Wednesday, January 8, 2014

June's Honeysuckle in January



A truly remarkable series! 
I think each month is prettier than the last.
Here's "June's Honeysuckle".

Design - "June's Honeysuckle"
Designer - Cottage Garden Samplings
Fabric - 32 count White Chocolate linen
Fibers - GAST, WDW, & DMC - 2 strands over 2 threads
Started - 17 November 2013
Completed - 5 January 2014


Saturday evening we had a lovely quiet sunset while the moon rose high in the sky. It was a fitting conclusion to a special day.
Special how?

Well, a New Bird came to the feeder! 


Meet Mr. Yellow-rumped Warbler!

Not a very nice name for a rather dapper looking fellow.

He checked out my suet feeder.  

As you can see, he does have a spot of yellow at the base of his tail feathers.

Also nice flashes of yellow on the crown of his head, his throat, and the sides of his breast.

Yellow-rumped Warblers are insectivores, but also will eat berries.
I need to make sure I get some suet with a berry mix. 

Most Warblers fly south for the winter, but the Yellow-rumped Warblers hang out here all winter long.    

They are supposed to appear most often in flocks, but I just saw this singleton.

Waxy food are extremely hard for birds to digest, but Yellow-rumped Warblers are able to ingest the waxes found in bayberries and wax myrtles. The ability to eat these fruits allows the birds to winter much further north than other warblers, sometimes as far north as Newfoundland!

Other sources of winter food include the berries of juniper, poison ivy, poison oak, and dogwood.  They will also eat wild seeds like goldenrod, and may come to feeders for sunflower seeds, raisins, peanut butter, and suet.
     
In the Pacific NW, the warblers can be found from the Cascade Mountains to sea level - wherever conifers are present.  During the winter,the birds find open areas with fruiting shrubs or scattered trees - places like parks, stream-side woodlands, open pine and pine-oak forests, and dunes  where bayberries are common.

I've been on the lookout, but haven't seen the Warbler since Saturday.
I remain hopeful!  I'd like him to bring his friends and become regular visitors.

19 comments:

wenhkc said...

I enjoy your blog so much, as I stitch and studied ornithology in college. Do you ever use peanut butter in your feeders? I read pros and cons about feeding p.b. to birds, and was wondering what your experience was.

Vickie said...

The Warbler is sweet and neat!
Love Honeysuckle. Great colors. =)

Cricket-bug Corner said...

I'm a little jealous!

Melissa said...

What a cute little bird! Don't you just want to hug him? Of course we can't really but it's just the idea of it!

Love June's Honeysuckle! I didn't know about this designer till now because of your stitching. I want some!

Have a great day!

Ann at Beadlework. said...

A lovely stitch Beth, I'm tempted even though I'm not stitching much at the moment. What a neat little bird - it's good to learn a little as well as enjoy the pics.

geeky Heather said...

That is a lovely finish! I can't wait until the bees are back... How exciting to have a new visitor to the feeders! Happy New Year to you!

Tricia B said...

I love your June garden journal stich! It's in my stash and I'm hoping to stitch it for my husband the beekeeper for Father's Day. Thanks for sharing it ~ beautiful.

Carol said...

Ha ha--yellow-rumped!! So cute--he is an adorable little thing...

Lovely, lovely finish Beth--that series is beautiful indeed!

Margaret said...

He's a pretty little thing! What a name though! lol! I love your honeysuckle finish too -- beautiful!

Wanda said...

Beth you are right about each Garden series being better than the last! Thanks for keeping inspired...I will get to these :) The warbler is a pretty little guy. It is always so exciting have a new visitor - hope he becomes a regular!

Barb said...

Congratulations Beth! What a beautiful little bird! The cross stitch is also very pretty. I love that series.

Brigitte said...

Oh my, this finish is so beautiful. Great colours and motifs. Love this series.
Great yellow spots on the little bird.

Chris said...

Woohoo! Great pics of your new visitor.
I am loving the Cottage Garden Series.

Andrea said...

A lovely finish. What a cute bird.

Athena at Minervas Garden said...

What a beautiful bird. And I learned some new facts about warblers--thank you!

Pam in IL said...

That Warbler is so cute! I love your Honeysuckle finish, especially the flowers.

Maggee said...

How cute he is!! Love the yellow patches here and there! Thanks for the intro!

Melanie said...

He's such a cute little bird. The flashes of yellow are just brilliant.

Very lovely finish. BEES. :)

Shebafudge said...

What a gorgeous warbler. Such a pretty colour.