New Year's Day Birding - Part 2

The weather on New Year's day was on the sunny side, which afforded good light for photography. When I returned home, I spent some time out on the porch looking at the birds that frequent our backyard.

The first one I spotted was a Towhee in the Blackberry bushes.


Spotted Towhee - Backyard, North Delta BC - 2018 Bird #11

The most common bird in our yard is the Black-capped Chickadee, there's a few that are year round residents.


Black-capped Chickadee  - Backyard, North Delta BC - 2018 Bird #12

A real surprise was a smallish bird in our Apple tree. At first i thought it was a Bushtit, but they always travel in groups. Even better, it was a Golden-crowned Kinglet, a bird I did not see in 2017. Ironically, in 2015 and 2016 I saw this bird on New Year's day.


Golden-crowned Kinglet - Backyard, North Delta BC - 2018 Bird #13

Here's a better look at the Crown.

Another common backyard bird is the Pine Siskin, a member of the Finch family. When they appear in the yard, they come in numbers and are dominate the seed feeder.

 

Pine Siskin - Backyard, North Delta BC - 2018 Bird #14

I decided to make a quick visit to the Nature Trail in Burns Bog. 

I was hoping to see some woodpeckers and perhaps a Varied Thrush.

However all I saw of note was this Towhee.

Spotted Towhee - Burns Bog, Delta BC - 2018 Bird

Just as I was making  my way back to the car, a Bald Eagle flew over. By the time I reacted all I got of the bird was part of the wing. But it was my first eagle of the year.

Bald Eagle - Burns Bog, Delta BC - 2018 Bird #15

I had a nice start for the year, the Kinglet was a huge bonus.