bellied woodpeckers, white-breasted and brown nuthatches, pine warblers - just mobbing the feeders.  And today, while I was filling the feeders, a rufous-sided towhee even came out for a look.  It didn't seem afraid of me at all.

They are going to eat me out of house and home.

Rare bird! Ross's Goose

We saw a rare bird this morning!!  We drove to the Dobbins Farm Ponds . . . didn't see anything.  At the Fork Bridge we saw a great blue heron huddled against the wind.  We got breakfast, then decided to check out the new Green Pond boat landing.  Afterward I suggested - let's go see what's at the old landing.  There was a flock of about 15 Canada geese - with a little white goose walking, and then swimming, in the middle of the group.  At first we thought, just a common farm goose.  Then snow goose.  But the more we watched it, the more we realized it was much smaller than a snow goose and did not act like a tame goose at all.  We studied it carefully, and realized it had none of the black of a snow goose on its bill, but it did have the gray at the back of the bill, like a Ross's Goose.  They are not common around here at all - in fact, you won't even find them on the range maps.  We both determined that that is what it was!!  I turned it in to eBird and to the Carolina Bird Club, and got agreeable confirmation on both.  Very exciting for us!

Siskins are here!!

Yesterday as I drove in from school, I thought - "That looks kinda like a siskin on the feeder."  I came in carefully and looked through the binoculars - and got a beautiful view of that blinding yellow on the wing.  It was so nice to see a real siskin, and not just a female house finch.

By today, they are beginning to come with a vengeance, and take over the feeders as only siskins can.