Friday, March 1, 2013

Table Manners!

Northern Flicker
We climbed through wind and snow to check on my friend's cabin up on Mt. Lemmon. I brought a secret stash of peanuts and pineapple(thanks to Kathie!) bits to call upon some old friends from last year.

Ski Valley
Getting there wasn't easy.  The desert was warm and breezy.  And yet 25 miles away, the frigid town of Summerhaven was covered with snow!  I had been losing ground with my bird count.  While my father was visiting, I had to take a backseat on the birding and it may have cost me the Rusty Blackbird.  But I still needed new bird species for this year.  I knew they were around my friend's cabin.  Just needed to call upon their appetites:)
And within 20 minutes of me calling out to them, the Steller's Jay came quickly.  I placed the bag of goodies on the wooden post and watched them fill up.  It was cold!!!
But the Northern Flicker heard me as well and popped up for a nut.....or two........good thing this Flicker had a bib;)
Steller's Jay
But I thought we were supposed to chew our food first!!! At least that's what my mother taught me:)  However, some birds, like the Jay, will stuff in as many nuts as they can fit into their mouths for later consumption.  Clever!
We had to walk through a blanket of snow to get to the cabin.  The roads had at least 9 inches of the white stuff.  And then there were the drifts! My feet took all day to thaw for this birding expedition!
But it was worth it:)  Later the Acorn and Hairy Woodpeckers would join us around the feeders.
Acorn Woodpecker
The snow was gorgeous, but as you can see below, the cars were all lined up for skiing!  Of course this happens up in Ski Valley.  We drove up to this part to see if we could find a parking place for some hot chili.....but it was FULL!   So we headed back down to the village and ate there.
Meanwhile, back at the cabin, all the birds were clearing off the food quickly.  One Jay turned into two, then three, then four, then five.....and SIX!  I can always rely on my Jays to call the crew in:)  Other birds will also follow these loud birds.  Before one knows it, there is a party going on!
And I welcomed that party as I was able to add 5 more birds onto my Pima county list.  None were lifebirds but they were all great birds to get on the list:)  Currently in the state of Arizona, I have found 185 species of the 314 birds reported!  More are on their way and things are going to heat up in March and April!
Our walk on Grosbeak road!  No Grosbeaks....yet:)
But on this day we froze:)  That's what I love about birding.  Each journey is strange and different. Personally, this was a fun day and I'm glad my friend had to check up on the cabin.

I would spot Steller's Jay, the White-breasted Nuthatch, Mountain Chickadee, Hairy Woodpecker, Acorn Woodpecker and Northern Flicker.  Plus I was able to get closeups of these birds at the feeders!
I practically had to put my feet into the furnace to revive their walking powers again.  We were numb from the cold!
It made for a very productive day in the photography and EBIRD department!  I love playing detective and I especially love all the fun that comes with the birds:) And my friend's cabin was fine:)  Until next time.....

26 comments:

  1. A wonderful series of captures Chris! They are all great birds,but the photo of the Northern Flicker really made me grin:)

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  2. What a lovely Steller's Jay! You certainly know how to "blackmail" birds... :-)

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  3. I know the birds are the main focus, but I do love your Ski Valley photo!

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  4. Another great post, Chris! Pineapple bits, this is new to me? Love the Flicker shots and the Stellar Jay is pretty. My favorite and one of my must see birds is the Acorn Woodie. Glad to hear your feet thawed out. Happy Birding and have a great weekend!

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  5. What a wonderful trip Chris. The birds are so beautiful and colourful. Your Arizona list is coming along brilliantly :)

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  6. Great shots here Chris. Love all the birds you captured. Thanks for the pineapple tip- I'll add some to the peanuts.
    Happy birding ~:>)

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  7. love your red-shafted flicker! awesome! and the jays are beautiful, as is your bright acorn woodpecker.

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  8. To niesamowite, że był śnieg i tyle pięknych ptaków udało się Tobie sfotografować. Z pewnością pomogło Ci ich karmienie. Zauroczył mnie ptaszek ze śliniakiem. Pozdrawiam serdecznie.
    It's amazing that he was so much snow and beautiful birds you were able to photograph it. Certainly helped you feeding them. I fell in love with bibs bird. Yours sincerely.

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    1. Jest mi smutno, ze zapominasz o mnie :)
      It is sad that you forget about me :)

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    2. Hi Giga, I haven't gotten you:) I'll be visiting soon:)

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  9. Oh Wow---I'd love to have that cabin... Gorgeous!!! AND--even though it was cold and snowy, I'm glad you saw so many birds. I'm sure they enjoyed the 'snack'... They'll expect you back up there every day now to feed them... ha ha

    Hugs,
    Betsy

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  10. they aren't so angry! cute birds!))))

    Have a great day!

    xoxo, Juliana | PJ’ Happies :) | PJ’ Ecoproject

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  11. My goodness! Don't you have any Wisconsin blood left in you? Complaning about the snow! haha...
    I love this post. I love the birds and what a nice cabin. I could do some serious R&R there!

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  12. A great trip, and some iconic birds seen too! Lovely post Chris.

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  13. How cool was this trip!!! Beautiful photos! I saw birds today that are the only ones indigenous to only Florida! The Scrub Jay! We actually attended a Scrub Jay Festival in a state park here, and I learned so much! Never really aware of this beautiful bird until today! They live all around us here, and I plan to be on the lookout!

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  14. A very enjoyable read Chris, it sounded like you had a great time. The Northern Flicker is so pretty and the bib made me laugh. Love the Jay as well.

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  15. I'm amazed at how many birds there are there! I would LOVE to bird in Arizona!

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    1. You really do!:) This is probably THE place where so many birds in the US gather. Or at least, I like to think so. There are so many! If you do ever visit, let me know and I'll help you get that list organized:)

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  16. What a stunning winter 'dinner party'. The Jay looks resplendent in his midnight blue dinner jacket and the flicker so sensible to wear a bib when dining :)

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  17. Qué aves tan bellas.. Si las tuviera delante.. jaja.. Foto foto..

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  18. Love this post Chris! Freezing bits of ourselves can be worth the pleasure of seeing the amazing birds.

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  19. I love this birds..they are stunning..have a nice day..Michelle/

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  20. Great post! The Steller's Jay and Northern Flicker are daily sights where I live in BC and I just love these photos of them! Seeing the Acorn Woodpecker gets me excited (along with all your photos) of some of the birds I'll be seeing soon when I arrive in Arizona!

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    1. How exciting!!! You have a lot to look forward to....I know everyday I wake up excited about discovering new birds and I'm a resident!!! If you need help finding any species, let me know and I'll give you some great hotspots to find the birds for your list:)

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    2. Thank you so much! We saw robins here today for the first time this spring. A special sight for us Canucks after the winter! (and of course it'll be a little while longer before they're spotted in the east)

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  21. Love those colorful Flickers, the cabin and the snowy scenes, a big change from the Arizona deserts.
    Happy hiking n bird chasing Chris ~:)

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