ChillyBean, so glad you came on over to share your photos! Those Kestrels are so pretty and I love the Swallows and that Western Meadowlark!

We post all kinds of bird photos, Crows, Wrens, Sparrows, Bald Eagles, Cardinals, Hawks, etc. etc. ... even Parakeets and Parrots, and Ducks ... even if it doesn't fly, if it's considered a bird it's photo is welcome! Some of us have posted photos of birds of prey with their catch; it's difficult for some folks to view sometimes but it's all part of nature. So, please hang around and share pictures from where you live!

And, again

ChillyBean!!! By all means do not limit the # or type of photos you post. I love the Kestrels!

Chillybean! Enjoyed all the pictures and love your profile picture of the cute barn swallow with that heart shaped mouth! I've had barnswallows nesting under the porch too. The last time, even after they left the nest, they came back at night for several weeks.

Thank you all for your welcomes. Birds are what got me to pay more attention to what is in their world, plants, insects, etc.

This is another one that hangs around our property. We have several males. When I first saw one, I thought it was a mini Meadowlark, but it's a Dickcissel. This one entertained me when I hung around watching the Kestrel box. That was always limited by the amount of mosquito bites I could tolerate.

Chillybean.........I think you knew me as nanny _56 on DG!

Great photo of the kestrels! I see males often but just this morning I saw a female for the first time! I have seen lots of Meadowlark & Indigo Buntings this summer on the wires this summer.

LindaTX8 said:Me too, Claudia! Most mornings I'll find a hummer feeder empty. Raccoons just love anything sweet! Recently, they get into the fig tree and eat on the figs before I can bring them inside! These are Painted Buntings on the feeder:

Those are so pretty!

Chillybean, great to see you posting here, I remember you from DG.

Chillybean, that singing Dickcissel is beautiful!

nanny _56 - Is your name Phyllis?

beckygardener said:nanny _56 - Is your name Phyllis?

No I am Claudia.......I was nanny_56 on several other sites.

Claudia - Oh ... okay! I knew another nanny but couldn't remember the number suffix she used. Thanks for keeping me straight!

Oh forgot!! I was out working in the back daylily bed this afternoon. I also have see lilies out there. Anastasia & Black Beauty. The hummingbirds love them. Anyway, while I was out there this female hummer kept coming and feeding while paying no mind to me. That just made my day to be able to watch her up close. She was perching on the stamens (?) of Black Beauty and then sticking her tongue up into the flower!

Made all the sweat worth while.

That IS awesome!!!

plantladylin said:Chillybean, that singing Dickcissel is beautiful!

dickcissel looks like (s)he is singing opera.

Claudia said:Oh forgot!! I was out working in the back daylily bed this afternoon. I also have see lilies out there. Anastasia & Black Beauty. The hummingbirds love them. Anyway, while I was out there this female hummer kept coming and feeding while paying no mind to me. That just made my day to be able to watch her up close. She was perching on the stamens (?) of Black Beauty and then sticking her tongue up into the flower!

Made all the sweat worth while.

Claudia, I bet that was a sight to see! I've only noticed a hummer at a daylily once and there's just something about viewing that! My daylilies are done blooming with the awful heat we've been having; at 7:30 this evening I glanced at our weather station and it showed that it was still 90º outside!

These pictures were taken a little while ago, just before 8:00. I was out in the yard and spotted a hummer at a feeder; she flew off to the top of the Cypress tree and perched there surveying her surroundings before flying to another feeder.

The heat index here was 111 degrees today with a high humidity. Luckily it rained a little and brought the temp down. Ugh .....

I have some exciting news to share!!!

I just got an email from Nancy F. (a Bird Bander) who has come to my yard 3 times in 1 1/2 years to capture and band the Painted Buntings for the PBOT research study. She has banded a total of 561 Painted Buntings over the past couple of years here along the east coast of Florida. She has banded a total of 22 birds here in mine (and my neighbor's) yards.

She emailed me and sent me two photos taken by an observer in GA. She wrote,

"You will not believe this - one of your birds is our first resighting!! Its colors are Split, brown; silver, orange (11/10/14) was seen at Skidaway Island State Park in Georgia on June 25 and was likely still there on the 29th. The photos show him singing which may mean he is on territory!

Attached are 2 photos taken by Debbie, the observer.

I'm so thrilled!"

YES! I am thrilled, too! Isn't that something? 561 PB birds she banded in Florida and 1 of 22 birds banded in my yard was the 1st resighting! What's the odds?

I think I really need to play the lotto this week.

Becky, that is so cool! I'm really into the whole citizen-scientist thing and I'm glad you were able to participate in this project. It's great when we can all work toward understanding our environment so we can hopefully stop messing it up. Or at least minimize our impact and find out how to get along better with the other species on the planet. And how cool is it to know where your little bird ended up and what he's doing now? So neat!

Oh Becky, that is really wonderful!! I sure hope I can attract the PB's to my yard when we move to Sebastian! I miss my little Rainbow Birds!