Surprise Insight

I have mentioned in earlier posts that from time to time the BirdCam provides surprise evidence of things I did not expect. This past week I had a little fun aiming BirdCam at a section of deck railing below a suet basket to see who serves as a cleanup crew for the many crumbs and pieces of suet knocked loose by the oh-so-sloppy woodpeckers (and others). There were many photos of Catbirds and Mockers and Robins -- all expected -- but to my astonishment I also espied one of my premier seedeater species (Northern Cardinals) enjoying bits of suet as well. This is a behavior I hardly expected of these birds. I shall have to look at this much more closely through the summer, and perhaps find a means to over this protein-rich food to those unwilling to deal with suet baskets.