The RWBB are still around, and this morning, a really cool one visited. This bird has leucism, a genetic mutation that affects the pigmentation in the feathers. It looks different in every individual affected bird. This one is cool with the star burst on the head and the white beak tip. #birds

It sounded like spring today. A whole flock of Redwinged Blackbirds stopped by the feeders. These guys are especially fun right now because they have various cool looks, depending on their age. I love the immature males especially (first pic). Of course there was also some posturing going on. #birds

#Squirrels are ever-present around here, cleaning up under feeders and helping to plant sunflowers in the spring. There are different variations roaming around - Eastern Gray (black and regular), Red, Fox and Flying, and I noticed some interesting

It has been so quiet lately that I am excited about any bird that is not a MoDo or Blue Jay right now. The Nuthatches made themselves rare in late spring and summer, taking care of their broods. Now they are slowly returning, caching food for colder times and in between sampling what is out there,

November is here, and I hope it will cool down soon. In the meantime, I am thoroughly enjoying the sunshine and still some surprise visitors, like this fellow, a Fox Sparrow. I only see them during migration times and very rarely. I love the native sparrows, they are all so beautiful. #birds

Happy Halloween 🎃 day! I hope you are having a lovely day, and I wanted to send a quick reminder that my calendars are on sale from today until Election day on Tuesday. You can get them here or by clicking on a photo on my website, which is my name and com at the end. #birds

Ostdrossel

Ostdrossel calendars. Find me on tumblr, Patreon, Threads, Mastodon, Bluesky, FB, Insta and YouTube. Website: ostdrossel.com.

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The Humbirdy feeder cam came out in another color, a pretty sage green, and I got to test this one as well. I decided to experiment a bit and took the camera out and mounted it near the ground. The housing has threads on the back, which makes it easy to mount. #birds

Like every fall, I mounted one of the trailcams (one of the Maxdones) on the chestnut tree again. Traffic is slow but some have explored the offerings, and it is so nice to see the Downy Woodpeckers again. In the past, Flying Squirrels and also owls have been seen here. #nature

There is nothing much going on but a lovely White-throated Sparrow came, the Skunk-Opossum saga continues and surprise deer visited. I also did get lucky with my concert tickets 🙂 #nature #birds

The Juncos are back for good now, and it is nice to see them in the yard again. This ground spot is a good meeting place during the day but also at night. Baby Opossum has a feud with the skunk, and they are waylaying each other every night 😆 Cardi man is an ejaculatory prayer (= Stoßgebet!)

The calendars for 2027 are live in my shop now (link below). There are three formats, and the wall calendar comes in different sizes. Personally, I think the wall calendar (the rectangle) makes the photos look the best. Choose your fighter, first sale is from Halloween to Election day! #birds

Quick, everybody pose in front of the Serviceberry! I can only recommend every birdlover to plant one. It is pretty in almost every season, blooming white in spring, getting red berries in summer and turning orange in fall. More pics in the Patreon. #birds

I think I got some of the Orionid meteor shower last night. I slowed the clip down where some occur (some is also aircraft, I think). Battery died before the day broke. #timelapse

Pretty solid night of migration underway across the eastern U.S. tonight. #birds #fall #migration #LightsOutForBirds

Birds are still migrating through, and today, a merry group of Grackles, RWBB, Cowbirds and Starlings visited and used the amenities. Starlings love to bath, no matter what the temperature, and they leave a mess. I would love to hear if there is an explanation for their love of water.

I have also continued to take more photos by the tub. There hasn't been as much activity as I hoped but the George Costanza squirrel and the pissed off chippie made me lol

Surprise guest of the day was a Redwinged Blackbird, and it is so nice to finally see some more woodpecker action. Even a Downy came. These guys all hang around but they have not come to cameras or feeders in the last couple of weeks because nature is full of food for them.

It's always funny to see their reactions when something gets changed. Skelly is out and about, helping to feed the birds 💀 (This is the Humbirdy feeder cam again.) #birds

A fun fall weekend is coming to an end. The sun was shining, and bird activity is slowly picking up a bit. I like this harsher light with the colorful leaves in the background, it makes the birds pop. Soaking in every sun ray before the permacloud arrives 🙂 #birds

The weather was gorgeous today, and I did not have pressing deadlines, so I planted some more native flower seeds and worked on a furniture refinish I have been playing with. I saw more Juncos, the Carolina Wren, and a Grack! (The water is murky from Black Walnut leaves and got replenished.) #birds

Happy to report that the Juncos have made it here today. I felt like I heard them all week but never spotted one. There was also a Carolina Wren, which I see rarely, and at night, it's the opossum sibling show right now. These were taken with the FlexCam. I did put my thick downy comforter in today,

Someone asked if the tub will be in the calendar, so I experimented a bit today. We will see if with these unusually warm temperatures the #birds will show up though, it is still super slooow. It feels weird to have the leaves changing but still being out there at almost 90 degrees in October 😐️

When I saw this silly little tub at the thrift store this weekend, I had to get it 😆 These are the first visitors, I hope one of them will also take a bath. For whatever reason birds really seem to enjoy individual offerings of water as well as food. I guess they cut out competition a bit. #birds

I took some much needed time off and spent this weekend with family in the beauty of northern Michigan. The night sky was amazingly dark and I put a camera out. My ISO was too low, the angle is a bit off and there is some light pollution for a bit but you can still tell how awe-inspiring it was.

New feeders take their time, even more so right now, but I am finally seeing a bit more action and variety, here at the Humbirdy feeder, including kissies from a Redbellied 😄. I've heard some Grackles and RWBB this week, and this morning, one of them visited there too. Come good into the weekend!

The other day I found some Cedar berries and added them to the crooked tree. Another fruitless attempt to get the elusive Cedar Waxwings in front of the lens 😆 I am holding out hope and in the meantime the berries are still getting devoured by some other connoisseurs. #birds

TW *Spider * A couple of days ago, I spotted this big spider in the flower patch and put a camera there because I was curious what it does. This is an orb weaver, but I am not entirely sure of the kind. Every night, it destroys the web and makes a new one. Daytime is too windy for good footage.

In the last couple of days I heard this one but had not seen him on camera - the White-throated Sparrow. I only see these guys during migration times. They are native sparrows and love to forage on the ground by jumping back and forth like the Juncos. And the Titmouse is sticking around! #birds

Fat Bear Week may be over but I have another contestant here 😆 #nature

A super nice surprise yesterday - a Tufted Titmouse visited! These guys used to be regulars in my yard but for whatever reason, I have not seen one in, I would almost say, a year. I hope that this means they may return. I am thinking about making the calendar too. Is there any interest? #birds