Winter Wonders

Here in the Midwest, winter's inclement weather has not been very conducive to nature photography. We have seen little of the bright, glorious sun, thus days are gray and appear monochromatic. So far, this season, the Chicago area has received over 50 inches of snow, making it very difficult to wander through nature preserves and bird sanctuaries. Frosty temperatures have also kept me indoors, as my fingers seem to be especially sensitive to the cold. Even though the weather has not been very pleasant, the birds have been most plentiful at our feeders. It's always a joy to observe the busy Black-capped Chickadees, tree scaling White-breasted Nuthatches and lovely Dark-eyed Juncos delighting in sunflower seeds. For this post, since I have had very few photo opportunities, I decided to look back into my archives to see what feathered beauties I was photographing last year at this time. Enjoy!

A sleek White-breasted Nuthatch surveys the buffet table

A sightly Tufted Titmouse perches amid bare branches

A Black-capped Chickadee selects the perfect cracked corn kernel

A pretty Red-bellied Woodpecker goes seed shopping

A curious Downy Woodpecker awaits my offerings

A solitary female Northern Cardinal on a cold winter day

The brilliant scarlet feathers of a Red-headed Woodpecker

Decisions, decisions ... which seed to choose? ~ Blue Jay

A well-camouflaged Brown Creeper spirals its way up the tree trunk in search of food

The lovely profile of a Dark-eyed Junco

Shelled peanuts are this White-breasted Nuthatches snack of choice