I
posted something earlier today (here on Blogger) in honor of one of the February 3rd holidays known as
The Day the Music Died Day. And at the conclusion of that post, I stated,
"I will be back later today to discuss another holiday happening on this day, which is up lifting, and is one that's for the birds, so stay tuned."
As promised, here I am, with information re the additional holiday for today that I was referring to in the aforementioned post. It's the holiday known as
Feed the Birds Day! According to Holiday Insights (HI), this "celebration" always occurs on February 3rd; and in honor of the day folks should
"help the wild birds in (their) backyard to survive the long, cold winter by feeding them. (And HI claims) that's exactly why this special day was created. Mid and late winter are especially hard on all outdoor animals. By mid winter, food sources become scarcer and scarcer for the wild birds that over-winter in your backyard. What little food that is available, can get buried under deep snow. (And they also proclaim that) the bird feeder that (one places) in (their) backyard, in view of (their) picture window, may be entertaining to (them) as a bird watcher. (But) it is also vital to the survival of birds in harsh winters."
My day started out with my hearing a
cardinal singing in my urban garden, which as you may know, is on a
rooftop in
NYC. I have not seen a cardinal spending time in my place for quite sometime, due to major building construction that has been taking place near to where I live. And I was thrilled to hear the cardinal's voice, but alas, by the time I got my camera adjusted, he was gone. I know the bird was a he; because I was able to get a glimpse of his vibrant red coloring, before he made a complete exit.
I certainly hope cardinals return to my place, especially since I helped a female cardinal, Cam, publish her book,
Words In Our Beak Volume One, which details her experiences re being a bird in NYC!
And I've also helped her with sequels awaiting publication (stay tuned for updates re this matter).
Although the nearby construction has deterred a number of bird types from coming here, I have seen cardinals (both male and female) in nearby
Central Park, where I took the photos that are atop this blog entry.
Be that as it may, for even though I missed getting a photo-op of the brilliant red of my cardinal who came by this morning, I did get a chance to see birds with red coloring in my garden today, including male
house finches (who as you may know are red) who were dining with their mates at one of my
bird feeders!
Moreover, a red-breasted
American Robin, stopped by to nosh on the seeds, as well as the suet cakes and grapes that I was "serving" in my bird-bistro!