This young Downy Woodpecker wanted to land on our birdfeeder but he was having trouble with his approach.
Which way to turn?
The stick is attached to the pole holding the feeder, providing a convenient landing and eating perch.
He made it after a few tries then a bolder Carolina Chickadee chased him off. The Woodpecker was back in just a few minutes to try again.
July 10, 2026
This Carolina Chickadee was looking for snacks in a cattail, first pecking on the stalk then he advanced to the flower head. He was pretty acrobatic, and pulled out quite a few tufts but I’m not sure he got anything to eat.
Trying something different with these images, using a WP gallery to display the photos; click on an image to open a slide show. If you are on WP Reader and this doesn’t display correctly you can select the Globe Icon above to open this post in a different view.
Magnolia Plantation and Gardens, Charleston, SC
February 2, 2025
After having seen a hummingbird at the Powdery Alligator-flag two years ago I always give it a once-over when I pass by a patch.
A thunder storm was closing in on us and the light wasn’t great but it didn’t stop this Carolina Chickadee from gathering some snacks.
The light changed again, giving me hope that the storm was going away.
The extra light was brief and it started raining a short time later.
A Carolina Chickadee was picking on the new buds of a Sweetgum tree with two of last years pods still hanging on.
Feeding on Sweet Gum seeds is a lot of work!
A lot of probing goes on and you can see some debris falling at the bottom of this next image.
The Chickadee’s foot grasps the ball between the spikes.
Check out the reward!
From my research the seed balls of the Sweet Gum (or Sweetgum, depending on where you read) tree should be empty of seeds by mid fall.
Clearly this tree didn’t follow the program and several Carolina Chickadees were feeding in its upper branches on this mid-January day.
The dried pod stems are still quite sturdy, although this little bird doesn’t weigh much at 0.3-0.4 ounces (8-12 g) per All About Birds.
If you’ve ever touched one of these balls you’ll likely remember; those spikes are quite sharp.
Fellow blogger Mike Powell has captured similar scenes in Virginia where there is overlap in both the tree and the bird, including his post Acrobatic Chickadee
