Sunday in the frigid fields

White-breasted Nuthatch Sitta carolinensis

House Sparrow Passer domesticus

House Sparrow Passer domesticus

tracks of a White-footed Mouse Peromyscus leucopus

Flap hat weather

‘Quiet Place’ in NDG, January 21, 2024

  Went for a Sunday bimble in the deej. It was a bracing -14°C (colder with the wind chill)….flap hat weather…frozen moustache weather. I love it. Only five species seen in 90 minutes, including a Pileated Woodpecker, and a pair of White-breasted Nuthatch actively foraging in and around a large tree cavity.

Bimble in the fluff-fluff

Black-capped Chickadee Poecile atricapillus

Eastern Grey Squirrel Sciurus carolinensis

Grapes gone to rot

Wan winter sun

‘Quiet Place’ in NDG, January 7, 2024

  Finally got some decent snow cover here, as a result of a glancing blow from a nor’easter. Colder too, more seasonal, but it actually doesn’t ‘feel’ as cold somehow, because of the snow, if that makes any sense. It was nice to need winter boots…it felt odd walking around in Converse throughout December.

  “Grape Corner,” a spot normally bustling with avian activity in the winter, was quiet today. No Starlings, Robins, or Cardinals jostling for the best grapes. On closer inspection, I noticed that most of the grapes had gone to rot. Perhaps a result of the warm temperatures we’ve had until now? It seems that during a normal winter, they flash-freeze, and so are available to birds as frozen treats.

  Got a whopping five species in a 90-minute bimble through the heavy fluff-fluff. Good leg workout for sure.

  Oh yeah, a Yellow-Breasted Chat turned up in Lasalle yesterday, cool. I'll get around to seeing one some day.