June 26, 2010

Post date: Jun 29, 2010 3:36:30 AM

Recently we received our new BirdCam 2.0 automatic wildlife camera (http://www.wingscapes.com/). We received it free because the manufacturer used our raccoon picture on the back of the box!

We’ve been using the camera to take wildlife photos on our deck. Our favorite discovery so far is a new bird for us – the Band-Tailed Pigeon. This secretive bird is our country’s only native pigeon. It lives in the western United States, and nests at the top of redwood trees.

We've been surprised at how many different birds come to drink from our oriole feeder (to make nectar dissolve ¼ cup sugar in 1 cup water). Orioles visit the feeder in spring and summer when they are nesting in a nearby palm tree. Hummingbirds come to the feeder year round. We never realized that hummers start their day before dawn! We also discovered that the chickadee has a surprising taste for sweets - so cute!