Backyard Bed and Breakfast – All God’s creatures welcome
January 14, 2009 – 9:39 am
House Finch, I know it's really red.
Early yesterday morning I noticed a flutter of red in my yard. Amid a sea of black grackles and crows flying through, a singular finch arrived. “Cute,” I thought. By the afternoon the black sea had turned into an ocean. Down here that many blackbirds means cold weather is coming, but we already knew that didn’t we.
Still, amid all the black the tiny red speck remained, undaunted by the crowd of bullies five times its size. At one point I noticed it alight on the edge of one of my vegetable boxes where it remained for over an hour. Doves came and went sharing its ledge but it never moved.
This morning as I did my routine feeder fill-up, this little guy was first in line. Apparently it had spent the night in my shrubbery. Once settled on a tube feeder, he held his ground against all the other birds, even the squirrels.
If this finch could talk I bet he would say, “Look, I flew all night to get here. I’m tired, I’m hungry and I’m not in the mood. Find your own spot.”
I’m thinking about renaming my home to Charleston’s Backyard Bed and Breakfast, one-stop shop for birds and all God’s creatures. What do think, too long?
A lot of you are seeing incredible birds right now as migration continues. Send me your photos to share. If you want to learn more about birdwatching, I recommend visiting Wild Birds Unlimited at www.wbu.com. You’ll find lots of helpful information on how to attract and identify the wildlife around you.
If you’re local, you may also wish to check out one of the many bird watching walks at the County parks, Cypress Gardens and Charlestowne Landing. Or just call me and we’ll schedule a day with one of the local experts.
Happy Day,
