Walk-About The Countryside

Between the shit smell in the air and the birds chirping their "have sex with me" songs during this time of year, spring sure is the time to be alive.

Now to be clear, the poop smell is because the farmers are spreading manure on their fields to get ready for those summer crops!

Living near the Susquehanna River gives a real chance to view some wonderful migration patterns of both local and non local birds.

We have several species that inhabit the backyard.

The local woodpeckers:

This is our big beautiful female Pileated Woodpecker. She visits often and even comes to the feeder on the deck!

How do you know it's a female? See the black stripe coming off of her bottom beak and down her neck? Males have a red stripe instead!

Here we have our handsome male Yellow-Bellied Sap Sucker. Look how his back feathers blend in with that bark!

The distinctive red throat shows us that this is indeed a male. The yellow feathers are hidden due to his position, but you can see a slight hint of yellow on his shoulders.

This is the lovely female Red-Bellied Woodpecker. The red on the back of the neck does not extend over the crown of the head on females. The males; the red feathering stretches from the back of the head, over the crown to the top of the beak.

I used this photo of her because she is really showing off her backside! The rippling affect of the black and white is truly stunning.

Sparrows and Finches and Other Small Birds, On My!

The oh so sweet Eastern Bluebird. This is a male, due to the distinctive blue coloring on the back with the bright orange belly! Their songs are so soft, yet can be very complex!

Now, here we have the male House Finch with his lady friend. These guys are some of the loudest in the backyard and are never afraid to visit the feeder while you are sitting in front of it.

The adorable Carolina Chickadee. You take one look at it and you just want to snuggle it. Plump, fuzzy, and a sweet lullaby song.

I cannot get over how vivid the male Indigo Bunting's blue coloring is. It is so stunning, especially when the sunlight reflects off of their back. It is a color in nature I have not seen before. They are just starting to show themselves during this time of year!