Little Birds with Big Eyes

The Tufted Titmouse is one of the cutest of the songbirds.  Titmice have arrived here with Carolina Wrens.  The Tufted Titmice are grey birds with large, appealing black eyes, a small crest on top of their head, and apricot coloring on their sides under the wings.  The Titmice eat insects but they love seeds fruits and nuts.

My neighbor has put up a bird feeder which has Sunflower Seeds and other bird seed.  I plan to add a bird feeder to my back yard.   In addition to having bird feeders up, the smaller birds may come around more often now that the neighborhood Hawk has recently been run-off by the Crows.   I took these pictures on September 29, 2013.  Please click on the thumbnail image to see the larger picture.  Enjoy!

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Tufted Titmice Close-up

The grey Tufted Titmouse is a really neat little songbird.  We have several pairs here that happily for me, come to the bird feeder on a regular basis.  These birds eat seeds, fruits and berries and also certain insects.  They have a musical call and can be rather loud.  The bird is grey with a top-knot crest that it can raise or lower slightly.  Usually when the bird is alert, the crest is way up.  Both genders are alike.  They have huge black eyes which adds to their appeal.  I took these pictures in my yard on Jan. 10, 2013.  The birds were both at the feeder and hiding in the bare  tree branches.  Please click on the thumbnail image to see the larger picture.  Enjoy!

Titmice at the Feeder

Tufted Titmice are here in the yard in a big way.  The flock of Tufted Titmice is not a large one but the grey, buff, Apricot and black birds are not shy about coming to the bird feeder several times a day.  Sometimes there will be four or five at a time vying for space on the feeder.  One will sit on the porch railing acting as a look-out while the others take turns getting the Millet or Black Oil Sunflower Seeds.  They also occasionally find an insect or two on the porch or in the grass next to the house.

These are intelligent cute birds with their large eyes and top-knot crest. Yesterday this bunch of Titmice had to look out for a visiting house cat that was interested in all the birds hanging out around the feeder.  Lucky for the birds, the cat was too afraid to approach the house and quickly left the area.   Both cats and dogs occasionally just show up and stroll around the yard..  The dogs and cats just go back home to their own yards after a while.  I took these pictures in my yard yesterday, Nov. 1, 2012.  Please click on the thumbnail image to see the larger picture.  Enjoy!

The Northern Mockingbird

A Northern Mockingbird was here on August 4, 2012 in the yards.  It was very entertaining to see this musical noisy bird.  The Mockingbird interacted with the Red-headed Woodpecker as I mentioned in yesterday’s post.  it also perched on the electric line in front of the house for a long time.  It sang many songs reflecting its intelligence and age.  These birds learn to mimic the songs and calls of many birds in their environment.  The Mockingbirds eat insects, seeds, and nuts.  They are smaller medium-sized birds with grey and brown and black coloring.  I don’t see the Northern Mockingbird very often but do enjoy their antics a lot!  Please click on the thumbnail image to see the larger picture.  Enjoy!

A Tufted Titmouse at the Bird Feeder

This Tufted Titmouse was one of several Tufted Titmice that come to the bird feeder next to my porch on a regular basis.  Surprisingly to me, the Tufted Titmouse was not terribly shy.  They are very appealing birds with grey feathers, a top-knot crest, big black eyes and a musical set of calls and song whistles.  They fly in company with the Carolina Chickadees and the House Finches.  I have been seeing a lot of the small birds around in the past week.  I took these pictures from my yard yesterday afternoon.  I hid behind the car to get the shots but did take a couple from out in the open yard.  The birds are enjoying the wetter weather we now are having and so am I! Please click on the thumbnail image to see the larger picture.  Enjoy!

A Tufted Titmouse on its Perch

The porch rail, small tree, and the feeder pole all were places where the two Tufted Titmice perched on March 7, 2012 and again on March 10, 2012.  They are daily visitors to the bird feeder that is just under my porch.  These petite grey and buff-colored birds are fun to watch up close.  One was sitting on the top of a porch chair and posed for the camera.  I took all of these pictures from my living room window though the screen and the porch railing.  It is too hard to take pictures outdoors of the birds on the feeder unless i am far away and am quite lucky.   I noticed the little Tufted Titmouse in an old fruit tree at the Southern edge of my property near my driveway.

Tufted Titmice

Tufted Titmice are here in the yards these days on a frequent basis.  I love hearing the whistle song and calls that these perky little grey birds sound-off with.  The big eyes and little top-knot crest are features that make these little birds very appealing.  The Tufted Titmice eat insects and also love seeds and suet.  They are congenial birds and pal around with the Carolina Chickadees, Northern Cardinals, and White-breasted Nuthatches.  I really enjoy seeing these birds here.  Please click on the thumbnail image to see the larger picture.  Enjoy!