Towheeblog

During this season of intense rain…nearing fifteen inches since December 1…I am daily pleased and puzzled at how strong, durable and waterproof the thin, flexible keratin flakes, we call ’em “feathers,” can be. Tiny bodies, less than an ounce in weight, weather the rainy night, come back to nervous action with the dawn (which none of us actually see) and its slightly brighter grayness. Rain or more rain, the hungry birds are up and having breakfast at and around our feeders.

First of year, I spotted the White-breasted Nuthatch at one suet block today. I suspect he’s been around when I wasn’t looking.

Click here for video of release of three Andean Condors in the mountains of Chile. This condor is one of the largest birds alive, with bigger wingspan than any species in North America including its little California cousin.

And here’s a video, first of the new year, of Lee French’s neighborhood fisher…the one with the tail and fur…not the one with the pole and bait. Lee lives on the edge of the national forest in Ashland.

And here’s a video of red-shoulder downing an earthworm: