Blog - BeePeeking

Protect Birds from Window Strikes

2/4/2021

We have windows in our house, lots of windows, and we also have three birdbaths and two bird feeding stations that make our backyard a popular hangout for our avian neighbors. I wanted to make a few of our windows screen-free for better bird viewing so I did a bit of research into how to prevent bird strikes.

A Bird's Eye View window strike films are easy to install and inexpensive, as well as lovely. (I had used bird silhouettes in the past and was not impressed.) I purchased clear designs in both 6 " and 4" and see what happened.

I am delighted to report that we have not witnessed a bird strike since I put these on our windows four months ago-and we have been home the WHOLE time.

If you are looking for a lovely alternative to screens-that works-I highly recommend the ArtScape Bird's Eye View squares.

Happy Birding!

above: 6" squares in my studio
below: close up of one of the 4" designs

Winter Solstice * Varied Thrush

12/21/2020

We were ecstatic to see this bird in our backyard yesterday, and doubly thrilled when he showed up again today to scratch and forage underneath our manzanita. This robin-sized thrush sports a blazing orange head stripe and neck plumage, the black "scarf" around it's chest really sets off the colors. We have not yet seen Mrs. Varied Thrush this year, but hope that this lovely guy brings her to visit!

Varied Thrushes breed in dark understories of humid evergreen and mixed forests along the Pacific Coast. In the winter, many move into dense parks, gardens, and backyards. Varied Thrushes are rare but regular winter visitors to the Upper Midwest and Northeast. All About Birds

Sirens of Mythology not mermaids but bird women!

12/20/2020

WHAAAAAAAAT?
According to Ancient Greek mythology winged and clawed bird-women lured sailors to destruction through the power of their song...How and why did these monster bird women get transformed into sexy mermaids?

"Avian symbolism in the Greek imagination was relatively common. In ancient mythology, birds were used to represent everything from oracles, enchantresses, messengers of deities, and mediators between the human world and the supernatural realm." C. Hastings 2/11/19

Intrigued? Check out Audubon's Sirens of Greek Mythology were Birds not Mermaids and
this from Vice: Sirens Are Actually Bird-Bodied Messengers of Death, Not Sexy Mermaids

Keep Asking Questions!

owls & Woodpeckers

12/1/2020

In addition to our backyard birding, we go for walks as often as possible in the Washington Park Arboretum-three times in the past two weeks we've had barred owl sightings.

In an aging maple tree across the street from our house, we enjoyed watching a male pileated woodpecker at work. This bird kept three 2-year-olds enraptured for over an hour!

And yesterday, we had a downy woodpecker for the first time visit our suet offerings. I really love this time of year.

Photo credit: WhatBird.com

November Birdfeeder Watch

11/1/2020

Western Scrub Jay ©NPR

It never fails to impress me how quickly the birds in our neighborhood discover that we've put out our squirrel-proof feeder filled with black sunflower seeds and our blocks of chili-spiced suet. Yesterday morning we were treated to nine species while we were enjoying our coffee: a pair of Spotted Towhees, two Stellar Jays, two flickers, a banditry of chickadees, a bustle of bushtits, some Oregon juncos, a song sparrow, one Bewick's Wren, and a couple house finches. We also had our first visit from a Western Scrub Jay last week. Hooray for birds!

Spotted Towhee ©Mick Thompson

Song Sparrow ©All About Birds

Satin Bowerbird

8/22/2020

We do not have Satin Bowerbirds in our neighborhood, but they are distant cousins of our crows and ravens. I am entranced by their bower building and use of color to attract a mate.

Satin Bowerbird by Bert Kitchen :: from And So They Build

The bowerbird especially loves the color blue and will make use of discarded bottle caps and plastic straws, as well as toothbrushes, clothespins, and other garbage. An amazing bird that is able to turn trash into art .

Australian printmaker Rachel Newling has lovely linocuts and engravings; while looking for artistic rendering of bowerbirds, I came across her flying foxes...she has cards available too.

Birds in my yard :: Mother's Day 2020

5/11/2020

Stellar's Jay

Spotted Towhee

This year we have spunky Bewick's Wrens nesting in the side of our garden shed (they totally ignored the birdhouses we have installed for them), a reclusive pair of Spotted Towhees nesting in the hedgerow underbrush, and some riotous Stellar Jays have built their nest in a neighbor's conifer. We are enjoying getting to know these three bird couples. It's been fun to observe their quirky personalities and how they interact with all the other songbirds who visit throughout the day.

Since I recently donated my cameras and lenses to Peter Pearsall, wildlife photographer, I was compelled to go looking for images of these avian parents. I am very pleased to have discovered Whatbird.com. It is a nice compliment to my favorite site :the Cornell Lab's All About Birds.

Bewick's Wren

A group of towhees are collectively known as a "tangle" and a "teapot" of towhees.
A group of wrens may be called a "chime", "flight", "flock", and "herd" of wrens.
A group of jays is a "band", "cast", "party", and "scold" of jays.

Great Backyard Bird Count 2020

2/14/2020

Valentine's Day Bird Count began with two black-capped chickadees at my feeder.
Join me in getting out and counting birds this weekend?
Cornell Lab of Ornithology and E-bird make it easy!

Black-Masked Sapsucker

1/6/2020

Two new birds to end my year: an unusually marked sapsucker and a Belted Kingfisher.
We spotted these on Christmas Eve, near Duck Pond at the northern end of the Arboretum.

It was a handy coincidence that Union Bay Watch was on hand to take photos, and then to do a bit of research. According to Larry:
"It seems to me that this 2019 bird is most likely a hybrid between a Red-breasted and a Red-naped Sapsucker. However, the black mask surrounding the eye is rather puzzling. None of the four species of sapsuckers in North America have such a complete mask of black around the eyes. Three of the four have a black eye stripe running between white highlights, similar to the Red-naped Sapsucker. The Red-breasted Sapsucker is the exception. This 2019 bird appears to be a unique individual. The black mask around the eye appears to be personal variation. Maybe this is how a new species begins. If this bird's unique DNA is passed on maybe someday its progeny will form another species. They might even be called, Black-masked Sapsuckers."

How cool is that?
Happy Bird Year 2020!

Glad Tidings to You

12/4/2019

this lovely card was created by Artist Gennine D. Zlatkis
geninnesart.com

*** I may have neglected my blog this year, but not my bird friends! ***
Project FeedWatch started in November and I have once again purchased a winter's supply of chili pepper suet. If you enjoy feeding the birds, but not the challenge of outsmarting squirrels, you will be delighted to find out that birds have evolved to eat chili pepper seeds and they are a harmless deterrent to suet-loving squirrels.

Project FeederWatch
100 common feeder birds have been cross-referenced on what they like to eat and where they like to eat it; explore your region to see what you might be able to attract to your feeder this winter:
Common Feeder Birds