Congratulations on a bird "first", that's always exciting.

Here in 7b tufted titmice are wonderfully common, they stay all year and like to pal around with chickadees. One thing we like about them is their behavior at the winter feeder. They and the chickadees will fly in, take one seed, and fly to a nearby branch to open and eat it. It seems so courteous and gracious, compared to the finches that will just sit there and eat seed after seed not letting other birds get anything.

I have a lot of finches around here, and last week I saw one lonely sparrow, which is odd, since they usually travel in packs. I don't put out feeders because I'm trying to attract pollinators and butterflies, and I don't want the birds to eat them all.

I saw a bluebird the other day sitting up on the power line. They are so rare in SW FL, but I've seen several here. I still love my mockingbird, though.

Just saw a yellow throated warbler, but he wasn't around long enough to take a picture of. I love when all the birds start coming home!

Sounds like you're getting a lot of winter visitors. Thanks for sharing the pic of the titmouse, they are so dang cute.

I've had better luck raising bluebirds down here than I ever did in Ohio. The sparrows were so numerous up there and they would destroy the eggs and take over the nest boxes. I had a few instances of the snakes getting the eggs down here (even with predator guards) until I wrapped the poles with sheet aluminum and sprinkled lime all around the base, no snakes since then. I get at least two broods per box every year. And, in colder winters, southern flying squirrels take up residence in the boxes :)

A first for me today, 'tho it may seem ordinary to others: a mockingbird eating a black berry from my taller (9 ft), more in shade, sparse, FireBush (Hamelia patens). I was sitting a few feet away eating lunch on my open front porch. My beauty berries disappear from their bush, but I have yet to see a diner in the act.

Ohh I might have seen one of those, I thought I saw a small Blue Jay the other day and thought how weird to see one so much smaller than normal. It was starting to get dark and since he was smaller I figured it was a young fella so that was why he did not have as much color or markings. (or maybe I did not have my glasses on, I really forget I cant see so well)

rvird01, I almost adopted a flying squirrel from a friend who breeds them. I hand-raised a grey squirrel once. So sweet.

Irma, mockingbirds are my favorite birds by far. There are so many more exotic, but mockers have the best songs and are so intelligent. I had one at my old house who would wake me up singing every morning, or he'd peck on the TV antenna on the house next door right outside my bedroom until I came out and fed him. I grew an elderberry just for the birds, and he used to sit there eating and singing for hours.

SMC, you probaby did see one. They are in abundance down here in the winter.

My cardinal couple is back too. Saw them yesterday. I want to put up a feeder, but there are so many squirrels and the feral cats are bad too, so I'm just going to plant things that feed them.