As the title of this blog says, it is the little things, if you are open to it, that make you happy. This little bird is a Brown Creeper on one of our backyard trees. The happy thing is that I have never seen a Brown Creeper in our backyard before and that makes bird species number 27 that I have now seen in my yard. Prior to Covid and my fall into birding, I would have said that their were 4 or 5 backyard birds that visit (maybe I would have said, sparrow (not identifying the various ones), robins, mourning doves and cardinals). Prior to Covid, I had never heard of a Brown Creeper and this is now the 3rd or 4th time I have seen one around the country, although the first in Illinois. I was grabbing lunch in my kitchen today and looked outside and saw this little one climbing up the trunk of the tree. The shot is taken though our backdoor window so a little bit more of a blur than I would like but no matter. It is a new local bird. Brown Creepers feed on bugs and such on trees so I don't know what it is doing in Naperville in the winter. I hope it can find some bugs to eat. I see from the internet that in the winter, they will eat seeds and suet, both of which I have in my bird feeders in the yard. So perhaps, that is what attracted the creeper. On the trunk, you will not see this bird well as it is very well camouflaged. (See the shot below.) You may have to look closely to see the bird. They tend to climb up the trunk and I was lucky to catch him (her?) on the trunk edge in the top shot, to give a nice separation from the background. So, bird number 27. In suburban Naperville. Who knew?
My 27 backyard birds (so far):
American Goldfinch, American Robin, Black-capped Chickadee, Blue Jay, Brown Creeper, Brown Headed Cowbird, Cedar Waxwing, Chipping Sparrow, Common Grackle, Common Redpoll, Cooper's Hawk, Dark-eyed Junco, Downey Woodpecker, European Starling, House Finch, House Sparrow, Mourning Dove, Northern Cardinal, Purple Finch, Red-bellied Woodpecker, Red-winged Blackbird, Red-breasted Nuthatch, Rose-breasted Grosbeak, Ruby-throated Hummingbird, Song Sparrow, White-breasted Nuthatch, White-throated Sparrow.
My first White-throated Sparrow of the winter season also showed up this week. Along with the Dark-eye Junco, also shown, are winter visitors. The House Sparrow is with us all year long.
