Local Osprey Nest

This osprey nest is right on the main highway along the way to school!

Recent Birding

I've finally been able to get back on here after a break of several months.  Still doing it in a round about way, but it works.

This is the brown booby that was seen for about a month at Furman University.  According to the range maps, it should not be anywhere north of Miami, Florida.  Viewed early May, 2018

Dickcissel, Dobbins Farm Ponds, 6/12/18

Indigo Bunting, Dobbins Farm Ponds, 6/7/18

Prairie Warbler, Dobbins Farm Ponds, 6/12/18

New Bird at Feeder / New Lifer

Orange-crowned warbler.  Very non-distinct, no wing bars, orange crown very rarely seen.  It matches online pics and pics in Peterson field guide.

Feeders Going Crazy this Morning 1/17/18

We got a somewhat unexpected snow last night - Woke up to a dusting this morning, which continued until about 9:30.  I'd say we have about an inch out there.  No school, as the roads are not expected to warm up.  

The feeders have been like an airport.  We sat and enjoyed the traffic for about half an hour, and I got a few pictures.  I've enjoyed seeing the feeders finally get some decent action.  For some reason it's been slow this year.

Goldfinch - thistle feeder

Love this shot of a downy at the suet (which is snow-covered)

Downy is blurry in this one, and I think that's a pine warbler underneath, but this shot is included because of the red showing on the head of the ruby-crowned kinglet!

Another goldfinch, this time on the sunflower seeds.

I've never seen a robin in the trees near the feeders.  I'm not too crazy about robins to begin with, but seeing this one perched in the trees above the feeders, I had to get a pic of it.

I'm also not too crazy about red-winged blackbirds at the feeders, but I guess they've got to eat also.

Yellow-Rumped Warbler.  Also fondly known in the bird world as a "butter butt."

The obligatory snow photo of a cardinal

White-throated sparrow.  I didn't catch the head but wanted to document.  They are not common.  Two types exist - this one has brown and beige head stripes.  Another has black and white stripes.  I actually saw one of the other type very briefly this morning.

Pine warbler at the suet.

The behavior of the birds is fascinating to watch.  Some are alpha birds and the others know not to come around.  I watched the kinglet trying to get suet from the bottom without bothering the downy woodpecker which was gorging.

Most fascinating - All the birds left in one fell swoop.  Two or three seconds later, a Cooper's Hawk came swooping down.  Three cardinals in one tree were stock still for about ten minutes after the hawk left.  Amazing to watch.

Red on Ruby Crowned

We've had a ruby crowned kinglet, actually many of them, at our feeders over the years.  Today we saw the ruby crown, and we saw it many times.  The bird was feeding a good bit of the time, due to the extreme cold.

Hawks for Christmas

We went to the farm ponds on Christmas morning.  On the way there, on Highway 24, we saw a northern harrier, the second in as many days.  An adult red-shouldered hawk was also perched on a wire.  Didn't get a picture of them.

After turning on to McAdams Road, we saw this little American Kestrel.  It was closer to me at first, but my camera wasn't set up yet to get a better picture.

Then this huge immature hawk was flying around the ponds.  I thought it was an immature red-tail, but several people on the bird forums I'm a part of say it's an immature red-shouldered.  They gave all their reasons, and I will take their word.  Immature hawks are very hard to identify, at least for me.

And finally, another kestrel was perched on a wire on Prater Farm Road.  I still didn't get a good pic, but this at least captures it.

We saw a few other birds also.  This Northern Shoveler was the only duck in the ponds.

This was the picture of the morning.  This male kingfisher beautifully posed for me on the Highway 253 bridge.  Fortunately no cars were behind us, so I was able to get a couple of great shots.

And here is the enlarged version after cropping the picture at home.

A nice morning of viewing after several trips where we didn't see much.

Feeder Birds 2017-18

1. Pine warbler
2. Yellow-Rumped warbler
3. Orange-crowned warbler
4. Tufted titmouse
5. Carolina chickadee
6. Northern cardinal
7. Ruby-crowned kinglet
8. House finch
9. American goldfinch
10. Brown thrasher
11. Mourning dove
12. Downy woodpecker
13. Northern junco
14. Carolina wren
15. White-breasted nuthatch
16. Brown-headed nuthatch
17. Eastern phoebe
18. White-throated sparrow
19. Chipping sparrow
20. Rufous-sided towhee
21. Red-winged blackbird
22. Blue jay
23. Mockingbird
24. Gray catbird
25. Rose-breasted grosbeak 
26. Indigo bunting (molting)