Anybody who calls me while I'm at my home office knows exactly where I am. That's because birds are consistently singing in the background. I have cockatiels and parakeets -- and let me tell you, those parakeets chatter in 50 languages. It's not like I can say, "Hey, I'm driving down the freeway to an appointment." Callers hear the racket and know I am sitting in front of my computer monitor, slaving away.
The birds sing even louder when there are other birds in the yard, and we have plenty of bird activity around homes in Land Park. You can see them better in the fall, when the leaves have dropped. And each bird has its own category, from punk rockers to Hells Angels and various times of the day that they make an appearance. Here is a peek:
This is a Mourning Dove. I can hear their soft coo-coo's when I go out to pick up my morning newspaper from the front steps. They also like to perch on telephone wires and taunt my cats. Lately, they've taken up residence in my cactus garden, sitting on the ground cover bark. When the morning sun breaks through early fog, they disappear to who knows where.
They guys, the Scrub Jays, are the school principals of the yard. They'd snatch candy from a baby's hands when nobody is looking. My cats like to watch them because they are big and colorful. Although, I've read that they aren't really blue -- that their color is a reflection, but I don't care what the experts say, Scrub Jays are blue.
In Land Park, we see these White-Crowned Sparrows in the winter. They are a migratory bird. They suffer from an obsessive-compulsive disorder, always pecking the ground and counting seeds, lining them up before deeming the food fit to eat. Lots of people see these as brown birds and never notice the white streak over their eyes, but if you look closely, you will find them in abundance at this time of year.
I lived in Land Park for five years before I spotted my first Cedar Waxwing. I think of them as Grateful Dead followers because they seem so carefree, happy-go-lucky, and tend to travel in groups. You'll spot them sitting quietly in large numbers in a tree on a busy street corner, with cars buzzing by, but you might need a binoculars to identify them. Cedar Waxwings are very cool birds in my book.
This is a baby Mockingbird. You will find the babies in the spring in Land Park, but the adult Mockingbirds are year-round. They're the Barbara Streisands of birds, capable of hitting all the high and low notes, and you never know what might come out of their little beaks. Mockingbirds aren't always nice to each other, and they tend to take on the Scrub Jays.
This is a male House Finch because he has a red breast and head. The female House Finches are brown. They're the punk rockers of Land Park, running around with a different tune in their head that changes abruptly changes from a loud clanging to a slow melodious softness. I've watched them do somersaults around each other.
Ah, and last, we have the Hells Angels of Land Park: the crows. They generally swoop in around 4 PM (just before the sun sets) in wildly large numbers, revving up their little motorcycle engines and scaring away all the other birds. They completely take over the trees, ca-cawing loudly and dropping crumpled Budweiser cans that they've smashed on their little bird foreheads on to the ground.
As always, if you'd like help with Land Park real estate, give me a call. I specialize in classic homes and am a resident of Land Park. I'd love to help you.
The Short Sale, by Elizabeth Weintraub, coming from Archer Ellison in January 2009.
Photos: Big Stock Photo
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Certified HAFA Specialist
My Sacramento Real Estate Listings
Elizabeth Weintraub is an author, home buying columnist for The New York Times-owned About.com, a Land Park resident, and a Land Park real estate agent who specializes in older, classic homes in Land Park, Curtis Park, Midtown and East Sacramento. Weintraub is also a Sacramento Short Sale agent who lists and successfully sells short sales throughout the four-county Sacramento area. Call Elizabeth Weintraub at 916.233.6759. Put 35 years of real estate experience to work for you. Broker-Associate at Lyon Real Estate. DRE License # 00697006.
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The views expressed herein are Weintraub's personal views and do not reflect the views of Lyon Real Estate.
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Looks like we have many of the same species in our neck o'the woods here in TX as you do Elizabeth.
One of my favorites here that wasn't in South Florida where I'm from originally is the scissortail flycatcher - just the coolest things - their tail feathers actually separate as they hover in flight catching flies or whatever bug de jour they want.
I've also actually seen a cedar waxwing literally fall out of a tree 'drunk' on berries - I thought it was dead but someone informed me that some of them gorge so much on berries they will pass out sometimes. I still have a hard time believing that one ;-) but hey, if they really are Grateful Dead followers stranger things have happened...
I believe it, Karen. I can totally see a Cedar Waxwing eating so much that short of exploding it would pass out. One of my all-time favorite birds is a puffin. But you don't see those in CA. They make a sound like a bazillion tiny chainsaws.
Those pictures are fantastic! What kind of camera do you use?
We also enjoy all the birds in our yard during the winter months we have several feeders full of birds it does seem comforting.
My favorite bird is a Whippoorwill. I love to hear the calling in the Georgia evenings. My grandpa could call to them and get them started. I miss that.
Elizabeth - After living in the Arctic for quite some time, I forgot that there were birds, and completely lost the kid's knowledge of what they are called.
This is a wonderful encyclopedia for me. A few species I wanted to put a name to, like Scrub jays. They are protected here, and if you got them on your lot, you may be out of luck.
Hi Jason: I recently traded in my Kodak EasyShare for a Nikon, but I didn't shoot those photos.
Hi Terry: A friend of mine who lived where it snows used to hook up a heated watering dish for the birds. Do you do that in Michigan?
Hi Tammy: I never thought I'd turn into a birder, but since I like to look at birds and identify them, I guess that's my fate. You know what bird call I love? The loon!
Hi Jon: What about Arctic terns?
Scrub Jays, as you know, are very similar to Blue Jays, but are a different bird and aren't found in CA. I like brightly colored birds because they are easier to spot. We also have Northern Flickers, which are a very large woodpecker-type bird (about the size of black crow), and the males have red heads. Their breasts are spotted. Sometimes they peck around the ground, but most of them hang in trees.
Gorgeous pictures! I remember one year a large flock of Cedar Waxwings came through my neighborhood, and feasted on Pyracanthia berries. They absolutely got drunk on them, and crashed into windows, giving us worry about whether they would be ok, or not.
See, Myrl, I tell ya, Grateful Dead followers, those Cedar Waxwings.
Elizabeth
Nice posts. You are so talented you should work for National Geographic.
Sincerely
Tom Braatz
These are awesome pictures. My favorite out of theses is the Cedar Waxring.