I suppose my back yard is the Mecca of house finches. They are at my feeders throughout the day, every day, spring, summer and fall. Late this summer, I assume right after several families hatched, we had 30 or more finches at a time fighting for a spot on my sunflower heart feeder. The little rascals also love to take baths in our bubbling birdbath. They flit from the feeder to the bath … [Read more...]

  We have seen a few monarch butterflies in our yard this summer, but just this week, we saw something even better – a monarch caterpillar! The colorful creature was chewing its way up a spindly stalk of our butterfly milkweed. Milkweed is the key to the survival of these graceful creatures. Many plant butterfly bushes, which are nice and certainly attract monarchs and other … [Read more...]

  With the help of several Cville Buzz readers, the mystery has been solved. The unidentified birds in my yard have been identified. The two, stocky gray birds I could not find in my bird books are juvenile Brown-headed Cowbirds. The reason they were so hard to identify is that they were young birds and looked nothing like their parents pictured in books. I had a feeling they were … [Read more...]

I had a  UFO in  my yard this week, but instead of a little green man, it was a strange gray bird like I’ve never before seen, Nancy saw it and called me to the kitchen window. “What kind of bird is that?” she remarked. The bird was perched near our feeders, but not feeding. It appeared more curious than anything else. It was a gray bird, a lighter gray and a little mottled in the chest, … [Read more...]

  (A custom bluebird house)   Chris Johnson of Earlysville may have the most prolific bluebirds in Virginia. Maybe anywhere. Chris told me earlier in the year that two pair nested in his yard for the first time ever. Bluebirds are quite territorial and usually put up a stiff fight for squatter’s rights and sole occupancy, but Chris said the two houses were not within sight of … [Read more...]

Birds are fun to watch and some birds are as beautiful as the finest works of art. This spring and summer we have been blessed with goldfinches, one of the most spectacular birds of all. We watched this spring as the males began molting and shed their drab olive plumage and slowly, but surely, sprouted brilliant yellow and inky black feathers. They are now in full color and they are … [Read more...]

  If you haven’t already, fill those sugar feeders at once. The hummers are here. Our hummingbirds are usually late arrivals,  sometime mid to late July, but this year, I saw a few buzzing through back in April and our regulars have now set up shop near our feeders. They make regular visits to insure there are no other intruders. For little guys, they surely fight a lot. Last year, I … [Read more...]

Egyptians had their locusts. I am plagued with grackles. As a bird watcher and avid bird feeder, I despise grackles. They show up in mid-March and stay till mid-June, all the while eating me out of house and home. It wouldn’t be so bad if there were just a half dozen or so, but they come in swarms, up to 50 and more and they pound my feeders with sunflower hearts and my hanging Peanut Suet Logs … [Read more...]