Nothing particularly exciting visits Atlanta, unless you count the storks migrating far overhead every year.
This guy hangs out a bit, but only to hunt my dogs or the feeder birds.
We have a dozen or more feeders scattered about, and I know everyone who visits except this guy. Junco is the closest I can come, but I’m open to suggestions.
It’s been a year or so since our resident hunter has brought us a bird, but I think she still thinks about it…
Eastern bluebird.
Oh yeah, I saw some of these while scouting a prairie dog town. I think they’re smaller than the dawgs themselves.
Man, I dunno. Coulda been the juvie, but it was more the kinda thing where when it landed, I just thought it was a female duck, with no sign of a crest. When it landed, is sorta stretched up in the water and erected this crest. Then it folded the crest again and flew off. Whole thing happened quite quickly, tho it was no more than 20 ’ in front of me.
Basically all I noted was small, mottled brown all over with no noticeable areas of different color. Saw it flying in, swimming, and taking off. No white breast. That crest thing was so weird that I thought I’d have no problem identifying it.
Also, I don’t know the lifecycle of mergansers, but wouldn’t most birds likely have their adult plumage this time of year n their way back north?
This is the kind of thing that drives me nuts about birding. I’ll think I got a realy good look including aome distinguishing characteristics, and then I’ll try to find it and turn up bupkus!
Neat birdwatching observation from today - geese and ducks walking on the frozen portion of the pond made a squeaking sound. At first i thought I was hearing vocalizations. Funny what you will see/hear if you just look/listen! 
Female mergansers are mottled year round. The female in that pic has her crest tucked back, when excited they fluff straight up. Try Google image search “female merganser”, then “female green” and “female wood duck”. The last two have tufts, not crests, but it’s worth a shot.
Probably the closest I’ve been able to identify yet. Surprised I did not not the folded back crest/tuft when it landed. Ducks drive me nuts, because they seem to be so good at continually moving to the opposite end of the body of water from where I am. :rolleyes:
Yep, diving ducks are notoriously more wary than dabblers. They rarely take handouts and tend to submarine when they catch a predator’s eyes on them. Awfully cute, though. Love mohawks! If you’re near water a lot, look for the Belted Kingfisher (total rockstar) in low hanging limbs or the Green heroncreeping along the shoreline. The Green Heron only puts its crest up when calling or showing off, but still a sexy bird!
A uncommon Townsends Solitaire has been hanging out here in Minneapolis for a month or so now. A Barrows Goldeneye also. I failed to find that one.
Been fortunate enough to see both. Used to have kingfishers up at a family place in Michigan. A useful call to recognize. Only saw green herons a couple of times - lurking in the shadows as tho up to no good!
About a year ago, I read one of the most interesting books I’ve ever enjoyed - about the Beaufort Scale. The underlying theme was the value in truly observing. So I decided to observe and record these 2 dumpy retention ponds in the industrial park where I work. Really cool how much I’ve been able to see/learn, and how much richer I feel it has made my life. I so prefer being able to see - for example - a Northern Shoveller, instead of simply “a duck.” Or worse, “a bird.”
Not much around here, a few Passenger Pigeons, a Carolina Parakeet last week…
I finally saw a red-Winged Blackbird today, so I imagine the robins will be arriving soon.
That’s funny, your username had me picturing a tethered red kite, but your probably meant an actual kite then?
We had a pair of breeding red kites near our holiday house, but I don’t think they ever managed to get babies going unfortunately.
ETA: Wait… August West, passenger pigeons are extinct aren’t they? 
ETA2: ooooow, so are Carolina Parakeets… :smack: yeah… never mind me…
Doh! Wrong link.
I knows a Bluebird when I sees it.
Trythis one. Dark gray above, cream underside.
Last year I had several indigo buntings at my feeders. Always a lot of cardinals - 8 at one time this winter. I have two sunflower feeders, one tube seed feeder and a suet feeder. Oh, and a thistle seed feeder that has been roundly ignored.
StG
Yep, the slate-colored morph of the dark-eyed junco. Nice birds, around here we get the Oregon coloration.
Last month MaxTheVool and I took a drive out to Los Banos, to the San Luis reserve, and saw lots of great birds, including tundra swans and about 5 great horned owls. It’s so neat to see wild owls, sunset birding is the best.
What’s the book,** Dinsdale**? I’d really like to check that out.
Watch this Green Heron use bread as bait on YouTube.
Hey, for the armchair birders, here is a short list of bird mnemonic sounds to make it easier to identify the usual suspects.
Titmouse: Peter, peter
Carolina Wren: teakettle, teakettle, teakettle
Chickadee: chickadee,chickadee or Heeeeyyy sweetie! or fee-bee, fee-bee
Northern Cardinal: what cheer, cheer, cheer
Goldfinch: potato chip!potato chip!
nuthatch: wicka wicka wicka
I can add more if anyone wants specific birds or wants to describe a call they’ve heard.
I haven’t seen these birds lately, but… there’s a swamp near here, and in the spring/summer, they have these amazing (and quite rare) birds. The first time my sister and I saw one, it looked like a large dark-coloured swallow, so I thought it was a Purple Martin. But when it got closer, I saw it was a bit too big to be a martin. It had a dark body and gray wings. I didn’t even know what sort of a bird it was! And I can usually at least tell what type of bird something is.
I looked in two bird books before I finally found out what the mystery bird was (it doesn’t help that I didn’t know what section of the book to look in.) It was a Black Tern.
I’ll dig up the title and get it to you. On the way home I picked up one of Kroodsma’s books/cds I have not read/heard before. Psyched. And just got back from walking the dog to the meadow where I swear I saw a female Northern Harrier- Marsh Hawk. From Peterson I don’t see what else it could have been. At least that’s my story and I’m sticking to it! ;D
Crazy owl-face on a light-bellied hawk-shaped body, flying low and parallel to the ground? You sure did!
Pretty sure those are burrowing owls.
Not quite time for the birds to return yet but I find the ravens highly entertaining. On warmer days you see them playing on the air currents off of buildings and scoping out what’s for dinner at the local grocery store or Wal-mart in the back of pick-ups. It is endlessly entertaining. I watched one pick through someone’s bags that they thoughtfully left in the bed, select a package of wrapped cheese slices, throw it down, unwrap the cling wrap and help themself.
I’ve also seen snowy and great horned owls out at our remote sites.
