We have a scrawny fig tree that bears fruit annually, but we rarely get more than a taste. I’ve often suspected birds as the culprits. WENK. Wenk wenk wenk! Now I have proof: young Western Scrub Jay bossing over backyard fig tree! Okay, only indirect proof, since none of the pictures actually showed the bird’s […]
Tag Archives: birds
Summer in the garden
Friday, 20 June 2008
Here’s a garden update as of this year’s summer solstice. Presently on my mind are the apricots: not as many as last year, although not as paltry as 2006. However small the crop, they shall be imminently pickable. For the botanically inclined, I submit vegetable porn involving burgundy and green filet beans. Basically haricots verts […]
Hot bird action
Friday, 28 March 2008
Unfortunately, the title of this entry is quite literal: Last week a hawk died in our neighborhood. As the poor thing expired, it managed to take out a transformer and blow a power line —rendering our block powerless until dinnertime. It had (the remains of) a squirrel, so one theory was that as the squirrel […]
Neighborhood bird watching list
Monday, 3 March 2008
I know I’ll continue my habit of writing lists on bits of paper, but I thought it’d be useful to maintain an online list of the birds I’ve seen in our neighborhood. I’ve limited this to visitors to our yards and the nearby park. “Birders, are ye?” Well, I prefer the term bird watching, mainly […]
Birds in Winter (and a squirrel)
Tuesday, 19 February 2008
In autumn and winter the birds arrive from the north to keep us company. This typically means a lot of White-crowned and Golden-crowned Sparrows around the yard, but my flagship migrator is the Yellow-rumped Warbler. Or, as Simon and I call them, Yellow-butts. For their 2007 arrival, I first noticed them on the (easily remembered) […]
Chickadees in the garden
Sunday, 29 April 2007
While picking peas, I’ve been subject to vocal commentary by various avians. Anna’s Hummingbird: Scritchy scritchy complain scritchy… BzzzzzzPINGk! Black Phoebe: Pfee pfee. (Wag tail.) Pfee. Western Scrub-jay: (Insert loud, rasping squawk of choice.) …And: Chichichi chichi chichi hyeenhyeenh! Hyeenh hyeenh! (Repeat.) Chestnut-backed Chickadees have become our neighbors. Chestnut-backed chickadee during a bath: “Hey! I […]