Steve`s Country
For a smile as wide as a country sunrise
Solitude For Saturday. #6
Good morning and Happy Saturday to all of you! Hopefully it will still be morning by the time I post this anyway. The temperature this morning was a very nice 32F (0C) and it is now 36F (2C). I was out early putting the feeders up for the day and I stood out there for a while enjoying the beauty of early morning solitude. It is quiet at that time of day. It is just getting to be daylight.
Chipper the chickadee was here first this morning. He showed up not long after I went out. Chester was the second chickadee. They both land on the feeders next to me, grab their seeds and off they go back to their favorite bush to break open the breakfast. They are soon joined by several other chickadees, about a dozen altogether. Then the nuthatches showed up, but only two this morning. Neither was Ned, the friendliest nuthatch.
The male downy woodpecker was here early this morning too. He is getting braver all the time and will sit on the suet hanging next to me. This is solitude. Then the blue jays showed up, so I went inside and got some peanuts for them. There are 12 of them that come, representing 6 breeding pairs. Blue jays, and Canada jays, mate for life. Which means they stay with the same mate until their mate dies. Then they will take a new mate.
Many different species of birds are like that. Some of the blue jays, such as Baxter and Betty, will come down for the peanuts, even if I am standing close by. That is also solitude. The birds have mostly gone now, but they will come back later, after lunch. Although the blue jays will be here at lunch time. That is when I put out more peanuts for them.
Then they get another bunch of peanuts at around 3:30pm. That way it keeps them around all day. I want that so they can protect the smaller birds from the shrike. The shrike that was here earlier seems to have gone elsewhere, and that is fine with me. I do not like having that bird around. Neither do the blue jays.
With them it is hate at first sight. And they will chase that shrike far away. That part is good since it helps save the little birds. It is cloudy and we might get some showers this afternoon. I hope not, because it will freeze tonight and stay that way now, and that will mean a lot of ice and slippery snow. Sometimes warm weather this time of the year is not so good. Oh well. I hope you all have a wonderful Saturday and God bless!
Steve and Muffin.
©2022 Steve McLeod.
Steve`s Country 
Chipper the chickadee must have the early alarm 😂👍. Good job chickadee. Nuthatches must have hatched somewhere else maybe 🤔😜. So u have been giving peanuts 🥜😁👍 why shrike, poor birds must be a fan of yours, shouldn’t u be kind 😁😉 Happy Saturday and hope the temperature doesn’t go down ✨👍Happy Weekend Muffin & Steve
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I am beginning to think he sees me turn on the deck light in the morning when I go out, so he comes flying over quickly so he can be first in line and get the best seeds before things get too crowded. 🙄😂But I could be wrong. 🤔Have a great weekend Simon! 😊😻🌛☕☕😃
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They are smarter than we think. Maybe that could be right 😉✨ Have a nice Sunday Morning 🌅
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😃😻☕☕🌛
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Lovely pics Steve ?,Hope you have goodnight tonight ! 🙂😻😴
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Thank you so much Sharon! Me too! Have a good night also! 😊😻🌛😴😴
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Lovely photos, Steve! So shrike is a mean bird? 😸❄️ ☃️☕️☕️
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Thanks so much Eugenia! Yep, that Shrike is mean, a bird eating type bird. The size of a blue jay, it will eat 1 to 2 chickadees, or similar birds, each day during the winter. If hungry enough, they will even attack a blue jay. So blue jays hate them and will call other blue jays for help. It is quite something to watch them go after a shrike. 🤔😻☕☕🌛
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Thank you for the information, Steve. I had no idea. 🙂
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Most welcome Eugenia! 😊😺
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