Bird ... and dog

I love seeing pileated woodpeckers. This one was grabbing a suet snack before the wind kicked up and the temperature plummeted.

And I love watching the Silly Dog enjoying a walk in fresh snow.

Today's tulips ...

 Tulipa  turkestanica

... and last week's red-winged blackbird.

Singing along with Seventh Day April

 A chickadee perches on the Therese Bugnet rosebush in the herb garden.

The spring soundtrack is playing loud and clear around here. The forecast is for a little snow next week, but today is supposed to warm and sunny. The birds have been active, from the chickadees that stay through the winter to the sweet-sounding red-winged blackbirds that appeared in recent weeks. This week I saw my first cardinal in the yard ever -- a female.

Take a look at what was going on this April 7.

Must be spring

The rose-breasted grosbeaks started showing up at the feeder a few days ago.

The first hummingbird of the season buzzed the daffodils and lungwort yesterday.

Lawn was mowed today.

Waxwings!

Here's a portion of the flock of waxwings perched in the trees earlier this week.

Suddenly, there they were in the aspen trees on the other side of the garage, clearly visible through the front window and the dining room windows. It was a flock of 50 or so waxwings. And so began the debate: were they cedar waxwings or Bohemian waxwings?

Some quick bird book and internet research later, we agreed they probably were Bohemian waxwings -- the rufous under the tail is what clinched it. In December, the Star Tribune reported that Bohemian waxwings were being sighted in large numbers across northern Minnesota. And the Crane Lake Nature Blog described a sighting of a flock of Bohemian and cedar waxwings together along Superior Street in Duluth in January. That blog also has some really nice photos showing the difference between the two waxwings. For good information about waxwings, check out the Cornell Lab of Ornithology's All About Birds.

We're just happy these feathered wanderers found their way to sillydoggarden.

Change on the wing

 Those tiny flecks against the sky are nighthawks, which really aren't hawks at all.

A small flock of nighthawks passed over sillydoggarden on Sunday. On their way to South America, the birds swooped and turned and counter-turned, all the while catching flying insects in their mouths. You can't tell by my miserable photo attempt, but they have white bands on their wings that are visible in flight. A change in season is imminent. Can the hummingbird migration be far behind?

The Star Tribune writes about nighthawks here. And John Latimer describes watching them as they move south.

A little sunshine on a cold, cloudy day

Tulipa dasystemon on the east side of the house.

There's a gusty wind off the lake this morning, and the forecast suggests we may see snow (!#!##) later today. Maybe a short tour of warm, soothing, joyful yellow in the garden will take the edge off. The color of the sun isn't limited to flowers -- stems, foliage and feathers play a role, too. (Photos were taken on various days during the past week.)

Yellow-twig dogwood underplanted with tiny daffodils and chionodoxa.

Primula elatior (oxlip) in the herb garden.

Varigated lemon thyme in the herb garden. 

Species tulip Professor de Monsseri by the door.

Evening grosbeak in the tree lilac outside the kitchen window. It's one of my favorite birds.

A few of our visitors this week

We get lots of blue jays, but these two seemed more in sync with each other than most.

The rabbit has finished with the crocus and moved on to nibbling the trees.

We may live in the gopher state, but they're really not welcome here. A live-trap has been set in hopes of relocating this guy. We think he's setting up house in some of our drainage pipes. (Watch dog obviously is sleeping on the job.)

Blessings

Dutch crocus on the berm by the road.

1. Crocus are blooming on a warm and snowless Good Friday. (Easter bunnies welcome, as long as they don't come for dinner.)
2. Some daffodils and scilla are starting to come up.

3. Nubbins of sedums and phlox are showing purple and green.
4. Chives and sorrel are just about ready for nibbling.
5. Evening grosbeaks and juncos are among the visiting birds.
6. Lungwort is showing its spots and forget-me-nots are remembering how sunshine feels.
7. Rosy stubs of peonies and rhubarb are pushing up.
8. Iris is coming to attention.
9. Primula and tulips are breaking ground in anticipation of showing their colors later this month.
10. Shooting stars (Dodecatheon) are shooting through the earth.
(And this is just a partial list.)

The show is just getting under way.

Seventh Day November up for viewing

Grouse such as this one have visited several times recently to feed on the crab apples. This grouse visited Nov. 8, missing the Seventh Day Project by one day. You can view the Seventh Day Project: November in the column at top right. (The cage around the tree is to protect it from browsing deer.)

Birds, birds, birds

I came across this blog the other day, twinbeaks.blogspot.com and wanted to share it because, hey, if you like gardening, you probably like birds, too. It's written by Laura Erickson of Duluth, Minn., who works for the Cornell Laboratory of Ornithology. It's full of great bird photos. Enjoy!