Date:         Sat, 9 Feb 2002 18:56:44 -0500
Reply-To:     rsmithent <rsmithent@EMAIL.MSN.COM>
Sender:       Georgia Birders Online <GABO-L@LISTSERV.UGA.EDU>
From:         rsmithent <rsmithent@EMAIL.MSN.COM>
Organization: Microsoft Corporation
Subject:      Good feeder birds in Baker County

Greetings again -

    Today was the first day I worked at my desk overlooking the feeders in
some time, and I had a really good time watching all the birds.
    The stars were the ground doves - at one time I had 17 ground doves
feeding on the ground & platform feeder.  The males now have a pink sheen
that makes them look really good.  They are obviously thinking about
breeding, because they were constantly harassing each other.  A bird would
spread its wings and chase another birds, sometimes as many as 6 birds at a
time involved.  Sometimes, they would only raise one wing, and sometimes
two.  They looked like a tiny schooner rocking with the wind with their
wings raised to expose the rufous undersides, a shiny neck & breast, with a
pink beak to serve as a prow.  Sometimes, two birds would tie up beak to
beak in a flutter of wings.  After eating their fill though, they retired to
separate areas to sun.

Other birds:
    20+ northern cardinals
    4+ Eurasian collared doves
    3+ mourning doves
    3 house finches
    1 red-winged blackbird
    6+ tufted titmice
    2+ chickadees
    25+ chipping sparrows
    5+ white-throated sparrows
    1 white-crowned sparrow
    2+ red-bellied woodpeckers
    2 Carolina wrens
    3+ yellow-rumped warblers
    1 northern mockingbird
    3+ American goldfinches

All in all a good day - and then found wild turkey tracks on our afternoon
walk.

Robert Smith
Baker County
rsmithent@msn.com