LIFE'S BETTER IN THE MOUNTAINS

Wednesday, March 18, 2009

Purple Finches in the Rain

The birds are singing loudly and pairing up. We are so happy to see so many birds nesting in our woods. This year, for the first time we have Purple Finches. They have been hanging around for quite a while and I am hoping they will nest nearby.

This week brought some welcome rain...more than two inches of gentle rain over two days. I love to watch birds in the rain, especially birds as lovely as the Purple Finches.

A male and a female recently shared lunch in the rain.








The female kept her eyes on me most of the time, but she stayed to eat with her mate anyway. I just love this time of year!

28 comments:

Cedar ... said...

What great shots you got of the finches. I never have such luck, they always fly away. Guess I have to be more sneaky and quiet to get close to them. We're due for rain here in the Adirondacks today.

Lynne at Hasty Brook said...

I love birds in the rain too!
Can't wait till the Purple Finches get back up here. I've never seen one here at home, but we have them every year up north at Hasty.

Betsy Banks Adams said...

Aren't they gorgeous, Carolyn? We don't have Purple Finches (I don't think)--but I've seen quite a few House Finches this week (that I hadn't seen all winter). I have a hard time telling the difference in the female finches.. I read the differences and 'think' I know them --and then a different-looking one will come along.... Sure does keep me 'thinking'.... ha

Have a great day. Glad you got some rain also.
Hugs,
Betsy

Dog_geek said...

Lovely pictures - here's hoping that this pair stays close and nests near you! I haven't seen any purple finches at our feeders.

laurie said...

how do you get these shots? they're rather amazing. you must have quite a long lens, and a lot of patience.

Melissa Weisbard said...

Beautiful photos. I just love watching the birds.

robin andrea said...

Your photos convince me that some of the finches we had in Washington were definitely Purple Finches. They really are distinctively different from the House Finch. These two on your feeder are quite the sweet looking couple.

The Birdlady said...

Gorgeous finches, and I see you have a squirrel buster...Isn't it great?

Carol Murdock said...

Wow! As always, great shots!

The Zen Birdfeeder said...

I just love the color of purple finches and you've captured the color well! Ours are just returning.

grammy said...

This makes me want to put up some bird houses. The girls would love them.

Kerri Farley said...

Oh I do love to see birds in the rain!! Your purple finches are LOVELY!! And I am glad you are getting rain. It rained for 5 days here....but I am very thankful we got it!!

Ruth said...

They are such beautiful birds! Nice that your got a male and female together. I saw my first male today ever and was very impressed with its colour. I will never get House Finches mixed up with Purple Finches again.

Kim said...

Another fan of birds in the rain here!! Great finch pictures. I have only had a female here once and never a male. Very pretty birds!

Shelley said...

I think that is the most purple and beautiful male finch I've ever seen!! Love it!!

Jeannette StG said...

You have the talent to make your photos tell the story! Thanks for visiting my blog:)

Cicero Sings said...

For the first time today we saw geese ... hopefully they are a precursor to more birds to come.

Jayne said...

WOW Carolyn... he is reeeeally purple! Beautiful shots of the man and his mate!

Unknown said...

The purple finches are everywhere right now! My feeders are full of them, but like "Cedar" they always fly away if I'm too near by (or at least close enough to take a picture. I need a better camera...)

This Is My Blog - fishing guy said...

Carolyn: Those Purple Finches have so much more color then the House Finch. I wish I had some of those.

Evita said...

These are great shots! It is great to see a male and female together like that to really see the difference in their colors and feathers, etc!

The birds are wonderful indeed now that spring is around the corner, they are chirping away happily indeed!

Naturegirl said...

Beautiful! I've only seen the yellow finches in my world!

Dave's Bird Watching Blog said...

I always thought it was difficult to tell male house finches from purple finches, but not anymore! What great color they have!

How far are you picking UNC without Lawson being 100%?

eilajean said...

Thanks for stopping by. Your neck of the woods is beautiful! We did a family reunion at Emerald Isle a few years ago. I could do with out the humidity LOL. Your photos are stunning. Thanks for sharing,

eila

Tina said...

I don't think I have seen a purple finch with soooo much color!! He is gorgeous. You're right that little girl finch definitely was keeping her eye on you..ha ha
Great shots!

Leedra said...

The male Purple Finch is so vibrant. It seems odd that they don't gather in a tree for protection from the rain, but sometimes they are at the feeders more during the rain.

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NCmountainwoman said...

Thanks, everyone. Especially thanks to Zen and Lynne for helping me identify the Purples in the first place.

Laurie - I use a 70-300mm lens for most bird shots. And yes, usually it takes a lot of patience, but sometimes you just catch them.

Helen - Yes, we love that particular feeder. Not terribly attractive, but the only really squirrel-proof feeder we've come across.

Dave - We have to take UNC all the way despite Lawson's toe. After spending 8 years there, my husband wouldn't have it any other way.

Leedra - Thanks for dropping by. We have bubbles over some of the feeders and the birds really like to sit under them when it rains.

George said...

You got some wonderful pictures of the Purple Finches. I hope they will stick around your house and that you will get more pictures to share.