This morning, while getting an early 7am start on watering the gardens, I
heard a commotion on the back deck by the feeders. I looked up to see a
Steller's Jay heading into the trees with a dead pine sisken in its beak.
And seconds later an adult robin was chasing a band-tailed pigeon off out of
the yard. Granted it was already warm at that time of day but not nearly
hot enough to ruffle too many feathers one would think.

While watering near the hummingbirds' garden the hummers usually come over
to check me out and make sure I'm not stealing their nectar from the
crocosmia which just came into bloom. It's been fun watching the hummers
figuring out how to get around, over or through the chicken wire fence that
keeps out the deer. Often the hummers easily figure out to fly up, over
then back down to the brilliant tubes of nectar. But now and then one will
hover outside the fence, stretch its neck to reach inside for a flower. One
this morning finally decided to perch in one of the hole structures of the
fence and then fly on out the other side to the flowers.

Most of the hummingbirds are gone but three, a female Anna's and two adult
rufous, remain in the yard. They still chase each other about the yard in
late evening when it cools a bit. But in the heat of the afternoon they are
off in some cooler shady spot along with all the other birds from the yard.
Hot days like today sure make for quiet afternoons in the birding kingdom
around here.

No baby mountain quail have shown up yet. The adults have been very random
in their visits and the adults have been coming in singly and not in pairs
as they did in Spring. So I'm assuming they are sharing nest duties.

Mary Hrudkaj
Belfair/Tahuya

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