A Golden-crowned Kinglet says goodbye…a Carolina Chickadee says hello!

On New Year’s Eve I slunk out of the house around 3:00 p.m. to go to the Little Miami River for a little birding. I should have stayed home to continue getting things ready for our party that evening, but I wanted to end the year the same way I began it—birding. So I grabbed my coat, my camera, and my journal and high-tailed it out of there! I was on the trail by 3:10 and found two Carolina Chickadees right away. They were calling back and forth as they flew from branch to branch in that cheerful way only chickadees can muster. Damp and gray, it was 42 degrees F, so not too cold, but the temperature was dropping quickly, and I was glad I had my hat and gloves. About a half mile down the trail, I stopped short and listened. The tiny, tiny call of a Golden-crowned Kinglet was floating through the branches, hanging there high and sweet, taking forever to drift down to me so I could find the source. Soon enough, though, the tiny imps popped into view—a male and a female with very bright crests. The male’s crest was a gorgeous orange from behind and the female’s a bright yellow. They were very busy gleaning insects and spiders from the twigs and branches over my head, and I really enjoyed listening to them and watching their wispy, fairy-like movements. So tiny and round, they looked like olive and gray cotton balls with eyes (and a mask).

The last bird of the day, a Golden-crowned Kinglet, helped me say goodbye to 2009.

As they started to move off towards another tree, I “pished” at them. This was something new for me. I had never pished before, and I wasn’t sure if it would work, but it did. They came back! If their little birdy body language was accurately describing their little birdy thoughts, they were giving me a “…you pishing at me?” look, and then they “tsee, tsee, tseeed” back. So I pished a little more, and they stuck around. I spent about 40 minutes with these two birds pishing, photographing, and studying them—a perfect way to end my birding year. I’m glad I snuck out on New Year’s Eve to do what I resolved to do last New Year’s Day—spend more time with the birds, work to conserve their habitat, learn more about them and pass on everything I learned. This past year of blogging about birds and nature has been outrageously fabulous. I’ve met so many birders and nature lovers…people who love the same things I love…and I’ve learned so much along the way. I can’t wait to see what 2010 brings…

The first bird of the morning, my beloved Carolina Chickadee, helped me say hello to 2010!

Thank you for following my blog and helping me learn more about birds! I have loved every minute of this past year (except for maybe the week or two I had The Swine Flu). I'm so excited to see what will happen in 2010!!

p.s. Do you like the new header? Rick helped me! I painted a watercolor of Red, found the perfect font, and drew out what I wanted on a scrap of paper (complete with a coffee ring). Then I handed it over to Rick, who went to town using Photoshop to create Red's new look.