Where do you get live meal worms from? I’ve bought them a few times at petsmart but they’re expensive for like a days worth. I’ve probably got 5-6 bluebirds and 3-4 wrens at the suet, dried mealworm feeder, and mealworm seed cake all day right now.
Wild Birds Unlimited... I get 1000+ of them for about $20... lasts a month +. I add a pinch of them daily, in a bluebird feeder, and drop dried mealworms in my tray feeder
All the WBU here are in the burbs and a total pain to get to. I want to add another arm or two to my pole system though so I should make a trip soon.
Haven't posted in here in quite a while. Pond on our property has risen to peak levels after lots of rain/ice the past 2 weeks. Stuck the game camera out there before it rose expecting to see deer and such come to the back of the pond for water. After the water rose, I caught something much cooler this week.
Was out for a hike Sunday morning and was coming upon a group of pine trees. All of the sudden it sounded like a massive branch or tree was falling. Stopped, looked up and not sure if I spooked them or if they were just getting the day started but it was at least 30 Turkey vultures taking flight. Scared the shit out of me.
Gonna try and hit up a few spots around me on Saturday for BYBC. Might end up trying to go to this massive parrot roost east of Pasadena. People saw 600 parrots and 6 different species last weeekend.
Ended the day with 39 species. Nothing too rare or exciting. Got some good photos, will upload in a bit.
Today's stuff. Spoiler Acorn Woodpecker. Prying out acorns from their granary tree. Hermit Thrush Northern Flicker (Red-shafted) Blue-gray Gnatcatcher Nuttall's Woodpecker Song Sparrow
The amount of red on that red-bellied is stunning. I’m not sure I’ve ever seen it creep that much into the cheeks or that thoroughly throughout the breast.
I thought so as well. Was lucky to catch it on the line, as they typically just dive bomb down from a large oak tree, hit the suet... 50% or more is always hidden
I've been watching this Bald Eagle cam off and on all weekend. Absolutely brutal storm the past few days, maybe the worst in decades for SoCal. The nest has been completely buried in snow multiple times and the eagle has to dig itself out. My friend also found a dead Yellow-rumped Warbler on her doorstep that looks like it froze to death. Too cold.
This has showed up in my recommended on YT all week. Watched it some, led me to check out others around the world. One around Minnesota dealing with similar conditions.
Funny seeing this. I get Anna's and Allen's on my feeder and they are such territorial dicks. We had an Allen that wouldn't let anything touch the feeder for 6 weeks before he wandered off or got pushed out.
a few birds in here: https://www.nationalgeographic.co.u...edium=newsletter&utm_campaign=chartr_20230224
Saw some stuff on the L.A River. Cloudy, so pictures not the greatest. Spoiler Lilac-crowned Parrot Merlin eating a bird. Lincoln's Sparrow Egyptian Goose Muscovy Duck
I think it’s a white patch. my initial assumption was grey cheeked, the distinct eye ring is throwing me… also appears to have a reddish hue, especially in the tail feathers. I’m leaning Bicknell’s for those reasons
Went to the San Luis Rey river down near San Diego to do some hiking/birding, but the recent storms turned what is normally a dry creek bed into rapids. I couldn't do the trail I wanted, so I drove 25 minutes up a nearby mountain and got to 6000 feet where there was a shit ton of snow, and a whole different set of birds to see. I love Southern California. I saw something that I can't figure out too. Maybe a Cassin's or Purple Finch with this really yellow coloration. Spoiler Palomar Mountain. Got above the clouds. Mystery Finch. Steller's Jay California Scrub-Jay
I've seen three bald eagles in the last 6 weeks or so. All driving down the interstate. First one flying away from the Cumberland River with a fish in tow. I was confident it was one but not 100% sure until a couple weeks ago. I saw it again in the same area soaring high and mighty as I was going over the river (northern part of Land between the Lakes). Then today saw one in a different area, 60 miles or so away from LBL, on the side of the interstate just hammering away at something on the ground. Spoiler Owsley the second time I saw it, when it was gliding so free, Billy played She Makes My Love Come Rolling Down the next night at Bridgestone. Yeah, I was like woah.
Mystery Finch is a young Cassin's Finch with yellow coloration instead of red. Kind of rare for Cassin's when compared to regular House Finches. Yellow coloration seems to happen more with Finches in the SW U.S. because there's a lot of food sources that lack the red pigmentation compared to the East U.S.
Got a lifer with a migrating Swainson's Hawk yesterday, and saw a Lilac-crowned Amazon nest, which isn't something easily found. Spoiler Lilac-crowned Amazon nest. Townsend's Warbler Western Bluedbird Northern Flicker Yellow Warbler. First one I've seen this year. Acorn Woodpecker
No filter whatsoever, that is exactly what it looked like. Pretty mindblowing. I think it being cloudy at the time has something to do with it.
This past weekend was pretty god damn epic. Saw 80 species on Saturday and got 5 lifers. Neo-tropic Cormorant, Swinhoe's White-eye, American Redstart, Black-and-white Warbler (somehow has eluded me), and a Swamp Sparrow. Spoiler Double-crested Cormorant. Coolest fucking eyes in the bird world imo. American Redstart Osprey with a Tilapia Great Horned Owl First Bullock's Oriole of the year. Hooded Merganser
Went into the mountains today, saw a lot of good stuff. Spring migrants starting to roll through, winter birds still hanging around. Spoiler Pacific-slope Flycatcher Cedar Waxwing Townsend's Solitaire Lawrence's Goldfinch Spotted Towhee
Hello at the show. Stan says I’ve got cardinals, turtle doves, cowbirds (they’re parasitic birds, crazy shit look it up) and something else I’m trying to figure out wtf it is. My proudest visitor is a giant cardinal I’ve named Fat Carl. When the feeders get empty, he rounds up the other red bois and they line my fence while starting menacingly into my living room. I call them the local 426 union, constantly protesting g the feeder conditions.
Shit pic, but saw this blue heron while walking my dogs the other day. I heard him first because the wing flap sounded like a goddamn pterodactyl.
Cavity nesting box. Given the appeared size of the entrance, guessing screech owls were the target species.
Just had a red-bellied woodpecker post up at the tray and the red-winged blackbird said THAT’S MY BIKE PUNK!