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More Fun Birds from Chinsegut Conservation Center

Posted Wednesday, February 10, 2021Tuesday, February 9, 2021 Jess YarnellPosted in Chinsegut

In my last post I wrote about seeing my lifer Purple Finch at the Chinsegut Conservation Center. I saw lots of other fun birds that morning, too. The feeders behind the nature center are certainly popular.

The Pine Warblers were everywhere! They were big fans of the suet feeder. They perched in the nearby tree to await their turns at the suet, giving me plenty of photo ops. I don’t get to photograph Pine Warblers very often, so watching them was a treat.

Chick-a-dee-dee-dee-dee! The cheerful calls of Carolina Chickadees filled the air. These little birds would hop to the feeders, grab a sunflower seed, and then take it away to eat. Getting them to stay still for a photo in a non-feeder location turned out to be a challenge…

Potato chip! Potato chip! There must have been 15-20 American Goldfinches in the trees that morning. Their cheerful calls kept me grinning as I watched them devour sunflower seeds and nyger from the sock feeder. A couple of them were starting to turn a brighter yellow as they begin their molt to their springtime breeding plumages.

The Tufted Titmice were the other feeder clowns. Like the chickadees, they darted in, grabbed a sunflower seed, and darted away to eat it. If you need practice on fast-focusing technique, try following these little guys around!

A Yellow-bellied Sapsucker flew in overhead. I watched as he pecked at the tree trunk, pulling out sap and insects for breakfast. Yum!

I can’t go to Chinsegut without looking for Red-headed Woodpeckers. It’s where I saw my lifer Red-headed Woodpecker years back on a special trip with my dad. They’re still there, hanging out high in the treetops. I wonder if they look down and wonder what all the silly people are doing, watching the feeders for Purple Finches.

I reluctantly said goodbye to the birds, hoping I’d get a chance to return and see a male Purple Finch. The calls of Eastern Bluebirds reminded me that there are plenty of trails to explore and enjoy at Chinsegut. The Pine Warblers urged me to return soon!

Lifer Purple Finch at Chinsegut Conservation Center

Posted Friday, February 5, 2021Sunday, January 31, 2021 Jess YarnellPosted in Chinsegut

Ever since I saw my first male House Finch, I’ve wanted to see a Purple Finch. The male Purple Finch is a deep purple-red and so pretty! Purple Finches don’t tend to visit Central Florida, so I haven’t had an opportunity to see one. But this year is an irruption year. When I saw eBird reports at Chinsegut in Brooksville, I immediately hopped in the car. I wasn’t disappointed!

Chinsegut is a great little conservation center tucked into a wildlife environmental area. I’d been there one before, when Dyeyo and I were on a quest to see Red-headed Woodpeckers. Behind the nature center, there’s a porch surrounded by bird feeders. The Purple Finch has been coming to the feeders for the past few weeks. I spotted her within a few minutes of arriving.

The eBird reports mentioned one female Purple Finch. A photo uploaded to eBird showed a male and female together on a feeder. I watched carefully for a male, but I didn’t see one. But I did get a surprise when not one, but three females came together to the feeder. Apparently Purple Finches are as good as their House Finch cousins at squabbling over feeder ports…

Then the House Finches joined the feeder party. They provided a fun contrast to the Purple Finches. Below is a pair of House finches. See how the House Finch female is a bit paler than the Purple Finch female?

A few minutes later, I had a pair of male House Finches on the feeder (below). The one on the right is the standard bright-red male. The one on the left is a yellow variant. The male House Finch’s color is dependent on his food during his molt periods. If he eats carotenoid-rich foods, he turns a darker red. Apparently the female prefers to mate with the brightest red male she can find!

If you want to tempt House Finches to your backyard feeders, just put out some black oil sunflower seed. You might even get lucky and get a visiting Purple Finch this winter!

Backyard Birding: Early January 2021

Posted Wednesday, February 3, 2021Wednesday, February 17, 2021 Jess Yarnell1 CommentPosted in Birds

As much as I enjoy going to places like Lake Apopka and Oakland Nature Preserve, sometimes there’s just no place like home. So I finally stopped one weekend in mid-January for some backyard birding. It’s been a while since I spent some quality time with my Painted Buntings and American Goldfinches!

This Gray Catbird was the first bird to greet me. He wasn’t entirely sure why a random person was sitting out near his feeder, but he wasn’t as skittish as some of the other birds. Apparently they’ve forgotten that I used to hang out with them all the time!

We have at least 6-8 Painted Buntings wintering in the backyard this year. The males especially seem to be visiting the feeders more often. This one perched briefly in the viburnum before darting out to grab some millet.

The weather forecast was for a cloudy morning, which is perfect for backyard birding because then I can point the camera in any direction. But it turned out to be a beautiful sunny morning, so I couldn’t aim the camera toward the goldfinch feeding area. I’ll have to try again to capture my cheerful little buddies, who are starting to turn yellow!

We’ve had a pair of Orange-crowned Warblers hanging out in the backyard this winter. They are very fond of my purple salvias and giant coral porter weed plants. I think the warblers are drinking the nectar from the flowers. It was a case of almost having too much lens…

Even though it was a morning in mid-January, there were definite signs of spring. I heard my first-of-spring Purple Martins that morning. They always return in January to kick off their breeding season. I got a quick shot as they flew high overhead. Welcome back, friends!