What's in a name?

Does anyone else name their hummingbirds?

This is Elvis...

He has these cool feathers that stick out like something on a jumpsuit Elvis would have worn in the 70's...

And this is Patchy...

Vision

When we first moved to our new house, I shared my vision for the backyard with my hubby. I told him, "There will be birds lined up on the wall and a bird feeder here and another one over there..."

He kind of laughed because the yard needed some work, okay, a lot of work, but now he smiles because it is exactly how I imagined it and a lot better.

Now we have more birds than I can take pictures of and there's always someone new flying in to give us something to talk about. And, of course, there is a feeder here and there and birds lined up on the wall. They like to hang out for a while before swooping down to have a go at their choice of feeder.

The staging area...

Welcome home, little birdies!

Feathered Friends

I hadn't seen a goldfinch until we moved into our new house. Now they are the primary guests at our feeders.

It's funny how excited I was to see that first flash of yellow in the yard and now they are virtually all I ever see besides the occasional house finch and scrub jay.

I'm assuming this is a goldfinch who hasn't changed colors yet for winter...??

Summer might be my least favorite season, but I am looking forward to seeing them in their bright yellow plumage.

Blustery Day

Here are some before and after shots of the wind ruffling these finches' feathers...

Quality H2O

I've had this bird bath for years and I still get a little giddy when I see a bird land on it.

There's something so satisfying about putting water out (especially when you're in the kind of drought California is in) and watching the birds drink from it.

Hawks Aplenty

On Thursday, we started the New Year off with a bang and saw the most hawks we've ever seen in one day...

We finally got a chance to go to the refuge! We went to both the Sacramento National Wildlife Refuge and the Colusa NWR and it was the perfect day to go. The sky was dark and mysterious and beautiful clouds provided the perfect backdrop for our photos.

There were so many hawks out. Not just at the refuges, but on the side of the freeway, perched in trees and on mile markers. They must love this kind of weather as much as we do!

We saw a total of 29 birds (the loon we heard but didn't see makes 30) and managed to take a photo of just about every one of them. It took me a couple of days to go through all the photos (boy, there were a ton of great ones!) and choose the best ones to post. Here are a few from the Sacramento NWR...

 

 

And the photos from the Colusa National Wildlife Refuge...

 

I already can't wait to go back again!