I had a brief time outdoors with the yard full of birds on the afternoon of November 15, 2022.  Unfortunately the sun was shining so I had rather poor photographic conditions, but I haven’t yet mastered the art of controlling bird behavior and the weather.  

As is often my habit, I woke before 1am and by about 2am I was out of bed and on my computer writing.  I resolved to create a post documenting the NINE species of sparrows we have had in the yard this year and did most of the writing for the post in the wee hours of the morning.  

By the middle of the afternoon I decided to go outside and explore opportunities for birding photography.  As I settled into my chair my attention was drawn to a sparrow whose behavior didn’t match either the House sparrows or the Golden-crowned sparrows that were the main occupants of the yard.  I was attempting to obtain a photo of the bird when it abruptly flew past me in a manner that told me it was leaving the yard.  Just before it flew I glimpsed, and managed a single partial photograph of the bird, and realized it was a White-throated sparrow, perhaps our second rarest sparrow visitor.  What a coincidence!  So here is the only photo of the bird I obtained… 

During my time in the yard I had multiple visits from Golden-crowned kinglets…

Multiple visits from a pair of Northern flickers…this one a male…

Two visits from a large group of Bushtits (another male)… 

A rather rare photographic session with a Red-breasted nuthatch… 

A couple of visits from Ruby-crowned kinglets… 

And a visit from a female Varied thrush… 

Finally, I’ll leave you with this photo of a male Golden-crowned kinglet bathing in the watercourse… 

On November 12 , 2022, I decided to spend a little camera time in the yard when I spied a male Varied thrush drinking at the base of the watercourse. After organizing my camera and clothing I checked again before going outside. A female Varied thrush was now in the exact spot where the male had been. I tried to unobtrusively slip outside but the female flushed and left the yard. Over the next couple of hours I had four more return visits from thrushes, but they were very shy and, although expressing interest, wouldn’t descend to the watercourse. The sun was shining brightly but the yard was in shadow so I was unable to obtain quality photos. (Birding photography is better on overcast days for a variety of reasons.) 

As soon as I settled outside I saw three Golden-crowned kinglets in the vicinity, including the watercourse. By the time I got organized the three kinglets had left, but later I had a visit from two and still later I had a visit from one. 

Other noteworthy birds in the yard… a Song sparrow, a male Downy woodpecker, several Golden-crowned sparrows, approximately 17-18 California quail and just after I left the yard, a flock of Bushtits. 

A male House finch…

An adorable Chestnut-backed chickadee which provided me with several poses!

On the evening of November 7, 2022, we found out from neighbors that they had a light dusting of snow on the ground. At our house, closer to the 49-degree water around Fidalgo Island, the temperature hovered just above freezing until after daylight the next morning. Our birdbaths finally froze but not the watercourse. We had hoards of visiting American robins which arrived for our running water. And they weren’t just drinking the water… many were bathing in it!

Among the robins was this leucistic American robin, which showed up at least twice. On its first visit I was photographing it through a window but I was desperate enough for a good photo that I finally went outside and sat in the cold wind for about an hour to obtain good photos. (Somebody owes me one!)

Along with the robins were two Varied thrushes (a male and male and female), only our second visit to the yard by this species this year. We also had two Golden-crowned kinglets visit.  

Just to round out this post, a female House sparrow…

and FREE for the asking, an Eastern Gray squirrel.

We had another of our early fall windstorms on October 27, 2022. In the late morning I looked outside and saw about 20 American robins around the yard, most interested in one of our water features. I was monitoring activity to see if a Varied thrush might be mixed in with the robins but saw none.

We have a small stone birdbath around which 5-6 robins congregated. One of the robins in the middle of the bath was especially aggressive… here you see a photo of it threatening another robin which is preening.

As I gazed at the activity in the yard my attention was drawn towards a nondescript bird whose behavior indicated it was probably a warbler, and after watching it for a few minutes I decided it was probably a juvenile Yellow-rumped warbler. I went outside with my camera and managed to take many photos of the bird thanks to our various staging objects. Here are some of the photos…

My yard birding on Saturday, October 15, 2022, began about mid-morning when I returned from breakfast and counted at least nine Golden-crowned sparrows in the yard, probably a new record!  There were no other species of interest so I took a break. 

Around 1pm I looked out the window and saw a Golden-crowned kinglet around the watercourse so I headed back outside with my camera. Before long we had at least three in the yard and I suspected at least one more. I was able to take many photos of the birds. 

During the kinglets’ incursion a Pacific wren entered the yard and eventually ended up traveling along the side of the watercourse. I switched my attention to it since photos of the wren are harder to come by. 

Shortly after the Golden-crowned kinglets left a Ruby-crowned kinglet entered the yard, but I was only able to obtain a ‘record’ shot of it. I had a second visit about an hour later but fared even worse, getting no photo. 

About an hour later we had another visit from three Golden-crowned kinglets. On this visit all three discovered wet leaves on our madrone trees ( from my banishing squirrels from the yard) and they opted to take ‘leaf baths’ instead of visiting the watercourse. 

During my observations I saw the Spotted towhee with the crossed beak that I had photographed several days previously.  (no photo.)

We’ve had several visits by Anna’s hummingbirds visiting the yard, and most seem to be males. Even though there were a couple of intervening branches, I liked this photo…

During most of this time I was kept company by one of our Townsend’ chipmunks which has yet to hibernate for the winter. It profits from sunflower seeds broadcast for the birds and its own special supply of diced peanuts. 

I was just getting ready to give it up about mid-afternoon when I thought I saw a woodpecker fly to one or our medium-sized fir trees in the yard. It wasn’t of much interest (Downy woodpeckers are common in the yard and this bird was not within acceptable photographic range)… when I noticed it had a dark red head!  This was a Red-breasted sapsucker, a very rare yard visitor!  I tried to take some photos of the bird but it was mostly hidden by the trunk of the tree. It flew after a minute or so, and unfortunately, instead of flying further into the yard it flew to the woods to the south of us.