fall feathered friends

As the weather continues to cool down, I have been noticing a flurry of activity in our big backyard. Robins and starlings drink and splash while house sparrows and finches dart in and out to sneak a sip from our birdbath. The blue jays are repeatedly driven away while the cardinals wait patiently. Squirrels stuff their cheeks at the bird feeder while dark-eyed juncos flit about the yard.

This morning, however, we woke up to a silent backyard because, as we soon saw, there was a hawk surveying the feeders and birdbath from a cedar tree. He was being carefully watched by a brave squirrel, but there was not another bird in sight! I wasn't able to get a good picture (something I really need to work on) but after some careful observation and consulting a few different bird identification resources, I'm pretty sure that what we saw was an immature Cooper's Hawk. The iris was definitely yellow; the breast had reddish-brown and white striped feathers, and the belly was white, which is something that distinguishes immature Cooper's Hawks from immature Sharp-shinned Hawks. I was able to see that the feathers under the wings were boldly striped, but never got a chance to see its tail, back, or flight. It may have been a Broad-winged hawk, but now that it's gone, and without a clear photograph, I will never know for sure...

Some birds are just so difficult to identify. But, I'm learning. My husband surprised me with an early Christmas present last week and, although I've missed the beginning of the season, I am also looking forward to receiving a Project FeederWatch Research Kit by Christmas. In addition to this being a fun hobby for me, there are so many great ideas for incorporating this into our homeschooling. The kids already enjoy watching the birds, and helping me clean and fill the feeders and birdbath. I was so happy that Teresa asked us for a hummingbird feeder for her birthday this year. She was so sad when we took it down at the beginning of October, but the return of some of the birds that we didn't see very much of this summer (the bright red cardinals, in particular) and the excitement of observing birds that we've never seen before has kept us all interested.