Feeding Hummingbird
Terri Webster Schrandt

Sunday Stills: Fun #Feathered Friends

I have been green with envy these past weeks of spring, enjoying many posts on both WordPress and social media as people share their bird photos. Now it’s my turn!

Birds have been flocking to our backyard this spring! Hooray!

“Until you spread your wings, you have no idea how far you’ll fly.” – unknown

Former Fun Feathers

In my former Sacramento home, my backyard was a popular bird spot. We enjoyed a parade of robins, magpies, mockingbirds, grosbeaks, and even kites, encouraged by the feeders, sunflowers, and six redwoods for roosting, nesting, and hiding. And, of course, generations of Anna’s hummingbirds. The occasional wild turkey was also known to fly in for a visit.

freckled hummingbird
Perching Anna
roosting turkeys
Turleys atop telephone pole
Kites sharing the top of a tree
Kites

Violet-Green Swallows

Last spring, in our new place, we did manage to enjoy the antics of these flitting beauties, as they hysterically sought out nesting spots.

perchedswallow
Aren’t I something?
Perched Swallow
What are YOU staring at?

The silly things were desperate enough to try to nest in the BBQ grill, swoop underneath my husband’s truck, and even visit the smokestack of our wood-burning stove. We were alerted about the swallow in the stove by a frantically barking Brodie—thank goodness (the stove was not lit)!

rescued swallow
Fleeting tender moment

I scooped it up out of the stove, stopped for a photo op, and sent it out into the backyard–no harm done!

If You Build It…

“Hope is the thing with feathers
That perches in the soul
And sings the tune without the words
And never stops at all.”
― Emily Dickinson

Here in Eastern Washington, I hope to make our ¾ acre property a fun place for birds to visit.

Backyard Tree and feeder

Last week, to my delight, we got our first Anna hummingbird not 5 minutes after I hung the feeder.

9 Mile Falls Hummingbird
Pretty little Anna

I tried last spring to no avail as we lacked trees for them to perch in between sips.

Perched Hummingbird
Ms. Anna looks happy

The new trees have made a difference, I believe. Without the trees and our unusual heat last summer, birds weren’t motivated to visit the yard except for an occasional fly-in.

Construction and other distractions were also happening here last spring and summer as well. My neighbor, with whom we share a fence, had plenty of birds at her place. With several feeders hanging from her trees among the countless tall Ponderosa pines, no wonder the birds flocked there!

“Life is short. It can come and go like a feather in the wind.”
– Shania Twain

Blue Feathers and a Robin Couple

As birds are nesting and feeding, some new kids on the block have found our feeders. We also laid 1500 square feet of sod which is rich in earthworms. Mr. Robin has been busy pulling fat wormies out of our lawn and flying them back to the nest in my neighbor’s yard. Is that considered double-dipping?

Male robin

We were excited to see this stunning Western Bluebird hang out for a bit. Their nest is likely in my neighbor’s yard.

Western Bluebird
Western Bluebird

The Eagles Have (Almost) Landed

A Bald Eagle Watches
A Bald Eagle Watches

The best way for us to see American Bald Eagles consistently and close up is to take the one-hour drive to Lake Coeur D’Alene in Idaho to a spot called Higgens Point where the kokanee salmon spawn in late Fall. Hundreds of eagles are drawn there annually to hunt and fish. They wait in the trees, patiently enduring the throngs of visitors, gawkers, and photographers who hope to capture a close-up photo (with zoom lenses). No cell phone pics here, at least any that are worth a darn. These images are from our outing last November and taken with my Lumix FZ300 on full zoom.

Double Eagle Pose
Double Eagle Pose

Here at home, we do see bald eagles soaring overhead. We are a quarter mile from Lake Spokane, so it’s quite the thrill to see the daily flight of eagles meandering high in the sky, hoping to spot a tasty treat.

