A Dramatic Change at the Suet Basket

I mentioned Monday that I have been seeing more activity at the suet baskets -- or at least at the widely preferred "Hot Pepper" cake. And the numbers are showing a dramatic uptick in visitation. This is a normal occurrence here every May, surely due to birds needing extra energy as their hatchlings grow towards fledgehood. Since May 1 I have now recorded ten species with the BirdCam:
* Red Bellied Woodpecker, Downy Woodpecker, and Common Flicker
* American Robin, Gray Catbird, Northern Mockingbird, and Eastern Bluebird
* Carolina Wren
* White Breasted Nuthatch
* Pine Warbler (shown in photo)

And the BirdCam photo counts are going up at a dizzying rate:
May 1: 22 photos taken at this feeder
May 2: 27
May 4: 56
May 5: 102

I'm going to have to toss the nonperforming (i.e. non-hot-pepper) cakes to accomodate the crowds. Not only will I add more daily visits, but a few more species should be joining the party (Brown Thrashers, Hairy Woodpeckers, and Brown Headed Nuthatches come to mind), and of course we'll eventually add juveniles. May and June are always a suet party around here! We should soon have more photos and stories to tell.