I so love this time of year! The migrating birds are making their appearances at the feeders, the fields and forests. There are so many colours brightening up the landscape- we have the return of our beloved Rose-breasted Grosbeaks, Ruby-throated Hummingbirds, Baltimore Orioles, and as of last night- our male Indigo Bunting! He is just so beautiful!!




We also saw and heard multiple Bobolinks in a nearby field. They were singing and flying through the farmer's field. The males are very distinctive with their yellow hats. We were hoping for a closer view, but we'll take what we can get. This was our first sighting of the year of the Bobolink.




We now have at least two female Ruby-throated Hummingbirds visiting the feeder. It was nice to get some pictures of them. Usually one will chase the other away, but there was a truce proposed over dinner last night.



And as you know, one of my favourite birds is the Red-bellied Woodpecker. It was thrilling to see him back at the suet yesterday (and even checking out the orange, chasing off a Baltimore Oriole). At the suet, he would take large pieces of the suet and then fly off, so me thinks there are babies being fed. I heard two Red-bellies calling to each other this morning, so they are active in the area again. Yay!



The male House Wren has returned to the same nesting box they used last year. He has been perched on top of it and singing his very loud and long songs this morning.


Some discouraging news is that our Downy Woodpeckers are being harrassed by Starlings. The Downys have worked hard to excavate a nesting cavity in one of the dead trees out back and I suspect they have eggs and/or young. The Starling(s) have been around the nesting site and this is causing great upset for the Woodpeckers (who are the smallest woodpeckers in the area). The male and female are flying towards the Starlings and calling and clamouring. I feel so awful that the Downys are expending so much time and energy defending their nest from a non-native species. I hope the Starlings aren't able to access the nest and that the Downy parents are safe. We're keeping an eye on it and any tips to keep these Starlings at bay would be appreciated.



Our Tree Swallows are still busy with their nest. We are due to check it again soon to see if there has been any hatching.


We also spotted Barn Swallows flying in and out of the shed this morning. I peeked in and there's no nest yet, but it would be wonderful if they decided to nest in there! The door to the shed broke off (that's another story and it's not very exciting) so they have unlimited access to the space.