Monday, January 12, 2009

Feeding the Finches

With all the snow on the ground, the birds have had slim pickin's lately, so we purchased a big bag of wild bird seed to supplement their lean diet. We've had lots of Juncos, Chickadees, Quail, and even some Wild turkeys that stop by each day. But the day we put out the seed was the first day the House Finches appeared. How did they know?



This male House Finch sits near the top of our Blue Spruce Christmas tree, which we left in the stand and placed outdoors, near our front door. I threw bird seed on and around it, and was soon rewarded with many birds to watch. I love the House Finches, both their temperament and that little touch of red that makes them so pretty.




This one is sampling a dish of birdseed....while completely ignoring the yummy Cherry suet treat just behind him, in the feeder.


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"Behold the birds of the air; for they sow not, nor do they reap, nor gather into barns. Yet your heavenly Father feeds them....." Matthew 6:26




Poor indeed is the garden in which birds find no homes.

~Abram L. Urban





17 comments:

Unknown said...

We normally have house finches, purple finches, and redpolls at our feeders in winter, and they all delight me to no end. They're a little burst of joyous colour (along with the blue jays, of course) and they seem so even tempered. Relatively speaking.

TYRA Hallsénius Lindhe said...

Hi Connie, lovely pictures, we have got those beautiful birds of your. We have got one colourful winter bird called Bullfinch (Pullhula p. pullhula) do you know it?

LOLove TYRA

Chris said...

Hi Connie- Great pictures! It's nice to see some red color against the snow. Our bird activity is low although I do spot a cardinal now and then.

Miranda Bell said...

Hi Connie - love your posting and the accompanying verses - how true they are... it looks as if your garden birds are as spoilt as they are here :-)

Roses and Lilacs said...

That's a wonderful photo of the house finch on the spruce branch. They are one of the most plentiful birds of our area.
Marnie

Connie said...

Tyra - I looked up an image of a Bullfinch, and no...we do not have them here. I wish we did...what a beautiful bird!

Anonymous said...

What a great shot!

Melissa said...

I love house finches - there is something pleasing about their less flashy colors - red but not a cardinal - I like it.

Catherine said...

Great photo! I am wishing we had feeders here, but we just toss out wheat for the quails.

joey said...

Your male House Finch looks quite pompous perched atop the spruce (probably knowing he is well cared for and had no worries as long as you're around :)

ChrisJ said...

Beautiful bird pictures. With all the birds we have round here I'm just not satisfied with my bird pictures. I think I need a better zoom lens. My cat and I love the birds. he is an indoor cat, so they are his TV entertainment.

Kylee Baumle said...

I totally agree with you about house finches! They're very pretty and they seem to be well-behaved at the feeders (unlike the blue jays!). Nice pictures of them!

Corner Gardener Sue said...

What fun bird pics! I like your verse and commentary, too. Thanks for the comment on my Skywatch post.

Anonymous said...

Nice photos Connie. It's so fun to feed and watch the birds. I had been doing that until a kestrel started visiting my yard and picking one off about every other day. I finally pulled the feeders in hopes of discouraging him and making him move on. We'll see if it works... Those little house finches are adorable.

O.I.M said...

hi connie. i love watching the birds, i just wish i was better at identifying them. even with the bird guides I get confused. I love that you put your christmas tree outside...i was just musing about old christmas trees on my blog and how nice it is that they can be enjoyed outdoors for a time after the holidays. enjoy the bird watching.
cheers.
irena

Jan said...

Hi Connie, Isn't it amazing how quickly the birds locate the food you put out? I put out a variety of seeds and in no time I have flocks of every kind of bird I can imagine. I have way too many sqirrels around here, though, so I have to put the seed in feeders and use baffles, etc. The squirrels gather round the base of the feeders and feast on what falls down:) Isn't it nice to have some birds come and visit in the middle of winter?!!

Iowa Gardening Woman said...

The house finch has such a lovely song!