Bluebird of Hope

 

“Hope” is the thing with feathers -

That perches in the soul -

And sings the tune without the words -

And never stops - at all -..

Love this poem (by Emily Dickinson), it reminds me of bluebirds. They have just build a nest in the box in my yard!!

Purple Finches are on the Move, Watch for Them!

                                                    Purple Finch, male 

Purple Finch, female 

House Finch, male looks similar to Purple Finch, male

 I'm excited that it's getting really finchy here in eastern MA! Finally, Purple Finches are coming through, had two males yesterday, a female the day before and a male and female today, plus Pine Siskin yesterday. The last photo is a male House Finch. Notice the difference with the male Purple Finch who is suffused all over with a more raspberry red and has little flank streaking, whereas the male House Finch has red on head, breast and rump, heavily streaked flanks and a shorter more curved bill. We have a special section in the new The Stokes Guide to Finches of the United States and Canada (pub. Sept. 17, 2024, available for preorder now on amazon and more) on telling the confusing red finches apart.

Much of the East Under Severe Weather Threat.

"Severe" (fill in the blank; tornadoes, snow, wind, sleet, rain, flooding) seems to be the new norm as much of the eastern part of the country is under weather threats today and tomorrow.

Stay safe, hunker down and fill feeders beforehand.