Every year we look forward to the return of the Chickadees and Whisky Jacks ( Grey Jays). The Chickadees stay the entire winter. Last year was the first year that the Whisky Jacks stayed as well. Usually they are more fleeting. The same three seem to come. They recognize Hubby and he hand feeds them. They will eat from my hand but prefer him and his whistles. I make them buns.....sigh....yes I do. ...Whole grain, no sodium, full of raw sunflower seeds, millet, flax and sometime quinoa. Basically the bun is a vessle for seeds. The Bird Buns. A neighbour asked what kind of bird we had on our buns.... uhhhhh..no. hahaha - I explained it wasn't "bird on a bun"....but a bun for the birds. This was late fall, just before the snow. These photos were a couple of days ago. One Whisky Jack will sit at the very top of the tree next to the deck. He softly calls to his flock, and the other two come in and eat their fill, packing some away for later. He won't come down to eat until they are done. It was -15 C without the windchill in these photos, and he still stays up there and keeps watch for birds of prey. If you look in the large tree photo, that little speck at the top of the tree on the left is him. We call him the Sentry.
Thank you Sjoerd. Mr. Snow is definitely here to stay now. It is a beautiful change in scenery, but he does wear his welcome out a little bit by about February. We tend to get a bit sensory deprived by then...wanting anything except white. The lower garden: The greenhouse : Ready for another spring
Chuckle, I was just being a wiseacre there. Hilarious name your kids tacked on there. …yeah, very accurate.
Great story Melody! I loved your observations of the sentry's behavior. And oh my, you have snow already? Oh dear. I know it's just sound the corner for us. Beautiful photos.
Thanks CM. We've had snow for about a couple of weeks now, but it got more serious this week. It will most likely be here until early April. Every year is different though.
We have a few birds not many it’s been in the 40’s. There are the same hummers that over winter here and are always nagging fresh food.