I Almost Forgot!

Today Husband and I were out on our deck, sitting there talking, and suddenly he says "Oh my god!" and springs up from the bench. From the way he said it, I thought some bird was on a suicide mission and headed straight for us, so I ducked and headed for the door. But he said "a pileated woodpecker!" He pointed it out, and sure enough, a huge woodpecker with a bright red head was in a nearby tree...a pileated is a rare sight. Husband had seen one only once before, and I never had. It flew down to the ground into some brush, and we got further confirmation that it was indeed this unique bird.

I have heard a woodpecker quite frequently lately when taking walks around the preserve, I wonder if it was our pileated? I've also seen another woodpecker though, probably a sapsucker, going to town on the utility pole out front. But we'll be keeping our eyes peeled for our new friend. Pileateds also mate for life, so maybe there's another around too.

We've had a lot of bird action around here lately; the field guide and binoculars have gotten a good workout. We frequently have chickadees, red-winged blackbirds, grackles, cardinals, mourning doves, plus a lot of other birds I haven't been able to identify...today I also saw a pair of bluejays. Last Saturday night I heard two owls and could see their silhouettes in the trees. Not sure from their calls what type they were, but I love listening to them.