The calendars for 2027 are live in my shop now. There are three formats, and the wall calendar comes in different sizes. Personally, I think the wall calendar (the rectangle) makes the photos look the best. The 12 x 12 is nice too, though. The desk calendar is a lot nicer and bigger than one would anticipate but it does not have the holidays and the info on the bird names. Choose your fighter, first sale is from Halloween to Election day!
https://www.createphotocalendars.com/Shop/ostdrossel

It is the middle of October, and I am finally done with the calendars for 2027. You will get 13 beautiful photos with birds and critters from my yard from the past year and, depending on what format you choose, info about holidays as well as the names of the animals shown. As always, I tried to stick with seasonal photos from the respective months. I'll post a link once it's live. The economy still sucks, so prices are exactly as in previous years and there will be sales. #birds

Quick, everybody pose in front of the Serviceberry! This bush has turned to be one of my favorites, and I can only recommend every birdlover to plant one. It is pretty in almost every season, blooming white in spring, getting red berries in summer and turning orange in fall. It was nice to have the migratory flock around again too, one Grackle looked extra special with some leucistic sprinkles. #birds (more pics on the Patreon)

I think I got some of the Orionid meteor shower last night. I slowed the clip down where some occur (some is also aircraft, I think). Battery died before the day broke. #timelapse

Birds are still migrating through, and today, a merry group of Grackles, RWBB, Cowbirds and Starlings visited and used the amenities. Starlings love to bath, no matter what the temperature, and they leave a mess. I would love to hear if there is an explanation for their love of water. One RWBB looked extra cool with a much paler head.
Sidenote - does anyone know if there is a software that can spoil videos for A I as well, like there is for photos? #birds

I have also continued to take more photos by the tub. There hasn't been as much activity as I hoped but the George Costanza squirrel and the pissed off chippie made me lol

Surprise guest of the day was a Redwinged Blackbird, and it is so nice to finally see some more woodpecker action. Even a Downy came. These guys all hang around but they have not come to cameras or feeders in the last couple of weeks because nature is full of food for them. For those that may be wondering - I am working on the calendar this week and hope to be done by the weekend. #birds

It's always funny to see their reactions when something gets changed. Skelly is out and about, helping to feed the birds 💀 (This is the Humbirdy feeder cam again.) #birds

A fun fall weekend is coming to an end. The sun was shining, and bird activity is slowly picking up a bit. I like this harsher light with the colorful leaves in the background, it makes the birds pop. Soaking in every sun ray before the permacloud arrives 🙂These are mostly regulars, except for the Cowbird, who I think traveled with the Grackle. #birds

The weather was gorgeous today, and I did not have pressing deadlines, so I planted some more native flower seeds and worked on a furniture refinish I have been playing with. I saw more Juncos, the Carolina Wren, and a Grackle! (The water is murky from Black Walnut leaves and got replenished.) I hope it sticks around for a bit and also visits feeders. #birds

Happy to report that the Juncos have made it here today. I felt like I heard them all week but never spotted one. There was also a Carolina Wren, which I see rarely, and at night, it's the opossum sibling show right now. These were taken with the FlexCam. I did put my thick downy comforter in today too, so if there is another heat wave coming, you can blame it on me 😛. (I had a ton of work this week but hope to do the calendar this weekend.) #nature

It looks like maybe I could put a tub photo in the calendar after all. This was just an experiment today but it is not too shabby. We will see if with these unusually warm temperatures the birds will show up though, it is still super duper slooow. It feels weird to have the leaves changing but still being out there at almost 90 degrees when the mind is getting ready for fall 😐️ #birds

When I saw this silly little tub at the thrift store this weekend, I had to get it 😆 These are the first visitors, I hope one of them will also take a bath. For whatever reason birds really seem to enjoy individual offerings of water as well as food. I guess they cut out the competition a bit. #birds

I took some much needed time off and spent this weekend with family in the beauty of northern Michigan. The night sky was amazingly dark and I put a camera out. My ISO was too low, the angle is a bit off and there is some light pollution for a bit but you can still tell how awe-inspiring it was. It was good to be away from the computer, my nagging tennis elbows even eased up a bit. Back to work tomorrow! #timelapse #nature

New feeders always take their time, which is even more pronounced right now, but I am finally seeing a bit more action and variety, here at the Humbirdy feeder, including kissies from a Redbellied 😄. I've heard some Grackles and RWBB this week, and this morning, one of them visited there too. Come good into the weekend! #birds

The other day I found some Cedar berries and added them to the crooked tree. Another fruitless attempt to get the elusive Cedar Waxwings in front of the lens 😆 I am holding out hope and in the meantime the berries are still getting devoured by some other connoisseurs. #birds

TW *Spider *
A couple of days ago, I spotted this big spider in the flower patch and put a camera there because I was curious what it does. This is a large one, an orb weaver, but I am not entirely sure of the kind. I find spiders fascinating but do not really want to go too near, so a camera is perfect to watch. Every night, it destroys the web and makes a new one. Daytime is too windy for good footage. #bugs #timelapse #nature #spider

Finally some "new" birds! In the last couple of days I heard this one but had not seen him on camera - the White-throated Sparrow. I only see these guys during migration times, and I think they are so cool. They are native sparrows and love to forage on the ground by jumping back and forth like the Juncos. And the Titmouse is sticking around! #birds

Fat Bear Week may be over but I have another contestant here 😆 #nature