Tuesday, February 10, 2009

Evening Cardinals

It felt like spring here today with a high of 47 degrees--not a record, but we still enjoyed it. The winds finally died down later in the afternoon and it was quite lovely outside. Nice enough that picking up about 25 lbs of dog poop didn't even seem like much of a chore!

As I was setting the table for supper, I happened to glance out the dining room window and noticed that my evening contingent of cardinals had arrived. Isn't this fantastic? There are only 10 cardinals in this picture, but a couple on the feeder hanging up above this area and several more at the ground feeder to the left.
I don't think I'll ever get tired of seeing cardinals in my yard!


23 comments:

Heidi said...

ooo! i'm first :)

Wow, what incredible numbers of Cardinals!

And good grief, either Sophie eats like a pig, or it's been a couple months since you've seen ground and not ice.

Kelly said...

...I love seeing the cardinals at my feeders too. Whenever they arrive en masse, I have to stop and look. They are always the first to arrive in the morning, and the last to leave in the evening.

Lisa at Greenbow said...

Wow, that is a wonderful sight. We had warmer than usual weather yesterday too. This morning the wind is screaming that winter is not over yet.

Kim said...

What an incredible amount of cardinals in your yard. Such lovely color!

RuthieJ said...

LOL Red, Sophie DOES eat like a pig, but I think we've had snow since early December too. I really miss my other doggeh, but as I was picking up yesterday, I was glad there's only one this winter!

Hi Kelly,
I'm already at work when the morning cardinals arrive, but at least I still get to enjoy them in the evening. I don't suppose it will be much longer before territory wars begin and they won't all get along this well together.

Hi Lisa,
We had that screaming wind yesterday too, but it really took care of a lot of snow and even started drying out some of the high spots. It's nice to see the ground again.

Thanks Kallen. They're definitely a treat for the eyes.

Jayne said...

Holy cow Ruthie! Just look at all of them! I rarely have more than one at a time! Lucky you. :c)

Anonymous said...

All that red on the ground and at your feeders too!!!!! RED just in time for Valentines Day, enjoy.

Mom

KGMom said...

Ruthie--wow. I do love cardinals. Isn't it unusual for such a crowd in such proximity? Our cardinals seem a bit more territorial.
As for dog poop--interesting subject. A number of years ago, after our sweet English setter Wanda died, it was so heart breaking to go out and pick up her solid waste, knowing days before she had left it there, and now she was gone. A weird way to remember a dog--but they make such imprints in our hearts, which ache when they must go.

Jaime said...

Isn't it wonderful to see such a beautiful splash of color when the sky is a little gray. It always brightens my day to see those cardinals out of our windows too.

NCmountainwoman said...

What a sight! I've never seen more than 3 Cardinals at one time. I can't imagine seeing so many at once.

Anonymous said...

We get cardinals, but my little urban yard definitely doesn't get that many. I've been enjoying watching the pairs recently, too.

I don't suppose you want to come up and do my yeard, too, do you? :-) I got some done during the previous warm spell, but the yard is just gross and muddy right now. And I have two....

Dana and Daisy said...

That is a nice sight to see!

Diane AZ said...

That is unusual to see so many cardinals in one place. In my yard the most I've seen is one pair, in the wild, no more than two or three at a time. Great picture!

Marsha said...

Couldn't you leave a map out there so that some could fly a few hours NW? I think I would have a panic attack trying to find a camera if I saw cardinals like that in my back yard! Great shot and I agree with mom, I love that kind of red for valentine's day!

Larry said...

Holy cow! The vatican just sent out a search party!

Gaelyn said...

Love the cardinals. I finally have two pairs coming to my feeders, but they sure are territorial.
BTW, regarding hair loss on squirrels, I see this happen when they get people food, especially salty foods which also makes their check pouches swell.

RuthieJ said...

Hi Jayne,
Last winter when I was doing Project FeederWatch was the first time I noticed all the cardinals. I'm glad they're still all coming around this winter too.

Hi Mom,
I always wonder where these cardinals are hanging out during the day. I will sometimes see 3 or 4 pairs, but in the evening they all come out right before dark to eat together.

Hi Donna,
I don't think it's that unusual for them to be in larger flocks in the wintertime--I see a few short skirmishes from time to time, but I guess at this time of day they're more hungry than feisty.

Hi Jaime,
I remember when I worked at Wild Birds Unlimited, the #1 bird that people always wanted to attract to their feeders was the cardinal. I really like seeing so many in the backyard these days.

Hi Carolyn,
I think it's neat also to see so many cardinals together in one place.

Hi Danielle,
It's always a treat to see cardinals--especially in town!
Your dogs are Great Danes, right? I'll quit complaining about my spring clean-up chores now! ;-)

Thanks Dana.

Thanks Diane, glad you enjoyed the cardinals.

Hi Marsha,
They're really skittery--I grabbed the camera off my desk and crawled to the window. I was happy the picture turned out as good as it did considering how much dirtier the window is after our rain a couple days ago.

Hi Larry,
you crack me up :-D

Hi Gaelyn,
No territory wars starting here yet, but I'm sure it won't be long. Then my backyard will go back to a "normal" number of cardinals (maybe 2 or 3 pairs is all I had last summer)

Mama Pea said...

Glad you could get the pic of the cardinals, Ruthie. I'm so excited we've had the one pair all winter, can't imagine what it would be like to have your 'herd.'

Dawn Fine said...

So cool...I cant say I have ever seen that many cardinals in one small area at one time.

Susan Gets Native said...

I love our cardinals, too. The state bird of Ohio! (and seven other states, too)
I noticed that they are the first to show up in the AM and the last to leave in the PM. They must not need as much sleep as other birds.

RuthieJ said...

Hi Mama Pea,
I'm still amazed that you have cardinals that far north in Minnesota. Sounds like they really like your place and you're taking good care of them.
P.S. I started out with only 1 pair too.....

Thanks Dawn. I've seen pictures of more cardinals over at Mary's View in North Carolina.

Hi Susan,
When we're out hunting early in the morning, the cardinals are usually the first birds to start chirping too, literally at the crack of dawn!

troutbirder said...

It was a lovely day. Baron and I went hiking up and around on a snowmobile trail in Forestville. Few birds there though.

Mel said...

Soooooooooo many!!!