AN EARLY, BUT RARE, CHRISTMAS GIFT is visiting my backyard!!

A Nashville Warbler has been visiting my azaleas for the past several days! Fortunately, for me, he visits an azalea bush that is right outside my computer room window so I have been able to get several photos of him! It was early Monday morning that he was first noticed, flitting from branch to branch apparently eating azalea lace-bug eggs. I spent a lot of time (way too much time...and I wasn't getting done what I needed to do!!) trying to identify this cutie from the web and from books...but at the end of the day I was pretty frustrated. I decided to e-mail a few of the photos to a friend who has been birding for many years. He called me this morning to tell me that our little feathered friend is a Nashville Warbler!


He also shared with me that this little guy's visit is very rare in Pennsylvania during the winter and that in the last 108 years of the Christmas Bird Count in Pa. they have only been found 5 times !
I have to say that when I received his phone call this morning and found out the news I was giggly with excitement. What a nice Christmas present ...he is so small and peppy and has such wonderful colors!

We saw him again this morning and I am crossing my fingers he stays around so we can include him in the 08 Christmas bird count for Pa. on the 28th of December!!
Hopefully this little guy will find a lot of lace-bug eggs on my azaleas! (My poor azaleas!) I know his chances of making it through a Pa. winter aren't too good unless he finds alternate food sources. I did put out some nectar in our hummingbird feeder hoping this will help his food source. We did see him flit over to the suet log which holds a cylindar of suet that is supposedly laced with insects. If you have any ideas of what else I can do, please let me know! In the mean time I think I will just enjoy the fact that he chose my backyard to visit!! :) ya hooooo!!

IN THE QUIET OF THE AFTERNOON...

My best Acquaintances are those With Whom I spoke no word~ Emily Dickinson


He stepped quietly from the thicket of woods...he was there but a few seconds..
and then he was gone.....a few seconds , a few photos! From what I can see he is sporting ten points??