High flight of bald eagle
eagle higher and higher
Bald Eagles soar above our neighborhood

“The day is done, and the darkness Falls from the wings of night,
As a feather is wafted downward from an eagle in his flight.”
~ Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

My Fun Feather/Pet project is coming along, if slowly. Cold weather is slowing down my painting efforts. This eagle has almost landed! Bear is patiently waiting to be brought to “life” underneath Eagle…

Work in progress Eagle totem

I’m always delighted to watch the backyard bird show now that spring has also (finally) landed! I suppose that as we add fences, trees, flowers, and more feeders (strategically placed), the invitation is open to all the fun feathered friends.

What do you do to encourage the birds to visit your yards and gardens?

Sunday Stills Photo Challenge Reminders

Sunday Stills weekly challenge is easy to join. You have all week to share and link your post.

  • Remember to title your blog post a little differently than mine.
  • Please create a new post for the theme or link a recent one.
  • Entries for this theme can be posted all week.
  • Tag your post “Sunday Stills.”
  • Don’t forget to create a pingback to this post so that other participants can read your post.
  • I also recommend adding your post’s URL to the comments.

**I changed the theme midweek from “refreshing” to “fun feathers.” Please link up anyway.**

Inspiring Photo Challenges

Each week I am inspired by my fellow bloggers’ photo challenges. I find it fun to incorporate these into my Sunday Stills weekly themes. I’m stretching my inspiration a bit for Marsha’s WQW feature “air transportation,” which was also shared for my Wordless Wednesday post this week.

This Week’s Featured Bloggers

Sunday Stills is a wonderful community of bloggers and photographers who desire to connect with one another. Below are this week’s links from bloggers who shared memorable photos. I edit these all week as new links are added.

There is no Sunday Stills challenge next week (May 29) as I enjoy visiting family and out-of-town activities over the long Memorial Day Weekend. Please come back on June 5th when the challenge theme is “A Numbers Game.” And please be safe if your activities take you in and around the water.

Bitmoji Birding

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116 comments

  5. Fun topic this week Terri! Loved your little birds (and the big ones as well 😍). Here on Kiawah it’s a birder’s paradise. We had 4 bald eagle nests this year, all of which had chicks. We photographers were out watching for them most days. Egrets and herons are everywhere and are totally unafraid of people, so we can get quite close for photos. It really is magical. I’d included an image of a eaglet hatchling in its nest with 3 future siblings so I’m linking with you this week. https://travelsandtrifles.wordpress.com/2022/05/21/lens-artists-challenge-200-every-little-thing/

    Liked by 2 people

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    • Thank you, Tina! I saw your post’s email and was off to read then saw your comment and link, hooray! I have no doubt Kiawah is bird central. I was so excited to see our bluebird and robin family hopping about and almost fell over with joy when we finally attracted the hummingbird.

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  6. Your post is for the birds. >grin<
    I do love to watch hummingbirds. We had one in our neighborhood in Arizona. He always perched high on the next-door neighbor's tree. On a very small branch, he would ride the branch as it moved about in the wind. He showed up for the first time each day around 8 AM and would come and go as he pleased all day.
    I tried to get a good photo of him with my 300mm lens, but alas, he was too far away to get a clear image.

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  10. Lovely birds! We have Violet-Green Swallows that nest in our boxes each year, too. They have just arrived for the season, which is exciting! We had a birding group potluck yesterday, and one of the experienced ladies was telling me that you should have multiple holes in each swallow house so that all the babies can be fed, rather than just the strongest. She’s invited all of us over to look at her boxes and see how to do it! I’m intrigued, I have to say. I’d not heard that before!

    Sunday Stills: Feathered Friends

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  14. Terri,
    I believe there is a greater variety of birds in the western part of the country…and so colorful too. We have our share, but not like y’all do. My contribution is a flock of wild turkeys that I came across in the northeast section of East Tennessee. I never saw a turkey in these parts until I was in my 40s, but good conservation practices brought them out in numbers. Enjoy your Memorial Day…remember our brave Vets!

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    • How interesting, Joe. I guess I’ve always taken our colorful birds for granted. I’m just happy to see anything at this point! Yep, turkeys are everywhere and the males here have been showing off the fun feather fans!

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    • Thank you so much, Paul. My two favorite birds couldn’t be more different in scope and sheer size, right? Trying to capture eagles in flight with camera on full zoom through the viewfinder is dizzying at times. Great to see your post this week!

