Winter Storms - Birder's Delight!

A little snow in the Ozarks is to be expected in our winters,

and we often feel cheated if we don't get at least one good snow.

But when the snow and ice hang on for days,
and the roads are quite impassable,
it's good to have something to brighten your days.

For me,
that's birdwatching!
(Male Cardinal)

Seeing the many birds and their mates come to my feeder gives me joy!
(Female Cardinal)

Whether they carry off the seeds,
(Male Goldfinch in winter colors)

...or sit under the feeder snacking on sunflower tidbits,
I find their presence and their actions most interesting!
(Dark-eyed junco)

The blue jays are not particularly fond of sunflower seeds,
but when they get hungry enough, they come screeching in,
loudly making their presence known.

The black-capped chickadees are regulars,
regardless of the weather.

The house finches are regular visitors, also,
but the downy woodpecker seems to prefer insects,
and is a more infrequent visitor.

The nuthatch is not usually in this position....

More commonly he scoots down the tree with head down.
I guess with the cold weather (13 degrees F this morning),
bugs are a bit hard to find!

The mourning dove appeared to have a wing caught
on a small peach tree limb.

She struggled awhile before breaking free.

I don't usually do two Joy4Today posts in a week...

I guess you can tell that I'm snowed in!

It's a little too cold to dig out a frozen rock to paint, though,

so I'll probably wait till next week to do another Rock4Today

where I feature the Names of God painted on Rocks!

Thanks for your visit!

If you like these bird posts,

you'd enjoy hopping on over to

Wild Bird Wednesday!

Snake skins as nest filler?

A few weeks ago as I cleaned out my blue bird house,

I was shocked to find a snake skin intertwined in an old nest.

Last year I had hoped for a blue bird to build its nest in my box,

but had never noticed any nesting going on.

Bluebirds had come and looked at it,

but I didn't think it had met with their qualifications.
If they raised babies there, I hadn't seen them!

So as I removed the old nest,

I wondered what bird had resided there last year.
AND...
What bird would use snake skins as their nesting material?!!!

So, yesterday I was surprised to see a pair of birds checking out the box.
It was the Nuthatches!

I wondered if they had been the tenants from last year.
Were they the ones who had used the snake skins in building their nest?
If so, is this a usual practice?
Was it good nesting material,
or did it keep other predators away?

The female went in and out of the box multiple times,
while the male scurried around the outside
appearing to check the surroundings.

When the female stayed inside the box for a prolonged period of time.
the impatient male poked his head in to check on her.

"Whatcha doing in there, honey?"
he seemed to be saying.
"Do you think this is the right place to build a nest?"

I'm not sure what her answer was,
but she looked pretty satisfied.
It remains to be seen if that's where they choose to raise their babies!

Because I am no expert,
seeing God's hand in nature reminds me of this verse from Luke 10:21,
, "O Father, Lord of heaven and earth, thank you for hiding these things from those who think themselves wise and clever, and for revealing them to the childlike. Yes, Father, it pleased you to do it this way."

...And this verse from Psalm 84:3:
"Even the sparrow finds a home, and the swallow builds her nest and raises her young at a place near your altar, O LORD of Heaven's Armies, my King and my God! "


To see the Name for God painted on Rocks for this week, click   HERE!