Quiet Time, Backyard Blues?

[Walter Fisher]

Hi,

I'm wondering by the lack of posts in this thread lately that everyone is experiencing the same thing as I am right now - few feeder birds.

Since the holidays my visitors to the yard have dropped considerably.  Although I did have a Sharp-shinned Hawk (not a Cooper's) in the yard for a week picking-off Starlings I would imagine the bitter-cold days earlier in the month and now the complete lack of ground-covering snow have been the culprits.  My 'little brown jobs' have dwindled down from roughly 100-125 before New Years to less than a handful daily now.  The 'good' birds are still showing-up but without all those Sparrows and Starlings around it sure seems quiet.  It's kind of fun though having something like a Hairy Woodpecker sit on the feeder for half an hour without being spooked-off.  Wait, should I really be concerned at all over this situation?!?!

I did have something new last week to watch in the yard....Mourning Doves.....19 of them!  Called them 'my chickens'.  Each afternoon around 4:30pm I'd go out to the yard and put down mixed-seed along the path, 30 minutes later one by one the doves would fly in.  They're actually quite interesting to watch, extremely social.  I think my highest yard count before this was 3 or 4 at one time.  They've also dwindled now that the snow is gone.

Good birding,
Walter

[Ally]

Thank you for sharing, I have fewer birds too. A couple of redbreasted nuthatches, occasional chickadees. white thoat sparrows and juncos showed up less. Three mourning doves yesterday
, but fed among grass. A house finch started to sing on top of neighhour's spruce. So, dare I say, Spring?