Feeding the Backyard Birds

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I enjoy feeding my back yard birds and keep a feeder filled with seeds close to my butterfly garden. It’s fun to see how the birds in the yard change with the seasons. During the warm months I keep three hummingbird feeders filled with nectar and grow flowers that attract them. I enjoy sitting and watching the birds and trying to capture them with my camera.

In Fall and Winter birds like Carolina Chickadees, Tufted Titmouse, House Finches, and Northern Cardinals show up frequently. All of these birds can also be seen at various times during the rest of the year. The pair of Northern Cardinals in the header photo were perched in a tree near the bird feeder this week. They like to hang around waiting for seeds to fall to the ground for an easy meal.

Tufted Titmouse
Carolina Chickadee
House Finch

I start seeing a change in the birds in the spring when the weather starts warming up. The hummingbird feeders go up and I anxiously await the first Ruby Throated Hummingbird. Spring also brings the Painted Buntings to the yard. Both the hummers and the buntings come around frequently all spring and summer.

Male Ruby Throated Hummingbird
Male Painted Bunting
Female Painted Bunting
Pair of Painted Buntings

This post was inspired by John Steiner’s Lens-Artists challenge Change

and by Terri’s Sunday Stills Challenge Are you a Bird Feeder? Her post reminds us that February is National Bird Feeding Month.

32 thoughts on “Feeding the Backyard Birds”

  2. I love feeding the birds. I feed them all winter, but once the weather gets warmer I let them on their own. I have never seen a Painted Bunting. Such a beautiful bird! We get Cardinals, red finch and sparrows in the winter. In warmer weather, I see gold finch – another favorite. Watching the birds is a joy in life!

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  5. Pingback: Sunday Stills: Are You a #Bird Feeder? – Second Wind Leisure Perspectives

    1. Thank you Terri. These were taken with a Sony A550 with a 400 mm lens. The cardinals are fun to watch. They are too big to get through the wire cage to the seeds but they have learned if they hang around around or under the feeder they can find fallen seeds.

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  10. We love feeding the birds! You have shared gorgeous pictures of your fine feathered friends. Nicely done!
    I have never seen a Painted Bunting… it’s a beautiful creature.
    Have a lovely week ahead Beth.

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    1. Pattie, we are very lucky that the painted buntings nest in the area. It’s always a treat when they come to the feeder. I’ve seen the males chase off other birds so the female can feed. They should start coming around again in a couple of months.

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  13. I love seeing the pictures of your resident birds! We have these same birds in our yard and I enjoy seeing them around and hearing their cheerful songs except for the hummers! A great post Beth!

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  14. We love the birds! Lucky you both hummingbirds and buntings in summer! We’ve only seen a couple of painted buntings this winter. They don’t stay very long. And we’ve only seen a hummingbird a couple of times ever in this area. In California they were all over the place every day. On the great side though is that we have lots of sandhill cranes, wild turkeys, and the usual birds at the feeder year round. And the purple martins have returned – our favorite! They will be here until July and then head back to Brazil.

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    1. Thanks Pam! We don’t get sandhill cranes or wild turkeys around here but we get our share of wood storks in the ponds. Our buntings must go where you live in the winter. They nest in the wax myrtles all around here. The hummingbirds are really entertaining when they start fighting over who gets to drink at the feeder.

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