Spring (Flashback) Wild Bird Wednesday

Many of you know that we won the Tarrot Reading from Athena & Marie. It was very hard deciding who to get the reading for, but since Tuiren came to us as an adult and we know very little about her past, we decided to let her have the reading. The deck used is beautiful, and the first card made me think about when she first came to us. Tuiren was accepted by the cats the first time they saw her and Socks gave her his stamp of approval (walked up and touched noses). In fact it was the cats reaction to her that made me consider giving her a home. Her reading truly captured her essence. I hope you will go by Athena and Marie's and read it for yourself.  ~Alasandra

 We are ready for it to be SPRING, these are some of our favorite pictures from last SPRING. We are happy to report all of these flowers made it through the winter and are happily growing in the greenhouse right now.

And now we has an entry for...................... Wild Bird Wednesday.

The Canadian Geese fly in from somewhere, Canada we supposes given their name and Mother Goose makes a nest on the Island. Eventually the goslings hatch and we get to seem them toddling along until they disappear for somewhere more to their liking.

Mrs. Goose is sitting on a nest as we speak, so she should be having goslings soon. They usually hatch around Easter. ~ATCAD

Christmas Bird Count

This year's Christmas Bird Count will be held Dec. 14. For more information about how to participate, contact the Pascagoula River Audubon Society at 228-475-0825.

Birds

63% of my readers prefer the Hummingbird. My Hubby was kind enough to get this picture of a hummingbird at our feeder this weekend.

9% choose the Blue Jay.

27% choose the Cardinal

And nobody choose the poor Mockingbird. While he may not be the most colorful of birds the Mockingbird is the State Bird of Mississippi & Texas and has a lovely song.

Ivory-billed Woodpecker

Photo of the Ivory-billed woodpecker taken by Dr. James Tanner on March 6, 1938.More photos can be found here. Credit: U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service

U.S. wildlife officials have unveiled a draft recovery plan aimed at preventing the extinction of the Ivory-billed woodpecker.

Good news for bird lovers

The American bald eagle population is making a recovery across the nation, but Mississippi still remains one of the least likely places to spot a pair in the wild, according to a state ornithologist.

Read the rest in The Mississippi Press.

Easter Surprise

We have a pair of Canada Geese that visit our pond every spring. The goose has been sitting on a nest for about a month now. Today apparently they hatched out and Mrs Goose & Mr Gander took the goslings for a stroll. It was a very nice Easter Surprise.

Day 4 ~ Great Backyard Bird Count

The Most Romantic Bird is the.......................................

Mourning Dove.

Monday

8AM -8:15AM

• 1- Canada Goose (this was a surprise as they usually stay down at the pond and don't venture up to the house).
• 1- Mourning Dove
• 1- Robin
• 1- Blue Jay
• 1 - Cardinal
• 2- Sparrows

This is the last day of the bird count, but there are still plenty of things to do if you are doing a unit on birds. Check out these nifty lesson plans, download these classroom activities, and learn about operation backyard recovery (launched in response to Hurricane Katrina).

Great Backyard Bird Count ~Day 3

The Most Colorful Award is tied. I found it impossible to choose between the Cardinal above and the Blue Jay below.

They are both beautiful colorful birds and I love seeing them both at the feeder.

Sunday

7AM - 7:30AM

• 11 - Mourning Doves
• 1 - Blue Jay
• 2 - Cardinals
• 5 - American Robins
• 1 - Field Sparrow

Apparently Mourning Doves are morning birds. They are actually to big to eat from the feeder so they content themselves with milling on the ground under the feeder eating all the seeds the messy smaller birds knock out. Occasionally one will sit on the roof of the feeder.

We have a male and female cardinal that visit. The male tends to sit on the porch of the feeder, as if he owns the log cabin and only allows the other birds to visit.

Tomorrow I will name The Most Romantic Bird, see if you can guess which one it will be? In the meantime click here to submit your own bird count.

Day 2 - Great Backyard Bird Count

Saturday 12:30 PM

• 1- Blue Jay


• 5 - Robins


• 4 - Mourning Doves


• 6 - Field Sparrows


• 2 - Cardinals


• 1 - American Crow (Most Annoying)


• 1 - Red Bellied Woodpecker (Most Personality)

I am hoping that Sunday the weather will be warmer and I can walk down to the pond to see what birds might be visiting there. I have been observing the birds at the bird-feeder from the comfort of my WARM bedroom. We had a heavy frost this morning, so the birds seemed to visit the bird-feeder later in the day. We have a full schedule Monday, but I hope to find 15 minutes at least to contribute to the bird count. You can contribute by clicking here. I didn't see any Purple Martins today and more Robins were out today then yesterday. The Field Sparrows were new visitors (they are so tiny compared to the other birds).

I have decided to create awards for the Birds. I have awarded the Red Bellied Woodpecker the Most Personality Award. The American Crow gets the Most Annoying Award. Tomorrow I will award the Most Colorful Award to one lucky bird.

The Red Bellied Woodpecker is fun to watch. He perches on the side of the feeder and pokes his head in, occasionally peeping around the post with an inquisitive look on his face. Almost as if he is watching me watch him.

The American Crow is annoying he runs the other birds off.

Great Backyard Bird Count ~Day 1

Friday was the first day of the Great Backyard Bird Count. These are the birds I saw from 9AM till 10AM at the bird feeder.

• 2- Blue Jays
• 2 - Robins
• 4 -Mourning Doves
• 9- Purple Martins
• 4 Northern Cardinals
• 1- American Crow
• 2 Red-Bellied Woodpeckers

I saw a total of 24 birds, and seven different species. I think I saw a Pelican on the way to physical therapy. Since I was unsure of the identification I didn't count him. It's really difficult to watch birds and drive at the same time. Click here to participate.

Great Back Yard Bird Count

Mark your calendars and become citizen scientist February 16 -19, 2007 by participating in the Great Back Yard Bird Count.

We have been seeing Bluebirds and Mourning Doves at our bird feeder and Canada Geese have been visiting our pond recently.

Field Trip

Local nature lovers and bird-watchers can observe rare birds hibernating in the area during a special field trip this weekend. The Mississippi Audubon Society is hosting its annual free field trip to the Mississippi Sandhill Crane Wildlife Refuge this Saturday.

This sounds like a wonderful opportunity depending on the weather.

The Eagles Are Back

Pascagoula River Audubon Center Director Mark LaSalle said he first saw an eagle soaring over the Pascagoula River in mid-December."There's eagles around," he alerted an Ocean Springs family as they set out on a boat tour from the center. While on the river, they spotted not one, but two eagles.

Best of all they are nesting.

True Believers, Agnostics and Atheist

Nah! this post doesn't have anything to do with religion the title refers to the bird worlds split over the Ivory Billed Woodpecker (aka The Ghost Bird). The Ivory Billed Woodpecker was believed to be extinct, the last confirmed sighting was in 1944. Then miraculously it was sighted in Arkansaw in 2004 and early 2005. Or was it? Did the people who spotted it mistake the Pileated Woodpecker for the Ivory Billed?