Our Bird Friends

*B* and I have been actively trying to encourage birds to come to our humble backyard.  My father-in-law made us a little bird feeder, we have a suet feeder and a finch feeder, we have two bird houses, and we strung up some dog fur for them to use as nesting material.  Thankfully, we've seen a fair amount of bird activity.  I've actually gotten fairly good at identifying these pretty little things.

This is a male Northern Cardinal that we've had every year.

The lady friend of our Mr. Cardinal.

I was, at first, amazed by all the Mourning Doves that visit us.  Now they're so commonplace, I barely notice them.  *B* can actually call to them, but I'm not that skilled yet.

It's very hard to see the little bird in the Forsythia bush, but I think he might be a Song Sparrow.  I've only seen him once, so if he comes back, I'll do more research.

I believe these are Carolina Chickadees.  I had always identified them as Black-capped Chickadees until I consulted our field manual last night.

One huge problem we've had with keeping feed around is squirrels.  We put out corn for them, but they are definitely more interested in sunflower seeds.  In the background is an American Robin.

I think this little one is a White-breasted Nuthatch, though I'm not sure.  He's a newcomer as of yesterday.

This wonderful little guy is a Downy Woodpecker.  I had never until last night seen a woodpecker before in my life.

He came by twice to say hello, though he didn't want to show his face.

I think this one is a Dark-Eyed Junco.

This is the bird of which I'm least sure.  I'm going to go out on a limb and say he's a House Finch, but I have no clue really.

I think this is a Boat-tailed Grackle.  I'm very unsure about him though.

I'm fairly certain this one is a Tufted Titmouse.

All these pictures were taken recently, some as recently as last night.  Over the weekend, we were in Assateague Island, MD, and I saw a ton of birds there as well.  But that's a whole nother post :o)