Birding at Fort Ancient
…continued from yesterday’s post.The soft, gentle call of a chickadee buzzed from a stand of White Snakeroot as Rick and I walked the Little Miami Bike trail some 240 feet below Fort Ancient (from the North Overlook in the park, you can hike a quarter-mile trail down to the Little Miami Bike Trail). We stopped and watched the little bird as he landed on a flower, only to ride it slowly to the ground as the stalk supporting it bent under his weight. Fluttering and hanging on, the chickadee rested for a moment before gleaning an insect from its leaves and flying up to a branch to eat the juicy bit of protein. Several other chickadees buzzed and called all around us, one on a rusty fence wire, another in a tree deeper in the surrounding woods, another in a stand of white snakeroot on the other side of the trail. The little birds were busy. They seemed to know autumn was in the air and winter preparations were being discussed...
Is there anything sweeter or more soothing than the call
of a chickadee? For such a tiny and hard-working bird,
his call carries deeply, sinking right into the listener’s
heart, leaving traces of peace and happiness.
Sweet little Chiggy...do you know how
photogenic you are sitting on that rusty wire?
No matter how busy a Chiggy,
grooming should never be neglected...
Whenever I hear a chickadee sing, I slow down
and listen...and watch. Their song is magic.
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24 comments:
Lovely photos of the Chickadees! How funny to watch the one riding the flower to the ground. I've been enjoying watching and listening to them quite a bit of late. They are always so busy, and never seem to mind having an audience.
A lovely little bird Kelly, very similar to our Coal Tit.
Those have got to be the cutest little birds. I don't think I have ever spotted one around here.
We have a family living around us and they are (sometimes) tame enough that they will take seeds from my hand. Like a little fairy kiss.
Lovely little birds Kelly.
So much like the members of our 'Tit' family over here.
And your post was magic too! Thank you Kelly.
Lovely photos and prose again.
Like Keith, they remind me so much of the UK Tit family and on checking google I see they are, indeed, all part of the same family...Paridae.
Hi Kel, I love hearing the cute little Chickadees also. Compared to some birds (bluejays that squawk when they come to the feeders), the Chickadees' sounds are fabulous!!!
Have a great day. We're off to Hendersonville today to check on G's parents.
Hugs,
Betsy
Ah yes, the woods are full of Chickadees here, too. Nice shots!
And for all our friends from across the water who have been commenting, yes, the Chickadee is a member of the Tit family, so the resemblance isn't coincidental.
I love the chickadee-dee-dees!
Such sweet faces! Love these little guys and your post is fabulous!
Cool Kelly.
You definitively found a nice place to bird and you got nice shots of the chickadees! Beautiful colors too in the shots, that helps to get a nice picture :-)
There is nothing sweeter than a happily singing chickadee!!!
Loved your photos of the chickadee Kelly.
They are sweethearts! Not so agressive as some of the friends they hang out with. Your pictures are lovely. I have discovered it is really difficult to get pictures in which you can actually see their eyes. In that 4th picture you can see the eye sparkle!! Neat!
Sweet little chickies... the bravest birds at my feeders, I love them so. I do love to hear them sing and talk.
I can hear it from here kelly. They are so like our tits (they are the same family) they probably sound very alike.
Wonderful series of posts on Fort Ancient - thank you,
If no other bird came to my feeders, I would be happy to see just chickadees every day. They are so cute and cheerful and interesting to watch. And I love hearing "Chickadee..dee...dee". They always make me smile:-)
Your prose is so articulate and wistful. Great tribute Kelly.
They make me happy and joyful every time I hear them. Flitting and twitting garden companions. A "comfort" bird, never far away.
Great shots of the Chickadees. I don't have a good shot of one. I always seem to get them from below. I guess I'll have to keep trying. The photos in the post below get a big WOW! Very beautiful. Have a wonderful weekend.
I agree - their song is magic! They have such delightful demeanors - I enjoyed these shots!
Oh they are such cute birds. Thanks for sharing. Anna :)
Great stuff Kelly. Many congrats on the Barred Owl. The bear is awesome too.
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