Bird Haven

09/09/2026

The monarch butterfly migration has started. Each year, North American monarch butterfly migration brings millions of insects on a journey of up to 3,000 miles from Canada and the northern United States to specific overwintering grounds .

09/09/2026

Am seeing a few young males.

09/09/2026

09/09/2026

In the Shadow of Dusk. They show up right before Sunrise and still here just after Dusk.

09/09/2026

THAT CARDINAL PAIR AT YOUR FEEDER MAY HAVE A STORY YOU NEVER KNEW.
If you regularly see the same male and female cardinal together, they may not be random visitors.
Northern Cardinals often form long-term pair bonds, sometimes staying together across multiple breeding seasons.
And watch the male closely.
He may pick up a seed, fly over to his mate, and gently pass it straight to her bill. It looks almost like a tiny kiss—but it's actually courtship feeding.
Even more surprising: female cardinals sing too, something relatively unusual among North American songbirds.
So the next time that familiar pair appears at your feeder, don't just notice the bright red feathers.
Watch what they do. ❤️
You might be watching a pair that has shared the same territory—and each other's company—for years.
💬 Do you have a cardinal pair that visits your yard regularly?

09/09/2026

The Garden Almanac
The chickadee on the feeder this week is taking one seed at a time, flying off, and coming straight back, and that is not indecision. It is filing.
Every seed goes into a different crack of bark or curl of leaf, thousands of them across the yard and the woods behind it, and by October the part of its brain that holds the map has grown by about a third to fit them all. Come spring, the map is thrown out and the brain shrinks back. It has been doing this every year of its life, in your yard, at a weight of eleven grams.
The nights are the hard part. It spends them alone in a tree hole ( I have seen about a doz or so go into one woodpecker hole at sun set ), and on the coldest ones it turns its own thermostat down twenty degrees and shivers till dawn to make the fat last. Then the first mild morning in February it climbs a branch and whistles two clean notes, and that is the whole winter, survived.
Keep the sunflower seed coming. Half of what it takes today is for January.

09/09/2026

The Hummingbird Migration is unreal this year. It's looking like it may come to a big drop tonight with a NW wind. The bird have been trapped here with a S wind for the last week or so. Hate to see it come to a end but with 10-12 feeders out I could use a break. 15 lbs of sugar in the last week alone. The feeder in the photo is the one the birds like the most , I have four of them out and all four get filled first thing in the AM and late PM they need refilled.

08/19/2026

BLUE JAY SCOLD: THE BACKYARD ALARM SYSTEM
What to watch for
When blue jays suddenly become loud and agitated around an oak tree, don't just look at the jays. Watch the rest of the yard.
Their calls can alert other animals that something unusual—or dangerous—is nearby.
What is a group of blue jays called?
A group of jays is called a scold—a fitting name for their loud, persistent calls.
Why are they making so much noise?
Blue jays are highly alert birds. When they spot a predator or other potential threat, they may produce repeated, harsh calls.
Other animals can hear these warnings and react:
- Squirrels may freeze or retreat.
- Chipmunks may disappear into their burrows.
- Small birds may leave the feeder.
- Other wildlife may become unusually quiet or cautious.
Scientists describe this kind of behavior as eavesdropping: animals listen to alarm calls made by other species and use that information to assess danger.
Try this the next time it happens
Instead of chasing the jays away, pause for a moment.
Look toward the trees.
Check the fence.
Watch the ground around the feeder.
You may discover that the jays noticed something before you did.
Loud, rude, and surprisingly useful—the blue jay may be the neighborhood's unofficial alarm system.
Some scold. 🐦

08/19/2026

This is our local Wildlife Rehab Rescue . 1512 131 Avenue, Lake Park, IA, United States, 51347. PH # 1 712-832-9509 .