FOTO FRIDAY: IT'S FOR THE BIRDS...AND US

Do you remember  zoo/ amusement park visits where animals would eat out of their trainer's / audience participant's hands?   Those dolphins/ sea lions at Sea World/the  Chicago Aquarium and Florida's Parrot Jungle where exotic birds would perform tricks and be rewarded for their efforts. It was impressive as a child and an adult. 

Well, even without a plane fare we locals can enjoy our own more local Nature feeding show. This past sunshiny Monday I shared the  winter serenity with friend Colleen at Goose Island County Park located along the Mississippi backwaters 10 minutes from my back door.

Although winter humanoid visitors now mainly frequent hiking paths, close to the now vacant RV camping area is a bird feeding station area.  We had the place to ourselves with the birds.

The birds know it's the place to be and after word gets out that those humans have brought food, the nearby tree limbs fill with feathered friends awaiting their turn to share in the feed. I had brought sunflower seeds while Colleen had cat food. Yep, birds do like cat food and they don't have to be catbirds. Hardy har har.

Red bellied woodpecker (CS)

The red bellied and downy woodpeckers were more standoffish/timid and ate off post tops less than 3 feet from where we stood. 

It was the titmouses, nuthatches and chickadees who were ready to use our fingers for a perch as they decided which sampling was theirs and ate directly out of our hands...

 

The longer we were there the bolder the different birds became as more arrived.

A bird in the hand is worth 2 in the bush...( photo by CS)

There were some squabbles occasionally as to who was there first but they did have a 'pecking' order. (Another attempt at a little bird humor)

Eventually the warm glow of feeding lost out to the cold. You know how there's always the disclaimer: "Please do not try this at home." Well, hand bird feeding is definitely exempt. By the time I returned home I already was thinking about trying this out at our main feeder. 

Stay tuned as it's for the birds and ... us.