Red Bellied Woodpecker and Other Stormville Outback Goings On

Yesterday, a new bird showed up at the Neat Feast offering outside the kitchen window. It was clearly a woodpecker, having a long peckerwoodish bill, and it had a partially red head, a whitish breast and black striped/mottled wings. Red headed woodpecker, you say? Think again. It was, according to my Petersen Guide, a female red bellied woodpecker. This is so even though there is not a speck of red on the belly of either sex.

Since my last bird blog, we have added to our list of sightings a northern oriole at the Neat Feast, a red winged blackbird (off site on Hosner Mountain Road), and a ground squirrel who has burrowed just under the buffet.

A black bear has been seen across the road, but we always miss it. The deer are not as visible now that the foliage is leafy again and since we no longer put out the all you can eat deer chow spread (that is a snowy day treat).

Our neighbors across the street probably drive away a lot of wildlife since they spend almost the whole weekend operating heavy equipment on their yard. Their do it yourself project is going on three years now, and I am surprised the nearer neighbors have not killed them in their sleep. Their excavation had an impact on us as well, as quite a bit of mud flowed from their open pit into our driveway and on part of our grass. Mercifully, we cannot hear them so well when we sit outside on weekends, and the work they are doing is quite impressive. The rock walls are fantastic.

We have started putting in some planting beds around the pond, and have been shopping around for the best deals on plants. The water plants are quite expensive, and a water lily is $25 plus. Even ornamental grasses are dear, and Jasper gnaws on them. We are putting some kind of juniper thing along one of the banks with ornamental grasses behind them. This involves digging out a 6 foot swath of grass around the pond and is tedious work for that reason. We are doing it a little at a time so as not to bust the plant budget all at once. We planted quite a few perennial flower seeds to save money, but we won't know if they will germinate for a couple of weeks. The wildflower bed looks as if it might volunteer to return, but Jerry the lawn guy weed whacked it last week. I'll remind him that this is our "weed garden" and to leave it be.

UPDATE 5/11: Female downy woodpecker sighted on the suet feeder out back this morning.

UPDATE 5/12: Ruby throated humminbird sighted at the feeder on the deck yesterevening. This morning, he perched on the deck rail, something I have never witnessed.