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Winter Waiting

These days it’s so cold out I have to really bundle up just to fill the feeders, but even those little five-minute trips have some interesting sightings. Today I saw a Mourning Dove, which isn’t very common in my yard. I’ve also seen lots of Northern Cardinals at the feeders, and yesterday I found a flock of twenty House Sparrows out my window, eating seeds off the ground. I even saw a Common Grackle, a species which has usually migrated by now, eating fallen seeds below my feeder this morning! And of course, there are always plenty of Black-capped Chickadees, which make me smile no matter how cold it is.

Black-capped Chickadees are the friendliest birds at the feeders, and tough for their size- they stick out the winter with me instead of heading south.

Winter can be pretty dull for a birder, since so many birds have gone south- only a few hardy species join us humans in toughing out the winter here. I haven’t seen any winter finches this year, which is a disappointment, but luckily or unluckily there’s still a lot of winter left for that to happen!

One of the only things for me to look forward to this winter, as far as birding goes, is the trip to Sax-Zim Bog I’m hoping to make. I went last year, and it was a blast! This year, I’m hoping to find some owls- the bog is known as a hotspot for owl sightings, but last year I didn’t see a single one. I only wish I could visit during the annual Winter Bird Festival, which is canceled this year due to COVID-19. Still, I’m really excited just to be there and hopefully rack up some new species! In the meantime, I’ve been lurking on their website, which is awesome and even includes some video birding trips for those of us who can’t wait to visit.

I saw this Canada Jay at Sax-Zim Bog last year. It was such an amazing experience!

So until that happens, I’ll be filling the feeders and watching out the window- got to save up all the warmth I can before I brave a day in the cold!

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A Frosty Day

This morning, I looked out the window and saw that a beautiful frost had descended over my yard! Days like this have always been among my favorite parts of winter – not counting the part where it ends!

This Northern Flicker obviously feels the same way I do about winter! I call him Fluff because when it gets really cold, I often see him on a tree trunk, so fluffed up he looks like a ball of feathers.

Winter blues aside, I couldn’t wait to go out and see what birds I could find and photograph against that gorgeous, glittery backdrop! As soon as I could, I dashed outside with my camera.

A close-up of some sumac berries I found, covered with frost.

It was so quiet out there, and everything was white. Tiny flakes of ice were floating in the wind as if it were snowing, even though the sky was perfectly clear and an airy blue. The lighting was excellent for photography, especially compared to how cloudy and grey everything normally is during the winter. I didn’t see many birds, but I could hear perfectly whenever one called, because it was so quiet and muffled by the snow. It was too cold to stay out for too long, but it was amazing to see my yard transformed into this little wonderland, literally overnight! Here’s what I found:

A male Ring-Necked Pheasant that’s been hanging around for a few weeks. This time, he was perched in a crab-apple tree, but flew away before I could get close enough for pictures. Failed to photograph.

An unidentified white/light grey raptor I couldn’t identify (and neither could Audubon Bird ID), soaring overhead. Perhaps a goshawk? Feel free to comment if you have an idea what it could be, I could use some help! Failed to photograph.

A few chickadees. Got one or two photographs, but no winners.

Four Northern Cardinals, three males and a female. Very active and zipping around chasing each other for the most part. Got mostly poor photographs.

Female Northern Cardinal in an icy tree.

A Northern Flicker, zipping past my head. Failed to photograph.

Unknown woodpecker species. Failed to photograph.

A male White-breasted Nuthatch braving the cold to search for lunch on a tree.

White-breasted Nuthatch taking on the frosty day.

Okay, so not very interesting. But still, it was worth the cold just to get out and see all of the beautiful trees and plants, fluffed up with frost! I’m happy that I was able to go out and see it before it all melted, which had happened by ten o’clock. Whether the birds liked it or not, I couldn’t tell. They certainly appreciated me filling the feeders first, though!

Frosty branches give the same old trees that you see every day a magical touch.

In conclusion, a beautiful day to help me enjoy winter while it lasts! I’m still looking forward immensely to springtime, though. Thanks for reading!

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Enjoying Winter Birds

Welcome to the debut post of this blog! I hope to continue it for many years as I expand my birding skills and experience all sorts of new things in the pursuit of birds! I’m Sydney, the MN Birdwatcher herself! Welcome to my brand-new blog abut my adventures in birding here in central Minnesota – I can’t wait to share them with you!

House Finches, though not native to the eastern US, are a common bird in Minnesota.

My yard certainly doesn’t look like a very interesting place to go birding right now; outside my window there’s snow, ice, and not much else. But my feeders have a steady stream of common birds a lot of birdwatchers might be tempted to ignore- dozens of Black-capped Chickadees; foraging House Sparrows; the occasional flock of American Goldfinches, colorful Northern Cardinals, or American Tree Sparrows – it can seem dull at first glance, but when I have the patience to sit, wait, and observe what there is, I remember how fascinating the winter residents of my yard are. Though they aren’t as flashy or colorful as the spring migrants or summer nesters we all remember so fondly around this time of year (forgetting, remarkably, about the rain, heat, bugs, and whatever else tries to prevent us from going out and birding for most of the year), I love my winter birds!

American Robins may be associated with the arrival of spring, but some may stay up north all winter, if they can find enough food.

For example, whenever I come out to fill the feeders, a flock of chickadees will start to make noise around their favorite feeder, and one or two will remain while I fill it. When I’m done, the rest of the chickadees will all swoop in as soon as I’m a safe distance away, and dig in!


And that’s just one example of the wonderful birds I share my yard with, even in winter. I’ve also been seeing a Brown Creeper (a cute brown bird that climbs around on tree trunks, like a nuthatch – I recommend looking it up online if you’ve never seen one) on the trees in my yard for the past few days, which is great because not only do I love watching them, I also didn’t know until then they even lived here during the winter. I also saw a pair of Yellow-shafted Flickers (my favorite woodpecker!) eating hackberries from a tree in my backyard yesterday. It seems like all sorts of birds love those – I’ve seen cardinals, robins, and Cedar Waxwings, as well as Downy, Hairy, Red-bellied, and even Pileated woodpeckers eating them in the past. I’m happy my yard can be a safe home for so many amazing birds, summer and winter!

I occasionally see huge Pileated Woodpeckers, like this hungry female, snacking on hackberries in my backyard alongside more regular visitors.

Thanks for reading! I’m so excited to continue sharing stories from my backyard and things I’ve learned well into the future!