Tag: Eastern Towhee female

JONES RIVER SUNRISE AND YO MAMA, WHAT’S FOR BREAKFAST?

Posted on by Kimsmithdesigns

I have been hoping to take a photo of a female Eastern Towhee, and here she is, with a mouthful of breakfast for the nestlings! She hopped from tree limb to tree limb with her treasure, ta-weeting all the while; no small accomplishment while tightly clamping down on that big bug.

Look at the beautiful white-tipped underside of her tail feathers

Pretty sunrise over Jones River Marsh

Snapshot of a male Eastern Towhee taken several weeks ago in the same location. I wonder if they are a pair? It’s unlikely we’ll get to see the nest. Female towhees build their nests on the ground and they are well-camouflaged, being made of bark, twigs, and dried leaves. There is a dense tangle of undergrowth where I am filming and it’s probably fraught with ticks, so on the path I stay.

A few more from this morning sunrise over the river

SONGBIRDS FROM DAN ALLEN’S BEAUTIFUL GARDEN

Posted on by Kimsmithdesigns

Friend and East Gloucester resident Dan Allen sent along these wonderful snapshots of recent visits by songbirds in his beautiful garden. Dan’s garden is abundant with wildflowers, food, and welcome shelter for birds, bees and butterflies. Thank you Dan!Nothing common about this gorgeous little warbler, a male Common Yellowthroat. Yellowthroats migrate north from winter homes in Florida, Mexico, and the Caribbean.

Yesterday I posted photos of a male Eastern Towhee. Dan’s photo is of the female! Wherever the male’s feathers are black, the female’s are milk chocolate brown.

The Rose-breasted Grosbeak is another nesting migrant to Cape Ann. They eat fruit, seeds, nuts, insects, and especially Love sunflower seeds. Only the males have this striking feather pattern; the female’s feathers are shaded in quiet tones of gray, tan, and brown. During the winter months, Rose-breasted Grosbeaks live in the Caribbean, and Central and South America.