Winter visitors

I was just in my kitchen watching the snow fall and the birds at the feeders. One thing I love about living in 6 acres of old growth forest is all the wildlife. Now it is not the kind of wildlife that my Alaskan rabbitry friend Trent sees (moose, bear, lynx, etc...), but it is great none the less. Some of the birds that frequent our feeders on a daily basis are:
Redheaded Woodpecker
Downy Woodpecker
Hairy Woodpecker
Redbellied Woodpecker
Whitebreasted Nuthatch
Northern Cardinal
Bluejay
Blackcapped Chickadee
Tufted Titmouse
Mourning Dove
Dark eyed Junco
Goldfinch
Turkey
Pileated Woodpecker

The above listed birds are usually here year round, but are joined in the summer by:
Indigo Bunting (LOVE them)
House Wren
Ruby throated Hummingbird
Rosebreasted Grosbeak
A plethora of warblers
Purple Finch
Brown Creeper
Northern Flicker
Baltimore Oriole

We also have flying squirrels on our property! While they are not a bird, I love having this mammal here. It is nocturnal so we don't get to see it. Our evidence that they are here came with a dead one we found in the backyard. =(Last year we had a huge fan of our bird feeder -- a Cooper's Hawk. I witnessed him capture a Cardinal at the feeder one day. While I didn't like having one less Cardinal to enjoy, it was amazing to see this part of nature that isn't often witnessed.

Again, how is this rabbit related? Well, I'm stretching it, but the birds often enjoy the food and habitat found in my gardens. The gardens wouldn't be as nice as if I didn't have the rabbit manure to spread on them. The goldfinch love the Echinacea (coneflowers) seedheads in the fall and I have numerous wren houses throughout my gardens which are often occupied by the brave little House Wren. By the way, if you don't have a wren house I highly recommend putting one in your yard somewhere. House Wren have a beautiful song and I love to watch them flit around. Dispite their small size, they are very territorial and have NO problem chasing the cat away!

Here's a link to more info on the House Wren along with a small clip of their song (nice little bit of spring time!)

http://www.birdwatchersdigest.com/site/backyard_birds/bird_id/house_wren.aspx