CARDINALS

For a few years, we've watched the birds at our back yard feeder. We saw a cardinal couple raise a baby last year and once again this year, they have a baby tagging along with them to the feeder.

I've read that the male feeds the female when they're courting, but I've seen them both feeding the baby, coaxing it up to the feeder.

Here's the daddy at the feeder:

Here are the mother and child:

And this is the squirrel who lurks in the background. He desperately wants to eat, but when he gets on it, his weight pulls the sides down and covers the openings. I see him every day, staring at the feeder as if he's trying to figure out how to get to the seeds. Then he'll shake his tail in frustration and leave!

This squirrel-proof feeder has been a good investment!

BIRDS WITH THEIR YOUNG

Looking out into our postage-stamp of a back yard:

Our lilies are starting to fade but are still pretty.

And this bird came up to the feeder the other day. I don't know what he is, but he has a splash of red on his wings that you can't see in the picture. We hadn't noticed him before or since. Maybe he was just passing through.

And I could not get a photo of our cardinals. Every time I tried to take one, they spotted me and flew away. A couple have been eating at our bird feeder for some time and lately, they've shown up with a large baby. Well, it can fly so I guess it's technically a fledgling.

What seems strange to me is that the mother and father feed it from the bird feeder. The baby sits on the table or a chair, and a parent comes down from the feeder and puts food into its mouth. A couple of times, the baby has lit on the feeder and seems to be eating, then she goes back to her old habits, waiting to be fed.

This has been going on for several days now. I'm wondering if the baby is a little slow? Seems like she ought to be able to feed herself by now.

But what do I know? Maybe this is what all birds do!