Yellow-bellied Sapsucker Sighting Continues

Yesterday was a rare clear dry day this winter, so I was able to enjoy some cool (literally with the temperature in the 50s) back porch time in the sunshine.  Right away, I heard then saw an old friend up in a pine tree. Pecking away was this Yellow-bellied Sapsucker. This is one of my favorite bird names. 

For years a Sapsucker, maybe this same one, has frequented my backyard trees. Must be some tasty treats he’s able to find in the wood. 

Notice above the row of three holes on the right side of the tree. 

This is a male Yellow-bellied Sapsucker. Note the red throat under the bill. The female’s throat is white. 

The bird’s coloring blends so well with tree bark. A defense feature I would think, making it hard for predators to spot. 

Great to see you, hear you and photograph you again old friend! 

Winter Birding Highlighted by Oriole Visits

He’s a long way from Maryland! But truth be told, Baltimore Orioles have become common sights in the Southeast. 

A neighbor who lives only several hundred yards from me (as the Crow flies) has been attracting them to his backyard feeders for years. 

The key I learned from him is grape jelly. Orioles have a sweet tooth for jam. So I recently put out some jelly and sure enough the last several days one has come to my backyard. 

The Orioles also seem to like the seed food seen in this photo (taken through my kitchen window) but this one may have been trying to stay out the rain too.

Book Accolades- Thank You Resurrectionalium!

With the vast world of social media, anyone at any time may see a current or past posting whether it be on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, YouTube, or LinkedIn. 

Such an example happened during the weekend when I received a Facebook notice of a new comment. Wow, what a nice thing to read! Made my weekend for sure! 

I do not know this blogger from Ohio whose blog is called Resurrectionalium but his objective and complimentary commentary on my 2014 Magnolia Cemetery book “In the Arms of Angels” is greatly appreciated. Click the image to make it bigger and easier to read. 

New copies of this book and my others are available via my Amazon site or from me directly! Drop me an email for more information at birdseyeviewspublications@gmail.com. 

And thank you so much Resurrectionalium! 

A New Lease on Life!

I usually don't post about my personal life but the hip surgery I had on Jan. 11 was monumental for me and hopefully will mark a new lease on life. 

As project in one of my SC State University classes I'm asking the students to also post and speak about an important day in their lives. It will be interesting to see what the young people choose to feature.  They are to talk about the experience using their cell phone's voice memo app.  I did so to talk about my surgery. Here is why this day this week was so important to the rest of my life! 

Click here to listen to my two-minute talk about my surgery. 
(Music selection "Morning" is courtesy of the free music site Incompetech). I used Adobe Audition to mix the music with my voice. Then, to get the audio file on Blogger I uploaded it to Soundcloud. 

Hawk Twofer and Finally the Kingfisher Capture

 Having a small pond really close to our house is a great value added feature of where we have lived for (hard to believe) 25 years now. I was not a bird enthusiast when we moved here and the bug didn’t bite until 2008 at Magnolia Cemetery when a pair of Wood Storks captured my fancy and camera. I tell that story in my 2011 book, “The Birds of Magnolia Cemetery: Charleston’s Secret Bird Sanctuary.” One of my Wood Stork pictures graces the cover of that coffee table book published in 2011. 

Anyway back to the backyard pond. It was helped expand my bird identification count, as this ecosystem attracts and perpetuates its own food chain. 

Just yesterday while I was raking leaves I saw a hawk fly by in the direction of the pond. When I walked over for a better view I could see the bird had landed in a nearby tree.

Christmas Visit a Birder’s Delight!

 I wasn’t sure if the gate would be open Christmas Day at Magnolia Cemetery but I was glad it was! Inside was an amazing variety of birds in the two ponds, especially the front one near the entrance. 

These are the most birds I’ve seen here in some time. And I’ve been coming here fairly regularly for about 12 years.

I’ve written two books about this grand 19th-century necropolis, the first one titled “The Birds of Magnolia Cemetery- Charleston’s Secret Bird Sanctuary” in 2011. 

Bluebird House Hunting?

 

I observed this Eastern Bluebird checking out two of my backyard birdhouses. Both seem to be vacant now so this male Bluebird may be seeking to claim one for the winter or even looking ahead to the spring for birthing babies time. 

Downtown Delight- The Dewberry Hotel

 

It should be on the shortlist of most successful repurposed buildings in Charleston’s long history. 

In this photo the Dewberry Hotel at 334 Meeting St. doesn’t look too differently from the staid federal government building that stood tall by Marion Square for decades. 

Closed back in the 1990s for asbestos problems the structure was empty and dormant for nearly 20 years. 

But several years ago hoteliers took over and transformed the site into a swanky and pricey five-star place of comfort and class. 

Rooms regularly go for more than $400 a night. What guests receive at such cost are first-rate accommodations and service in a primo downtown location. 

Hermit Thrush- What’s in a Name?

 New Sightings! 

The Hermit Thrush hasn’t been a chance visitor to my backyard feeders. I’ve spotted one a few times since my initial posting a few weeks ago. 

I like these three photographs I took the other day. 

I checked a really old edition of “Birds of America” that was given to me to try to find more insights into this melodious bird with the curious name. The book is from 1936, if I’m correctly reading the copyright date on an early page. The first copyright was in 1917. Wow, online a copy of this book/my book is selling for $172.50.  

Cooper’s Hawk on the Stalk

 

A stranger came to town yesterday. This Cooper’s Hawk made a rather noisy appearance late in the afternoon as I was sitting on the back porch. 

I looked up after hearing a noise above me in a nearby tree. The hawk appeared to slam into the tree. It may have been after a squirrel or small bird up there. 

It then proceeded to perch on a branch for several minutes. I was able to take a number of photographs from my Adirondack chair. 

I was lucky to have my Canon DSLR at hand. I was back there reading but also listening for the Belted Kingfisher that I’ve heard for weeks around the pond a short distance away.