More of Our Garden Friends~

~Above and below is an Eastern Towhee, also known around here as a Rufous Sided Towhee.  The black ones are the males and the cocoa brown the females~

How has your week gone?  Have you gotten much snow in your area?  We had three inches with some freezing sleet first and then two days later got another 4 inches of fluffy snow.  I took a fall and hit both knees on the pavement when going to photograph a Red-tailed Hawk across the lane.  I have bruises and ache all over, but am thankful no broken bones.  My camera also hit the ground, but fortunately it was saved from any damages this go round.  I enjoy snow for one reason only...it makes for a lovely backdrop for nature images.  

I shall warn those who follow my blog now, that next week, I will be sharing the Red-tailed Hawk mentioned above with a fresh kill of a Gray Squirrel.  For the very squeamish, I would not want to upset you and hopefully you shall see this alert before I post them next weekend.

In the meantime, here are just a few of the garden friends that have visited my little side garden this past week.  Sadly a Cooper's Hawk too a Cardinal, but that is the way of nature, all of the time, every day~

Remember to double click on the first image, to view a larger slideshow presentation after you have read the narratives~

I will be linking up with Judith for:

www.lavendercottagegardening.com

Mosaic Monday

&

Stewart for:

   http://paying-ready-attention-gallery.blogspot.com.au/

Wild Bird Wednesday

Cardinals, all of the ones shared this week are females~

The rarest bird to visit is the Fox Sparrow.  They only come in the Winter and usually only one of them~

Poppy, I hope that you will get to see this.  Blue Jays~

White-throated Sparrows~

Dark-eyed Juncos~

Mourning Doves~

Black-capped Chickadees~

Snow Birds Aplenty, Post 1 of 2~

I so hope that you all will not mind.  I am going to be giving a double dose of Snow birds this week.  Since we have been cooped up from the cold for days now, I have taken oodles and oodles of images, prepared them for sharing, and if I don't get snow birds out soon, it shall be Spring.  

This shall be 1 of 2 

For those who have followed my updates for travel...would you believe...2 days ago, I got a cell phone message, a text message and an e-mail alerting me to the fact that my train was broken down and they had no train to take the route.  SO, I do not fly any longer due to my ears being super sensitive, but I am going to fly anyway.  First the bad weather and illness and now an Amtrak cancellation and I need to get to my daughter and spend some time with her and her husby.  Hoping that the plane flight goes without a hitch~

Remember to double click on the first image, to view a larger slide show presentation after you have read the narratives~

I will be linking up with Judith for:

www.lavendercottagegardening.com

Mosaic Monday

&

Stewart for:

   http://paying-ready-attention-gallery.blogspot.com.au/

Wild Bird Wednesday

We continue to have many Cardinals coming to the feeders every day.  They make the dull gray days, more cheerful with their colour and song~

Sometimes when you purchase feeders, they just do not do their job and the one the Carolina Wren is eating from was one of them.  I turned it into a suet feeder and it does fine now~

Yellow-bellied Sapsuckers, are one of my favorite garden visitors.  They have been enjoying the dried meal worm and nut pellets from the feeder below~

A Tufted Titmouse, possibly a male was not happy seeing it's reflection in the yard globe~

The Eastern Towhees hidden in brambles and shrubs most of the warmer months are a delight coming to the feeding stations all Winter.  

A female and male Downy Woodpecker, have made their space in the garden scene too~

Last year I had 2 Fox Sparrows the whole Winter.  This year, so far only one and I always enjoy them, since they are particularly rare visitors to Tingsgrove~

White-throated Sparrows are another favorite Winter visitor and we have lots of them around this season~

White-breasted Nuthatch and American Goldfinches have made their way, but not in any great numbers~

Sparrows, so many different ones and this little one has been spending a lot of time along side the Fox Sparrow, which kind of threw me a bit, as they do look a wee bit alike.  

It had a tiny seed upon it's beak~

Oh and of course, sometimes they come here as well, not always, but in these harsh cold days, they arrive, the European Starlings~

For as many Blue Jays that are in this area, we have not had very many visiting our feeders, and not sure why.  They are invited to partake too~