April 2009 Archives
(Yeah, yeah, yeah, I know... more birds. But that's why God invented the back key.)
I was at the hardware store Saturday afternoon and noticed suet cakes on sale. I usually stop feeding suet to the birds during warm weather because suet can melt and get disgusting. But the cakes were cheap and I thought, "Why not one more round?"
I bought two cakes.
Not an hour later I was standing on my deck looking out at my feeding stations, the suet feeder freshly filled with two blocks of hardware store suet. On the feeder clung a downy woodpecker happily pecking away at the fresh fat. "Boy, that didn't take long," I congratulated myself, glad I decided to go with the suet one more time.
Then from the right, between my neighbor's house and mine, I watch a Cooper's hawk glide in not six feet above the ground - silent as a wraith - heading directly toward the feeders. It pulls-up in midair, hovers momentarily right by the suet feeder, plucks off the woodpecker in a flash, and flies into the woods carrying the hapless, unsuspecting bird.
I knew my feeders were a favorite haunt for area hawks. I've seen remains before. But this was the first time I'd actually witnessed a nab. And a downy! Why couldn't it have been a house sparrow? I felt very bad.
As they say, no good deed goes unpunished.
K-
I was at the hardware store Saturday afternoon and noticed suet cakes on sale. I usually stop feeding suet to the birds during warm weather because suet can melt and get disgusting. But the cakes were cheap and I thought, "Why not one more round?"
I bought two cakes.
Not an hour later I was standing on my deck looking out at my feeding stations, the suet feeder freshly filled with two blocks of hardware store suet. On the feeder clung a downy woodpecker happily pecking away at the fresh fat. "Boy, that didn't take long," I congratulated myself, glad I decided to go with the suet one more time.
Then from the right, between my neighbor's house and mine, I watch a Cooper's hawk glide in not six feet above the ground - silent as a wraith - heading directly toward the feeders. It pulls-up in midair, hovers momentarily right by the suet feeder, plucks off the woodpecker in a flash, and flies into the woods carrying the hapless, unsuspecting bird.
I knew my feeders were a favorite haunt for area hawks. I've seen remains before. But this was the first time I'd actually witnessed a nab. And a downy! Why couldn't it have been a house sparrow? I felt very bad.
As they say, no good deed goes unpunished.
K-
I filled the hummingbird feeders for the first time this year on Saturday. My first ruby-throat arrived this morning. A male, gorget ablaze.
Despite the last 3 days in the 90s, summer is officially in Maryland.
K-
Addendum: On the way to work a pileated woodpecker flew right over my car as I drove down US-29. What a great bird day.
Despite the last 3 days in the 90s, summer is officially in Maryland.
K-
Addendum: On the way to work a pileated woodpecker flew right over my car as I drove down US-29. What a great bird day.
"Succotash" and "lima" are not in my cell phone's predictive text dictionary.
Oh... I also like toast.
K-
Oh... I also like toast.
K-
