I own a  big round of thanks to one of my local crows. Nine days ago this crow was attacked by a pair of flickers. The commotion caught my attention, and after they drove the crow away my patience was rewarded when after a 20 minute wait the flickers revealed the location of their nest hole. Over the intervening period I have waited and watched, and two days ago the chick appeared! I am actually surprised there is only one young flicker. Normally when I find a nest hole there are at least two chicks, often three. I wonder whether the crow did eat one of the young?

Regardless, here is the dinner hour from yesterday evening at the Yellow-Shafted Flicker residence!

Dinner Call!

I want supper NOW!

Down the hatch!

All Done! Not Happy!

Bring more food!

I decided to stay home this morning and focus upon my local birds. With many chicks getting near fledgling size, the parents are very busy feeding which makes them easier to find. This morning my male Pileated Woodpecker posed for the perfect photograph! I love Pileated Woodpeckers and Lupines, and the combination of the two was fantastic! Better yet, many of the birds consider me “Mr. Bird Seed”, and will allow me to get closer than the norm. Such is the case with Mr. and Mrs. Pileated. They visit my suet feeders several times per day. I took this photograph in my own yard.

Having the right habitat in one’s yards also helps immensely. I never cut down trees, and what little yard I have is a mixture of long trail grass and perennials. The only reason the tree in these photographs shows evidence of having been cut is the trunk fell across my driveway. After storm cleanup I pushed the trunk and branches into my yard’s forested area. The Pileated Woodpeckers have appreciated that fact.