Photo(s) of the Day – “A Bluebird Day”

My father had many old southern sayings.  I heard most of them so many times that they were just part of me and I never questioned what they actually meant.  I’ve been known to “eyeball” things, “mull” stuff over, and was always going somewhere “directly”.  When I started to write this post “A Bluebird Day” came to mind. I had heard it frequently and assumed it meant a warm day when you see bluebirds, well not quite.  In the south it is a cloud free day after a cold front has passed through.  On the ski slopes it is a cloudless day with fresh snow powder.  The day I took these pictures was definitely a “southern bluebird  day”  Not a cloud in the sky and  the birds were actively feeding, singing, and building nests.

Eastern Bluebird

The Eastern Bluebird is the first bird to start house hunting and building a nest.

Checking out local housing

The male seeks out several nesting sites, once the female has given final approval she takes on the responsibility for construction of the nest.

Wren

The wrens stay around all year, hopping in and out of the wood piles.  This little bird has often been the cause for our cat to  forget there is a glass between her and the birds

Tufted Titmouse

The titmouse is known as a hoarder, frequently feeding at the feeders, hulling the seeds and hiding them.

Downy Woodpecker

This little woodpecker joins in with the chickadees at the feeders and can often be heard singing his song by drumming on a piece of wood.  The volume of his drumming makes him sound like he is a very big bird yet he is only 5.5-6.7 inches tall.

White Breasted Nuthatch

This little Nuthatch moves headfirst down a tree trunk, It is known for wedging nuts and seeds into crevices and hacking them open with its beak. He stays busy all day!

There were also flickers, cardinals, blue jays, and chickadees, but they were faster than this photographer.

There is nothing in which the birds differ more from man than the way in which they can build and yet leave a landscape as it was before.

Robert Lynd