Expanding the Empire...

In order to reduce feeder crowding and move some of the birds away from traffic (automobile, human, cats - eek!) on the tree-covered-but-busy west side of our property, a few investments were made this month. First, in an attempt to "move" some of our regulars to the more-secluded back deck (and hopefully attract Black-headed Grosbeaks this summer) and to solve the problem of seed on the ground constantly getting soaked with rain, a new ground feeder was purchased. A small bird bath with a solar-powered water fountain was also placed on the back deck. We plan to exploit the running water and very dry Oregon summer to help achieve this goal. In addition, a cheap nectar/fruit feeder also purchased in hopes that Bullock's Orioles will enjoy it this summer. This will go on the north side of the property.

The Slate-colored race of Dark-Eyed Junco, pictured at the new ground feeder, is somewhat uncommon here in the Northwest.

In other news, Rufous Hummingbirds have returned to Western Oregon recently. I've seen males on four different occasions (possibly the same one) since the middle of last week. They've found our feeders, and it's just a matter of time before they begin fighting with themselves and with the Anna's Hummers (and everything else that they perceive as being on "their" turf). Ruby-crowned Kinglets returned to our neighborhood about a week ago and are now singing loudly in the trees in the afternoons. A male Myrtle Warbler has also been seen "hover-gleaning" from our suet basket since last weekend. While the Myrtle race of Yellow-rumped Warbler is not unheard of in the Northwest, what makes this sighting significant is the lack of the conspicuous yellow spot on the crown and a smaller white spot in its place. I've looked through several field guides and the rest of the markings (yellow rump, yellow side mark, etc.) and the bird's habit of hovering in front of our suet feeder strongly suggest that it's some form of Yellow-rumped Warbler. It is possible that it's either a Myrtle/Audubon's hybrid or just has some sort of genetic anomoly. I've tried taking photos on several occasions, but it doesn't like to sit in one place for long and rarely comes near the house. Stay tuned.

In other news, our regular House Finch couple is showing up to dine on sunflower much more frequently than before - I counted seven times yesterday. Our friendly (and loud) Steller's Jay has also become a regular, often stopping by twice a day now. Robins have been seen a bit more often than before. They're year-round residents out here, but tend to shy away from heavily-wooded areas (we typically see Varied Thrush instead). Bushtits are coming by to snack on suet at least five times a day now, but the flocks are much smaller than this past winter (~2-8 vs. 12-20). Goldfinches (American and Lesser) are still stopping by, but not as often as last week. After seeing my first Spotted Towhee last weekend, I had hoped that it would return, but no luck.

Steller's Jay on its way to breakfast