Wildlife Week

     This week was National Wildlife Week, and you bet I saw some! Was it mostly birds? Absolutely! 

    I had the chance to bird with the kiddo, bird with friends, and bird solo. I mostly birded close to home, but I'll toss in some Green-Wood from last weekend too. Because, why not!

I can't say I have ever seen flickers face off before, but there is a first time for everything!

At Green-Wood last weekend, the flickers were frisky.

Squabbling and even pinning each other down on their backs, giving the pinned bird some pokes with that powerful bill.

Jumping up and tussling with their feet trying to not be the bird pinned below.

And all done with much grace.

And plenty of phoebes to go around, that day. All hawking for insects.

When heading out, as I was with the kiddo, and thinking about getting her home to have lunch -- it appears that all us parents are thinking alike. This red tail hawk was carrying food (maybe a rat?), potentially for its own family!

Downy woodpecker at Dell Water.

Bonus bird, I love finding a field sparrow. They are so darn cute. Even though we passed through the Dell Water earlier, we enjoy circling back because the sights can change and do change!

Savoring those dark-eyed juncos before they head northward....

Last Wednesday, after dropping the kiddo off to daycare and having a late start to my work day, I met some friends at Marine Park Salt Marsh. Always delighted to see this female hooded merganser, who has been here for the last few months, living her best life.

I noticed flocks of red-winged blackbirds, starlings, and small sparrows taking off and moving in the same direction... And I saw a raptor dive into the grasses.
Soon and empty taloned Cooper's Hawk appeared and at a loss this time around.

On my way out, we enjoyed an interesting sight, as the tide lowered. A group of bunker were in the shallows and this female red-breasted merganser and the female hooded merganser were hunting, actively. Corraling fish toward the waters edges.
Normally these birds are divers, but with the water so shallow, they ducked their heads below and swam quickly at the surface, coming up from time to time with a prize.

Today, an overcast and cold day but it didn't stop the red-wing blackbirds from singing loudly, as they do.

Of interest was seeing that the one inactive nest platform has had osprey at it both days. There is no nest being built, but as many as two osprey at a time have visited it and with food.
Perhaps this long-standing, vacant platform has a future?

Hope everyone had had a chance to see some wildlife this week. But don't worry if you didn't, you can see and appreciate wildlife any week of the year (and you totally should!).