Lamar, December 2, 2005

Today I had the most amazing group of birds at my feeders: 2 Yellow-rumped Warblers, the beautiful female Northern Cardinal, an American Crow, six Inca Doves, a Downy Woodpecker, a White-breasted and 2 Red-breasted Nuthatches one of which flew within six inches of my hand while I was filling the feeder. My first Brown Creeper of the season arrived and I wonder if it is stealing the cache of the nuthatches. Several gorgeous Cedar Waxwings come to water regularly and maybe, just maybe, I'll have a Bohemian soon. Yesterday the Purple Finch was here as well as Blue Jays, House Finches, House Sparrows (this is their first visit this season) Dark-eyed Juncos, and European Starlings. With this feeding frenzy, I expect a change in weather.

On the downside. I saw a neighbor's cat take a junco before I could get out the door. I have had two other cats hanging around this morning. If you have a cat, please consider keeping it inside. We have an abundance of pet cats as well as feral ones and they are devastating to the bird population. There great articles on this subject in "The Backyard Bird" Fall and Winter 2005, from the publishers of "Bird Watcher's Digest Newsletter" and a must read for birdwatchers and cat lovers alike. One statistic from this article that stands out is 2 billion birds are killed worldwide each year by pet cats. I really wonder if I am selfish in feeding as I am just setting up these helpless creatures for the killing.

Later,

JWT