Birdwatchingandmore
62 Leaside Drive L2M 4G5 Saint Catharines, ON, Canada

Was in Kitchener yesterday helping my son finish up the small details of a bathroom reno. Heard this racket outside and it was a "murder" of crows. Must have been 200 of them. They were right across the street in the trees and by the time I got my phone for a picture, they'd moved down the street. If you enlarge pic, the top of tree is loaded.

This morning my heated birdbath was empty of water. Instead it was full of mourning Doves.

I've never seen a flock of mourning Doves before but I had 19 in my yard yesterday. They usually come in pairs as they mate for life but I know our resident hawk caught one. At one point most were sitting in our walnut tree at the end of branches and looked like ornaments all puffed up against the cold.

I'm talking on the phone yesterday on my back veranda, and a sharp-shinned hawk lands in my tree in where my feeders hang. No wonder I have no birds right now. An owl at dusk and a hawk during the day. I got right up to him before he'd leave. Our place has become predator central.

Had very few birds in our backyard the past few weeks. My neighbour told me yesterday, he's seen a great horned owl in our tree for the last few days at dusk. I've heard it but not seen it yet. No wonder the birdies are staying away.