`    Photo Study Of An Anna's Hummingbird And Some Other Birds In Berks County, February 3rd, 2011

    I promised Joan Silagy some prints of the Yellow-throated and Pine Warblers that I was able to photograph earlier this week.  But as long as I was headed to Blue Marsh,
    why not check out the Anna's Hummingbird that Scott Weidensaul banded last November 21st and I had photographed last November and December at the Mountain Springs     Campground in Shartlesville. I arrived at about 10:30 AM and positioned myself at the rear of M-69 where the homeowner has been maintaining two heated feeders.
    At 10:55 AM the first ever confirmed Anna's Hummingbird in Pennsylvania flew in and I was able to photograph her all over again. The hummer came in once more at
    about 11:35 AM and I then left for Blue Marsh. The Anna's is known to be exceptionally hardy and this one appeared healthy and active. I guess she must still be finding
    insects at the sewerage treatment plant across the road as well as drinking the liquid sugar water being provided by some of the homeowners in the community.

Anna's Hummingbird

    The Campground is also home to a female Yellow-bellied Sapsucker which was working some of the hardwoods near the front office.

    But the Blue Marsh Recreation Area was not going to be outdone by Shartlesville. Upon arrival, Joan Silagy was pointing to a Merlin perched in a tree twenty feet from the
    parking lot.

Merlin

    And a Brown Creeper too...

 Brown Creeper

    Of course, the Yellow-throated Warbler was still there enjoying Joan's peanut butter/lard mixture.

but it was Joan's senior citizen puppy, Sidney The Wonder Dog, who made our day by discovering an Opossum doing a walkabout out on the snow.

    To see a larger image of any of the photos below, please click on either the thumbnail or the caption...thanks!

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