My! How quiet it is in the garden on this bright and hot, late summer day. There seems to be no real activity going on in the backyard or around the feeders at the front of the house. However, that doesn’t mean to say that we are getting no birds at all. My hanging feeders are still attracting our regular summer visitors and delightful feathered friends at least for the moment, although at least one of them will be making its long migratory flight south in the next week or so. Of course, I am referring to the intriguing female Ruby Throated Hummingbird which doesn’t have a ruby throat, but sports a lovely white breasted one, as can be seen if she happens to hover right in front of you. She has been our summer resident for the past three or four months, delighting us with her presence both at the feeder and by perching in our nearby pine tree. She has been our stalwart representative for this year’s visiting Hummingbirds and will be missed when she disappears soon.
Our other delightful friend, or should I say friends, have been and still will be throughout the year, are the Woodpeckers, Nuthatches and the Goldfinches which will gradually lose their beautiful yellow plumage to adopt their duller winter one. The Hairy and Downy Woodpeckers will maintain their colours, so all is not lost for the foreseeable future when winter takes a hold once again! Until this takes place, we must enjoy them as they appear to us today, and take in their lovely colours whilst they are still residing with us here.
I haven’t ventured out to any of the local riverside settings to view any of the birds that spend their summers here whilst their fish and other food supplies are readily available and can be caught easily. It isn’t very long since the Osprey broods have exited their lofty perches alongside some of our highways, so I imagine that they can still be spotted hunting somewhere along the rivers as well as the long necked Blue Herons. It remains to be seen how our recent continuation of very hot weather will affect our visiting wildlife, but I hope that it isn’t detrimental to their survival, should it be very prolonged, and that they can adapt accordingly, and then migrate successfully afterwards. We, ourselves, cannot all do that so we have to remain content with what Mother Nature gives us, so please do so, but stay safe and well.
Cheers,
John Baldwin
