We haven't seen our winter visitors this far south yet. It's still waay too hot down here. We had 91ºF today and it's expected to last through the weekend. I laughed so hard watching the 6 O'clock news ... one of the anchors made a comment of how cool the temp's were when she went to work early this a.m. - 64ºF! LOL, but I guess that is cooler since we've had mid and upper 70's as our overnight lows for quite awhile!
Last one for me. I call this Blue Jay "Baldy" ... he must have had a very bad mite infestation, poor baby! But, his baldness sure didn't stop him from filling his crop with peanuts!
I've never noticed Downy Woodpecker's drilling ... but we have lots of Red-bellied WP's and they really drill/pound on the telephone/electric poles. There's an electrical pole on the side street to my yard with a metal transformer and the Red-bellied's are always drilling on that metal ... it sure is loud!
Linda: We had a couple of big Crow's for a few days in mid June but I haven't seen any since. They cawing sure was loud, and the regular backyard birds didn't like them being here at all!
Charleen: Wow, lucky you ... having Goldfinches year round! I hang the thistle seed bags but rarely see Goldfinches. My Florida bird book says they are seen here in their drab winter color from early November through April but last March I got this picture of a vivid yellow male.
Name: Charleen Barnesville, Ga. Zone 7b-8 Walk in Peace / I'm Charley's Mom.
Isn't that strange. I know they must be up here. Like the Gulf Fritillay b lot of them. I have them off and on al summer. The purple finch sometimes too.
got a birdbath moved out so the brds have views all the way around, they were out there this morning. Looks like the Cardinals were busy taking baths too. Took pic of Mockingbird but didn't care for it. But here it is.
Downy is the small bird--but hectic drumming. I haven't seen any sapsuckers in our yard. Just bought new suet cakes & downy is at them. Nuthatches like them also.
We have the Downy WP here year round, and the Yellow-bellied Sapsucker in the winter months. I get them confused because they do resemble each other ... according to my bird book, the sapsucker is just a little bit larger than the Downy.
Yellow-bellied Sapsucker (not a real clear picture), and a Downy Woodpecker:
The past two days there's been a cute little baby Blue Jay in the backyard. Yesterday it was perched in an Oleander tree, today it was perched for a long time beneath a feeder at the base of the metal shepherds hook. It can't seem to get much altitude when trying to fly so I'm assuming he floated from the tree and can't figure out how to get back up There are many nests way up high in the trees and I know this baby came from one of them. I was surprised to see it again today, I guess he found a safe place over night. I worry that a predator will get him. Today, he let me walk right up to him and didn't seem frightened whatsoever ... but when I reached my had out he began hopping through the grass over to the fence, and has been huddled up in that corner of the yard for the past few hours. Later I took a hand full of seed and he was real interested! I placed a little on the ground in front of him and sure enough he began eating little peanut nuggets. When I went out a little while ago to check, he had hopped over to a plant saucer that's on the ground with water in and was drinking. I just hope a snake or other predator doesn't get him tonight. Anyway ... here's a couple of pic's of the little cutie:
These three are from yesterday when he was perched in the Oleander tree:
The little baby Jay died. About 5 O'clock Sunday afternoon we walked out to the back yard and found the Jay huddled under a shrub, not moving. It's eyes were barely opened so I thought maybe it was asleep. I knew something was not right when it didn't hop away as I reached my finger out and touched it. I picked it up and held it in my hand and it just closed it's eyes and died. I don't think it was injured in any way because early that morning I saw it fly a little bit, not much above ground level, but it did gain a little altitude and flew a few feet. I saw it drinking water and eating seed earlier that day also. My husband said it must have been sick. We buried it under the tree.
They are still here, As long as I have the niger bags , I have goldfinches. 
The little baby Jay died. About 5 O'clock Sunday afternoon we walked out to the back yard and found the Jay huddled under a shrub, not moving. It's eyes were barely opened so I thought maybe it was asleep. I knew something was not right when it didn't hop away as I reached my finger out and touched it. I picked it up and held it in my hand and it just closed it's eyes and died. I don't think it was injured in any way because early that morning I saw it fly a little bit, not much above ground level, but it did gain a little altitude and flew a few feet. I saw it drinking water and eating seed earlier that day also. My husband said it must have been sick. 
We buried it under the tree. 
