Since Lin seems to be MIA at the moment, may I be the one to start the new Birds thread for March?
We came from here: The thread "Bird photos - February 2016" in Gardening for Butterflies, Birds and Bees forum
I even have some photos from today, as I had a new bird show up to eat my suet along with the squirrels.
Gray catbird, which is a first sighting for my garden

Blue Jay - I have a family of at least 4 that visits every day, very boisterous.

Ever-present mourning doves, but this was a particularly lucky shot. Wish he/she really was a statue instead of just looking like one.

Nice images Elaine congrats on your first sighting in your garden of the Gray Catbird nice Blue Jay and Dove as well.

Across the road from my house there is a Cherry Blossom Tree and i wondered why i always see Finches there and not in my garden,..watched them today and discovered they are eating the new buds on the tree.

Bull Finch.

Thanks for starting the new thread, Elaine, and with such great photos. I love the steely colour of the gray catbird - any idea why it's called a 'catbird'? The blue jay is gorgeous, very clearly a more handsome relative of the jay we get here. And the pic of the mourning dove is particularly sharp. I've never seen a mourning dove here, but we do get collared doves and the occasional turtle dove.

Nicely captured shots, Philip. I hope your bull finches don't strip the cherry blossom of all its buds!

Mika, I think the catbird is called that because its cry sounds like a cat. Can't verify that yet as I don't think I've heard it sing. Here's a link you might enjoy:
https://www.allaboutbirds.org/...

I also have mockingbirds in my garden that sometimes follow the cat around and chirp sharply. "Cat! Cat! Cat!! " They're very protective of their nests and will fly at humans if you come too close.

Your finches are particularly gorgeous, Philip and aren't they rascals for eating the buds of the flowering cherry! I wonder if there are bugs on the buds or something? I've never seen birds eat flower buds like that.

Elaine, thanks for starting the new thread. I have a catbird that occasionally visits my suet feeder too, and it's always a treat to see him/her I haven't been able to attract any bluejays to my feeders though - I see them, but I guess they're not interested in what I'm serving. The mourning doves, however, are not quite so picky. I love their cooing... so relaxing!

Philip, what a pretty color on that Bull Finch! The orange really stands out!

I have seen the birds eat the buds and blossoms on my crabapple and hawthorn trees many times, it is an important source of food for them in the spring.

Mika,..exactly what i was thinking,..lets hope they don't stick to that diet or i will see less blossoms.

Elaine,..thank you!,..last year was the first time i came across Blackbirds eating the Fuchsia flowers,..this year its Cherry Blossom Buds,..i did think perhaps there were bugs there but they had the entire bud in beak,..we keep learning something new.

Ibis,..thank you!,..some are more colorful perhaps when more mature.

Margaret,..nice to know its a source of food for them and you satisfied my bewilderment as to what the Bullfinch was up to,..even though i could see a bud in beak i still wasn't convinced,..you seeing the birds eating buds and blossoms on your hawthorn and crab apple trees confirms convinces me,..as mentioned last year i couldn't believe what the Blackbirds were doing until i kept watching and could see them scoffing the Fuchsia blooms.

Philip, I would not be very happy if I saw Blackbirds eat my fuchsia blooms, it's not like a big tree.

Now that I'm thinking about it, birds must change their diet through the seasons, according to what's available. Guess seeds and bugs are pretty darned scarce in the early spring, so it's "whatever looks good" ? I can't imagine there would be a whole lot of nutrients in a flower bud, but . . better than nothing.

Luckily, here we have bugs all year round, and there's usually lots to eat so I haven't had any birds eating flower buds. I did have some body snacking on my snap peas yesterday, though . . .

Margaret i keep forgetting that not everyone has a Big Fuchsia Tree like mine sometimes i sit on a chair under mine,.. its nice and shady when in the very warm weather in the left corner.

Elaine,..was it you

I get notified of the latest YouTube videos from "Sven",..a German chap,..some of his videos interest me though this latest one i thought was very fitting for the Bird Photos Thread,..its of a Falcon on his window sill after it captured a bird,..a close up view.

Video===The Falcon

You have to click on the article to see the photo, but we have a very rare Great White Pelican visiting Florida for some reason. Not only should it not be in Florida, it's not supposed to be on this continent. A mystery, for sure! Also, I did not realize how much bigger they are than other pelicans! And other pelicans aren't exactly small!

http://santivachronicle.com/Co...

glengarry23 said: Margaret i keep forgetting that not everyone has a Big Fuchsia Tree like mine sometimes i sit on a chair under mine,.. its nice and shady when in the very warm weather in the left corner.

Philip, that is awesome, I would sure love to be able to grow a tree like that here. Definitely enouth to share with the birds.

Melanie - Wow! That is amazing to see such a rare bird! I take the preserve is in Florida where this bird is sighted?

Melanie - very exciting about the Great White Pelican! And over on the west coast, no less. If it flew over from Europe, you'd think it would have stopped somewhere closer, like the east coast! I hope they can figure out the mystery.

Yes, Becky the Ding Darling preserve is on Sanibel Island near Ft.Myers about 80mi. south of me. What a fun mystery and unless somebody comes forward with evidence or video of the bird ?? on a ship maybe? How are we ever going to know how it got here?

It may have gotten caught up in a storm, injured and blown out to sea, I suppose. But you'd think it would end up in the Bahamas, West Indies, Puerto Rico, or Cuba before it got all the way here. Maybe there are more of them out there??

Yes, really exciting about the Great White Pelican - can it interbreed with 'ordinary' pelicans? What a wonderful creature, and a dramatic picture with its wings spread.

Philip, the falcon in the video is a handsome chap - can't say I think much of his table manners! And impressive fuchsia!

Melanie,..great link what a rare treat for Florida Bird Watchers,..it is a bigger bird indeed.

Mika,..that Fuchsia was from a cutting some 10 years ago,..its still reaching for the sky,..ah the Falcon,..gorging itself on the meal and not bothered by the camera at all,..confident enough to then have the recommended nap after a meal terrible sloppy feeder with no table training whatsoever