The past few days have been sunny and quite a bit warmer giving some respite
from the bitterly cold we experienced earlier. Weather in the southeast is strange
as to how it can change so rapidly. Today the barometer is already at 60F early
in the morning, so different from the 10F reading at the beginning of this week.
We're not coddling the garden birds quite as much - no rows of seeds along the
porch railing in addition to filling feeders and suet holders, no buckets of hot water
being sloshed into the icy birdbaths several times a day.
They are managing fine, still singing in the bare fig tree and scuffling about in the
leaf mold...........and now and then I'm able to get some unexpected photos such as
these from a couple of days ago when of a pair of beautiful bluebirds arrived together
for a few fleeting moments in the back garden.
These birds are non-migrators in the Carolinas, feeding mostly on insects and fruit,
but also come to suet and seed feeders in winter months.
Interesting fact - a pair will have two broods of 4-5 a year and the young from
the first brood help raise the young of the second.
Eastern Bluebird: Sialia sialis
Easy to tell apart, the deeper blue of the male is somewhat faded in winter, and the
more grayish female only ever has touches of pale blue on tail and wings, both have rusty
red breasts and white bellies
To think this lovely bird was nearly eliminated from the Carolinas due to lack of
natural nesting cavities as trees were felled and farmland built upon. However, with
the aid of bird enthusiasts who put up thousands of bluebird boxes, they have made
a remarkable comeback - thank goodness!
"There's a bluebird on my shoulder" says the song, well not quite, but they do
frequent my garden and that makes me happy.
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