Monday, February 16, 2009

More Siskin than you could ever want

I want to know how long these bullies....I mean these pine siskin birds are going to stay!


Siskins taking over my feeder!


Siskins taking over my thistle!


Siskins taking over my trees!


Siskins trying to be cute!


Siskins in the snow!


The siskins need to go! (P.S. Just kidding - but they really need to be nicer to my Red Polls!)

27 comments:

Kelly said...

Shelley...you're killing me! I'm dying down here for just one...and you're flooded. Very funny post. You made me laugh!

Betsy Banks Adams said...

Oh I've got them also, Shelley----TONS of them every single day!!! ALL day long!!!! I think we must have at least 40-50 of them off and on all day. I hope they leave soon---but where do they go???? I'm afraid I may have them forever!!!! ha

Hugs,
Betsy

sandy said...

ahhh love the Siskins. They are so adorable!

Anonymous said...

I don't know...Most of my dark-eyed juncos are gone, but I still have a few siskins. They almost make the starlings look easy going....Michelle

Gardener's Garden said...

They're on my feeders and all over the ground and everything looks brown.

Wildflowerhouse said...

But they are cute.I'm sure they will get some manners soon. My squirrel Chester took on a blue jay yesterday. The jay was stealing his stash and instead of running away he stood his ground. To my amazement the jay backed down. I'm thinking Chester needs a red cape. What do you think? Sharon

KathyB. said...

The siskins are pretty spunky here too, but they are pretty and the squirrels and jays don't intimidate them, thus allowing the chickadees and nuthatches more opportunities to grab a seed or two or three! The siskins are pretty too, some give off a bit more flashes of yellow.

hillgrandmom said...

Your bird feeder is really so, so beautiful.

Kim said...

LOL Shelley, I love the 3rd photo as it looks at you all innocently.

I would be beside myself if they were bullying the redpolls I had in my yard too. They can't scare the redpolls away, I need to see more of your glorious pictures of them!!!! ;o)

Anonymous said...

Sweet photos. Terror comes in tiny packages sometimes, huh? Like Harriet (our doxie) whose shorter than the cats; she acts like she's a Doberman!

Carol- Beads and Birds said...

I get a ton of these year round. But I never saw a Red Poll. I have to look into them. Maybe I have them and don't know it. Well the Pine Siskin can stay. Long as the Grackle stay away!

Anonymous said...

I don't think I have ever seen a Pine Siskin before but then I might have had them and thought they were a finch or something else. I really like your photography.

Thanks for visiting and commenting on My Birds Blog.

Abraham Lincoln
Brookville Daily Photo

Unknown said...

I have never hade a Siskin in my yard. I wonder if they come to northern Ohio. - Pigeon

jalynn01 said...

I'm laughing and crying at the same time. These little buggers as cute as they are sure are a pain in the butt...I wish we could ship them off to those who have none...and then they would see... hahaha

Ruth's Photo Blog said...

Sounds like you are over run by Siskins.They are fiesty and all but if it were not for the Siskins in winter my feeders would be far too quiet.
Blessings,Ruth

NCmountainwoman said...

We have them in abundance here as well. In fact, I took down the thistle feeders to try to discourage them. That seems to have reduced the number, but there are still far too many of them.

Mary said...

They don't have to try to be cute...they are cute :-) They do seem more aggressive then the goldfinches they hang out with. Great shots!

Deborah Godin said...

So you're stuck on the siskin channel - all siskins all the time? Too funny, hope they learn to share!

Jenny said...

You have a bad case of siskinitis! I guess they'll be gone come springtime (which isn't tooooooo far off)! (-:

FAB said...

You should be so lucky...lucky..etc.
FAB

Shelley said...

Kelly - expect a UPS delivery of 30 of them! :-)

Betsy - I think they have a bully club! ha,ha!

Sandy - They are cute - but when there is a bunch of them they become like locusts on my feeders!

Rambling - I concur w/ your comparison!

Gardener - I really do think they are like locusts!

Sharon - Chester definitely needs a red cape! Brave boy!!

Kathy - I will concede to their cuteness but my chickadee gang was protesting their presence quite noisily the other day.

Hillgrandmom - Thank you! That was a gift from a good friend!

Kallen - can you see the smirk in their eyes??? LOL!

Mildred - you said it best! Terror in tiny packages! I guess I will quit complaining about my 20 mourning doves!

Carol - please send one (now just one) grackle over to me. And I will send you 10 siskins and 1 red poll. Fair trade? :)

Abe - before I kept confusing the siskin w/ a female house finch - until I saw the flash of yellow. Thank you for your kind comments!

Elise - I believe you have them too! you're not too far from me.

Jalynn - you UNDERSTAND ME completely! Thank you! LOL!!!

Ruth - you're right - I should appreciate their busy activity! my kitty sure does when he looks at them out the window!

NC - I thought about removing the thistle - but I didn't have the heart to take it away from my goldfinches and red polls.

Mary - mine are definitely more aggressive than the finches.

Deborah - I think I have siskins in my car!! LOL!

Jenny - the 1st day I saw them - I was thrilled. Flash forward a couple weeks with them pushing my poor little red polls, goldfinches and chickadees off my feeders - and I am becoming more stern w/ them! :)

Early Birder - I want to send some to you too! :)

Tina said...

Shelly,
I will gladly trade you your siskins for those gosh awful starlings that have invaded my feeders..the only thing nice about their arrival is that they usually have 3 or 4 red-wing black birds with them. I actually stopped putting out feed a day ago..they clean me out so fast..hoping they goooooo away soon!

mon@rch said...

love seeing the siskins! Bravo job on the photos!

Chris said...

Woow.... As Kelly said, I'm also dying to get one over here.. I only saw two last year and was quite lucky as they almost landed accidentally on my lens!!!
You know what, maybe they are preparing to visit Iceland!!! Well, then you have the occasion to take good pictures, that's cool!!

Jayne said...

I've been deluged with them too Shelley, and am quite ready for them to stop skeletonizing my feeders! :c)

Connie said...

It's an invasion!! They are cute though. :)

Leedra said...

I think they are the ones eating all the birdseed so fast.

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