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Rose-breasted Grosbeak at My Feeder!

This was a nice little Memorial Day surprise. My parents were over for a cookout and while I was inside putting away the food and cleaning up Steve came rushing in asking me to check out a bird at the feeder.

My mom was the first to notice it and Steve couldn't ID it either so they grabbed me to come out. I've seen rose-breasted grosbeaks at the tops of the trees where our backyard meets the conservation land (Stiles & Hart).

I've observed that rose-breasted grosbeaks like to hang out at the canopy level and feed on the tree buds. I've noticed Baltimore Orioles and many types of wood warblers like to do this too, so it's where I often look when I go birding (or when I hear a rose-breasted grosbeak call and need to figure out where to look).


I can't believe that rose-breasted grosbeaks are interested in my feeders with the abundance of food in the woods behind our house. A nice surprise though just the same!

Comments

Unknown said…
Wow, great shots! I've noticed a strange upswing in feeder activty, too - but nothing so exotic as a Rose-breasted Grosbeak. BTW, every time we go birding, Tom says "This is nothing like the woods in Bridgewater. Why can't we go somewhere like that?"
Larry said…
Lucky you-nice shots! I have one visit my feeder almost every year-it eats one or two seeds and then is gone until the next year.Never long enough for me to grab my camera. Nice yard bird.

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