Dark-Eyed Slate-colored Junco

 

Meet my Juncos from the Northeast U.S.!  These energetic ground feeding birds are with me year round.  They are most comfortable on the ground; juncos even prefer to nest on the ground, although they won’t turn down any opportunity.  A star decoration at my front door area makes a fine home for my juncos, even though it is roughly 7 feet off the ground. Juncos have a cool defense mechanism should a predator venture too close.  They flash their tails, which have bright white edges on either side, as they take flight.  It is enough to momentarily confuse the interloper so the junco can fly away safely.

Juncos devour black oil sunflower seeds when I toss them on the ground.  They mingle easily with the goldfinches, who sport darker plumage this time of year.  Notice that juncos (6”) are a little larger than the finches (4.5”).

 

You can plainly see the brown on this female’s back, which distinguishes her from the male, whose coloration is a darker gray without the brown.  Both she and he have very white bellies, helping them to blend in with the snowy background.  Birds fluff up their feathers as a way to fend off the cold.  This action creates air pockets that efficiently act as a thermal barrier, keeping their body heat in and the cold air out.

Listen for a distinctive ‘smack, smack’ interspersed with little twittering sounds, as they socialize with one another.  I love their songs, which remind me of lyrical sparrows, with lovely musical notes.

My juncos perch in smaller trees and shrubs, under bushes, and in open areas of grass.  They love insects as well as seeds, and seem to be especially fond of small juicy caterpillars.  Their beaks are strong enough to crack the seeds they love, as well as manage almost any insect that comes along.

This male junco likes to patrol my garden for insects.  Because it is a fenced area, he often uses the posts to survey the territory.  There is no need for pesticides because my friendly and beneficial birds are always on the case.  I rely on them to keep my gardens pest free, which also keeps them well fed—it’s a win-win!

Learn more about:

The Juncos I Have Come to Know

Best Ground Feeder for Juncos

Grandma Pearl

Cute little wren from flickr.com, CC-BY-SA http://www.flickr.com/photos/amayzing/8419556183/

"JENNY" WRENS ARE LIVELY LITTLE BIRDS, that eat many insects in a day.  So they will keep your yard and gardens in good shape.  Providing nesting houses for them will assure they stay in your area.  If you hear a loud repeat of 'tea kettle, tea kettle', you most decidedly have a Carolina Wren patrolling your property!  Leave your dryer lint or hair from your hairbrush out on the ground, and the little wrens will use it for nesting material! I have a wren bird house next to my front door on a shelf, and it is occupied every year.  These diminutive brown birds may be small, but they pack a powerful song that you will welcome!

Three birds to watch for in January and February - BirdWatching Magazine

Three birds to watch for in January and February - BirdWatching Magazine

What Are These Little Birds?

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What in the world are these small colorful birds, and why have they descended on my backyard in the middle of winter?  I was intrigued by the size of the flocks, and enchanted by their ‘sweet’ song.  They were so tame, I literally walked among them!  They turned out to be Common Redpolls, but I found them to be anything but common.

It was just after Christmas in the middle of a snowstorm that dumped over a foot of snow here.  I heard the excited chirps high in the tree tops while I was shoveling my way to the woodshed.  They were small birds, and there were myriads of them!  Perched in the dark grey branches on a cold, grey day I found it hard to pick out any colors at all.  Besides that, my glasses would become covered with snow every time I looked upward!

We usually have large flocks of goldfinches that hang around all winter.  That was my first guess, and my second guess was purple finches.  I had read in Audubon magazine that this might be a good year to see purple finches during the winter time.  Although I had seen several purple finches the week before, these did not sound like the lovely and bubbly purple finches that usually appear in spring.  Nor did they say “zeee-zee” as do the goldfinches.  Having finally reached the woodpile, I gathered up enough wood for the day and headed back to the warmth of the house.  By then my fingers and toes were frozen, and my one thought was to start a fire and warm up.

The next day the sun was shining intermittently.  As I glanced out toward the bird feeders I noticed that all 6 of them were loaded with small birds.  It was time to fill the feeders anyway, so I again grabbed my shovel and worked my way out to the hungry birds.  By now they were covering the ground beneath the feeders searching for morsels on the snow.

These friendly little guys didn’t mind my presence at all.  In fact I had a couple of them fly so close as to feel the air from their wing beats.  The nearer I came the more I realized that these were definitely not goldfinches.  Nor were they the purple finches I had seen a week earlier.  In fact, I had never seen these birds in person before in my life.   Read more

Grandma Pearl