Winter

Thanks so much for explaining this precisely. Really appreciate it. I’m in awe how you and others here are able to remember all these very important but otherwise tiny details about each particular one... Warblers and sparrows (and shorebirds) are soooo confusing for me! Again, thanks for taking time out to answer my noob questions!

Thanks guys! So, out of curiosity, I imported the pic into Cornell’s Merlin app, and it’s telling me it’s a Blackburnian Warbler ...?!? Looking at some pictures of Blackburnian male in fall/bland plumage or a female, I can see why but also a Cape May. Question: How are you able to tell that it’s Cape May and not a Blackburnian (in bland plumage or female) and which minute differentiations are you seeing between the two (considering the low quality images I’ve posted)? I ask because I trust you guys more than I probably should trust an app and would love to hear insight. Thanks again

Apologies for the lousy photo - it was really hard to capture and gone in a flash among the leaves which it camouflaged well in (and I used my iPhone to snap the back of the original camera screen). This little energetic beauty was seen yesterday, October 9, in Broadlands Wetlands Nature Preserve in Northern Virginia. To me, it looks most like a female Cape May warbler especially with the apparent white wingbar patch on the shoulder. That, or maybe a Black-Throated Green Warbler... Or something entirely different?? Thanks so much!

Still waiting. I may have seen 1 but can't even confirm that 100%. It's October now ... So strange!

In Maryland. Suet is a seed, mealworm and berry mix block with hot pepper in it to help deter the voracious squirrels living in the huge oak tree above. The hot pepper is why it looks orangey and kind of gross. :-/

Yeah, the squirrels kept opening up the suet feeders so I clipped on some keychains things I had lying around to try to keep them out. Seems to work.

Thanks! It's taken awhile to manage to snag this shot of them both together. Mystery solved at last!

Just looking for confirmation that these 2 in the picture are both a Hairy and a Downy woodpecker. Also, are they both females or is one possibly still a juvenile? Thanks! Sorry for the poor quality of the photo.

Interesting. I hope it's nothing to fret over but it has me a little worried as it is quite peculiar. I hope they return! I adore them.

Robins are common year-round here in the mid-Atlantic region, especially so in the spring and summer. This year was no exception. That is, until about late July when I noticed i wasn't seeing nearly as much. Now it's mid August and I haven't seen a single robin in days whether I'm in the city, suburbs, or way out in the countryside. Do robins tend to leave in August? Where have they gone? Why? We've had a LOT of rain this summer and flooding, perhaps could be part of it? It's just odd as I've always known robins to be year-round residents in Maryland, Virginia and Delaware. Thanks for any input!

Fairly positive that's a Northern Waterthrush. The tail tapers to a pointier tip than a Louisiana's tail, which is more squared off. Also the very subtle differences in the gray wash.

Zebra finch

I'm not sure of what the answer is but the downward slope of their bills looks almost identical to that of the domestic swan's bill and much less like the bill of a typical Canada goose. This could very well be a hybrid (in my completely unprofessional opinion). Wonder what some others might think ...

Thanks!

This was last week in Maryland. Only slight rosiness visible on top of head - lacked usual bright red on head and nape. Sorry about low quality photo.