Enjoyed reading about all your different birds, Trudy. We don't let hunters come on our land either. And I think the deer know that, and hang out here.
Cute photo of your grandson and the turkeys!

A WEB-BASED FEATHER QUEST

There is a new web-based resource for the examination and identification of wing and tail feathers of our birds. The "Feather Atlas of North American Birds" already contains high-resolution scanned images of the flight feathers of over 110 species, including many grouse and quail, hawks and eagles, long-legged waders, vultures, owls, pigeons and doves, and woodpeckers. Each scan includes a table with specific data and measurements of feather lengths.

This is an ongoing project of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Forensics Laboratory, the only lab in the world actually dedicated to crimes against wildlife. This fascinating project is designed to continually add new bird species.

http://www.lab.fws.gov/featheratlas/

Those finches look really cool!  We have the house finches here, and occasionally another kind with more color, which I think used to be called purple finch but I which I think has a new name that I can't remember right now.

oooh.  I need to look into these name changes.  I am not the diehard birder that I used to be.

Things are turning cold here.  The change in the weather is going to start the birds moving fast.

Believe it or not, we get Rosy Finches here in the winter time.  Unfortunately, we have to up to an elevation of 10,000 feet to see them.  COLD!  But the lodge up at the top sets out feeders for the birds so the birders can sit inside, sip hot chocolate and watch birds. 

http://www.birds.cornell.edu/AllAboutBirds/BirdGuide/Black_Rosy-Finch.html

We get all three varieties.

Catbird, I'm still trying to get pictures of my cardinal family.  Unfortunately, the squirrels have really been hanging around my feeders more so they haven't been coming around as often.  I guess I'm going to have to get some new squirrel-proof feeders LOL!  One of the feeders I'm using is "supposed" to be squirrel-proof and I had a very fat happy squirrel hanging on it last evening

     I saw something interesting the other day.  I have always found it really hard to be around at just the right time to see Hummingbirds very often, and when I do spot them, they are just so fast that they are just a blur.  Well, the other morning I was in my kitchen looking out the window when I noticed 2 Hummingbirds fluttering around a big hanging basket of orange colored Impatiens on my back porch.  I was thrilled to see them, but what happened next was even better!  It was very windy that morning and they apparently were having some difficulty flying in the wind.  So, they landed on a couple of branches in the maple tree beside my porch to rest.  I had never seen Hummingbirds in person (so to speak  ) actually just sitting still and I was just fascinated by watching them swaying on the little branches of the tree.  They are so tiny and their bodies have a beautiful irridescent shine.  They stayed in the tree for a full 5 minutes at least before they again took off to look for flowers.  I wish I had been able to take a picture, but I am sure that if I had tried to open the back door they would have flown away, and taking a picture through the window never works very well.      Has anyone else ever seen a Hummingbird just sitting still?  I am thinking I may never see that again!   

Mandycat, last summer I had a hummingbird get stuck in my garage for three days.  I was so worried about him.  I have some pics and will have to look for them.  Anyways, we left the garage door open all day three days and only closed it at night, but he just couldn't figure out how to get out of there.  I even put a hummingbird feeder in the tree right next to the garage hoping to lure him in the right direction.  I had four people on ladders on the third day trying to corral him to the garage door opening.  I was afraid if we didn't get him out, he would die.  He did finally head the right direction and fly out to freedom after quite a bit of coaxing.  

I was like you, I had never seen a hummingbird sitting still before and it was so neat to get pictures of him perched throughout the garage.  I also didn't know they have quite a "peep" to them.  He definitely made some angry peeping noises when he was mad at us for trying to corral him out.  I felt it was a once in a lifetime experience.

  

Oh, wow, tesla!  What an unusual experience!   I am happy to hear that the outcome was good for the poor little hummingbird.  They require so much food for energy that he could very easily have died if he hadn't gotten out when he did.  Would love to see your pics if you can post them.