Friday, June 24, 2011

Summer Birds

These beauties have been visiting my feeders all summer long.  I actually have two nesting pair of Painted Buntings and many (many) lesser goldfinches.  I haven't been able to capture an image of the female bunting but I'll keep trying.  Just thought you might like a glimpse of these lovely creatures. 







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7 comments:

  1. Mark WillisJune 24, 2011 at 11:23 AM

    Much more colourful than any I get round here! Most of the ones I see are what we call "LBJs" (Little Brown Jobs). I suspect coloration goes with temperatures. Your area gets very hot, and your birds adopt really bright plumage, whereas our climate is cooler and most of our birds are fairly drab.

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  2. kelseyJune 24, 2011 at 6:49 PM

    Oh wow! Yes, your birds are much more colorful that what I have in my garden! I can't wait to show Kiley these photos! Thanks!

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  3. Toni - Signature GardensJune 25, 2011 at 5:20 PM

    Oh, my goodness! I'd be doing backflips if a painted bunting visited my garden!! How wonderful. So pretty.

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  4. Casa MariposaJune 26, 2011 at 8:49 AM

    I have to admit: I'm a bit envious of your painted buntings!! We have lots of goldfinches but ours look a little different. Howz about I swap ya four grackles for two painted buntings???

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  5. Pam/DiggingJune 26, 2011 at 10:04 PM

    How wonderful to have painted buntings nesting in your garden! Great capture of a camera-shy bird too.

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  6. DianeJune 27, 2011 at 1:53 PM

    Hi Mark...I think you may be right. Our climate is very tropical here and that may contribute to our colorful bird population. In any case, I love to watch them!

    Thanks Kelsey! We are blessed with many colorful, noisy but fun birds here in the hills. I bet your daughter will love this one!

    I know, Toni. The first one showed up about 4 years ago and I about jumped through the window when I first saw him! Of course, my hubby had no idea what I was so excited about! And the buntings have been coming back every year. This year I have at least two nesting pair; maybe three. They are lovely!

    Hi TS...How about I just send you a couple of painted buntings and you can keep the grackles ;-)

    Thanks, Pam. I've been trying for the past two summers to get a good picture of this beauty and success...finally!! And the day after this posted, I was able to snap a picture of the female. She's not as colorful but is just as beautiful!

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  7. PJ | Home and Garden DecorJuly 5, 2011 at 12:15 PM

    Hi Diane,
    it's been a few days since I visited your blog last time and I have to make up a lot of reading. ;)
    Although I have a fair variety of different birds around here, I have never seen any Painted Buntings around here in my garden. Neither I would have seen any around here in the neighborhood. My guess is, since they are a pretty shy bird, they prefer living a bit farther out in the country than coming into neighborhoods with lots of houses. They are such beautiful birds and I would be all excited if I ever spotted one around here.
    Best Wishes
    Paula Jo

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