Either we had a Chipping Sparrow nest nearby or I guess it could just be passing through because now we have a juvenile Chipping Sparrow on the deck! It just showed up a few days ago and may be gone already now.
We do have patches of woods nearby and our back yard is fairly large by urban standards (about 1/2 an acre), but Pileated woodpeckers are very large birds that seem to prefer more wooded, less urban areas.
A new observation at our backyard feeders. Red-bellied Woodpeckers had been gone from our backyard for a few months but one male recently returned to our feeders and is doing something unseen before – eating whole corn kernels off the deck!
Funny that I posted about some of the birds that show up bringing in fall every year and then I had a dream last night, and there was a Junco in our back yard ushering in fall!
There are official signs of fall and one of them is the arrival of the first Dark-eyed Junco! I thought I saw one a couple evenings ago but wasn’t sure.
With the fall coming, I’ve been tossing corn kernels on the back deck and the Blue Jays and Red-bellied Woodpeckers are taking full advantage!