LOOK WHAT I CAN DO!

Finally, a few birds returned to the feeder today - I’m so happy they’re back! This little chickadee was putting on a show of his balancing skill. (Actually I just happened to catch him between pecks at the seeds.)

Also, the female cardinal returned – and had the strangest behavior. At first she did the usual nervous twitching & hopping. But after a bit she moved to the back of the feeder and just stayed very still ‘forever’. Only her tail & a small bit of her body showed from my camera angle and her face was just above the level of the seed, watching from behind the screen. I took a picture of this position – since she didn’t move, I came back after a few minutes and took a couple more (same position), then finally gave up. I checked the times of my shots of her – there was over 12 minutes between shots that the bird stood absolutely still. I think she was standing guard over the feeder – either to shoo away other birds or to save the feeder for her male cardinal. (I've seen her bullying others before!) Who knows? It was certainly strange and unusual behavior for a bird who is usually in constant motion. Animal behavior is so interesting!