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  20. I’m sorry I missed the change of prompts Terri, it was in my diary as refreshed so I went with that! Thanks for including my post regardless. I love all your birds and the feeders are great too. We have a lot of native birds visiting us here, full of colour and chatter, they certainly are welcome guests.
    Enjoy your weekend off and hopefully I’ll see you on 5th for numbers – right up the mathematician’s alley!
    Here’s my link for this week https://debs-world.com/2022/05/22/time-for-a-refreshing-change-sundaystills/

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    • Thank you, and no worries, Debbie, it was my impulse to change the prompt early this week. But your post was definitely refreshing and I’m happy to hear you are enjoying your feathered friends as well! I can’t wait to see what you have for numbers on June 5th 🙂

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  21. Fabulous feathered friends, Terri, loved them all! I so want to see and capture an Anna’s Hummingbird; I’ve watched the videos of the male’s mating dance/flight, truly dazzling! What a thrill to have one show up in five minutes!! Looks like I am going to have to do another cross-country trek to see one in the wild along the west coast. I had to laugh at the Wild Turkeys on the telephone pole, what the ???? That is hilarious! I guess they like seeing the big view sometimes too. Thanks for linking my bird post!

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    • Thank you, Donna! It’s so nice to enjoy our backyard with birds visiting this year! I don’t think I had really seen turkeys fly and about 20 of them meandered near the corner house in our old neighborhood and one by one flew onto the pole and then into the redwoods. They were aways up in the branches…just a crazy sight! Happy to share your post!

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  24. Oh Terri what fabulous birds you have. Yes trees trees and more trees especially native ones to your area will bring in the birds. The Violet-Green Swallows are just a wow as is the Western Bluebird. To have an eagle so close is fabulous. Love love love ❤❤❤
    PS I do think this was a set up for me 😂😂

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  28. We have those little bluebirds here. Finally found out their name when the local nature club was bird watching from the end of our driveway. We get lots of hawks and the occasional eagle here. I’m not a huge bird fan (except for meadowlarks & cranes) and checked my entire media files and found one magpie photo. You have some stellar photos and so many birds around your place.

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      • Oh man!! I was talked into walking into a bird sanctuary in Australia and it just about destroyed my brain. A LOT of hyperventilating went on and finally my husband walked me out. Let’s just say my childhood early memories include a few negative bird encounters.

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  46. What beautiful birds you have over there! Stunning. Colours splendid and features the same – The Violet-Green Swallows are gorgeous as is the Western Bluebird.

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  48. Fantastic to see the feathered friends making their way into your yard. The blue bird is such a brilliant color. To see eagles that often is such a treat. They are so majestic. And your totem has come along nicely. Happy Spring Terri. Donna

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  52. Hi Terri,
    I think your painting project is coming along nicely and great theme this week! Love the bluebird photo the most!
    Also,
    Your inclusion of Emily’s famous stanza (which I love where you placed it) well it did connect to my
    Review post that I linked for this week. And not sure if you read all of my post (I know it was long) but I did include one of her bird poems – and an old birdhouse – but the quote you included today is truly a special Emily one:
    P
    Hope is the thing with feathers
    That perches in the soul
    And sings the tune without the words
    And never stops at all.”
    ― Emily Dickinson

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply

      • Well that is great with the views and not surprised that flowers and birds bring some traffic –
        And side note –
        You are a pretty awesome hostess too- and that helps engagement. I left a challenge or two over the wars because the host was persnickety or just not pleasant to work with. But your inclusive nature, the pleasant side, and of
        Course the flexibility –
        Like the time I got a post in really close to the time the next theme was launching!
        —
        Anyhow – Cheers to the many fun “feathered friends” posts unfolding this week
        And happy hump day

        Liked by 1 person

  56. I love birds, Terri, and I’m so glad they’re enjoying your new trees. The bluebird is a showy one, and of course, the hummingbirds offer non-stop entertainment. Great eagle pictures too! I love the quotes you chose for this post – they’re so lovely. Have fun bird-watching and bird-painting. 🙂

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