Subject: [Tweeters] Golden Crowned Kinglet, Black-Headed Grosbeak,
Date: May 27 07:40:21 2007
From: katbash at comcast.net - katbash at comcast.net
Hi Tweeters! This is my first submission so I hope I do this correctly. We live in Frederickson, on an acre with lots of trees and try to maintain a more natural, rather than perfectly manicured, yard. So, we have many, many birds who like to nest here with us.
I'm so excited that this year is my first visit from Golden Crown Kinglets. There are 2 of them, one has an almost orange crest and one is more of a paler yellow, but they are so funny and pleasurable to watch. They are flirting with their reflections in the downstairs window from the rhodie they like to flit around in and they also find their reflections in the gazebo windows interesting. I got one foot away from one of them yesterday in the gazebo, quite accidentally, and one was hanging on the drawstring for the rollup shades and he had his crest fully raised and was giving me quite the lecture! They got used to us working in the garden areas nearby and didn't seem to be bothered by us or the cat (he's so old I don't think he gave a hoot either).
A couple years ago, we had a ruby crowned kinglet who would wake me up at 4:30(ish) every morning with his beautiful song coming out of this tiny bird's beak and itsy-bitsy body on my deck. I don't know where they nested when his lady showed up, but I keep wishing for their return.
For the first year ever, I saw a Black-Headed Grosbeak on my front yard feeder. My daughter argued that it was just the Spotted Towhee but I showed him to my husband along with the picture from Sibley's Field Guide to Birds of Western North America and he agreed.
We have this teeny little novelty birdhouse (Nana & Pa's Place) that for the last two years Chickadees have decided to nest and raise babies in. It's right outside the kitchen window and it seems like we spend hours watching the birds bring food to the increasingly loud brood inside. It's so funny to watch the poor frazzled parents work so hard to feed their family. We have another nesting pair out in a house on a fir tree so I'm looking forward to the fledglings as they discover the world outside the box.
I feel so blessed that we have so many who come back every year:
We have hummingbirds, a pair of Northern Flickers, new this year a house finch, Pygmy Nuthatch, Hairy Woodpecker, Pileated Woodpecker, swallows, Bewick's Wren, Varied Thrush, starlings, sparrows, juncos, a Brown Headed Cowbird, a Pine Siskin, an entire flock of Pine Grosbeak (just traveling through and taking a rest on top of a fir tree) and of course, the robins and a few I haven't identified yet. I'm enjoying my e-mails of all your sightings and just wanted to share.
Kathy Basher
Frederickson, WA
mailto: katbash at comcast.net