Power Outage

We're having very high winds today (gusts of 100km/h). I worried the power would go out, and it did.

I'm at work and noticed the cam went down around 2:00pm Atlantic time (1:00pm EST). Hubby called me a few minutes later to inform me that a power line is down and lying across the road just a little ways from our house. He couldn't get home, so he was calling the power company.

Not sure when we'll have the cam back up. We may be down for the rest of the day!

(Temporarily) Warmer weather!

..Wait.. isn't tomorrow February 1st?!

After at least two weeks of miserably cold weather (-29C/-20F), we're finally getting a break.

What a shock to wake up to all of the snow being melted away, and the thermometer reading +17C/62.6F. We went from needing to wear at least 3 layers of clothes, to being able to walk out the door in a t-shirt and undies (as my husband did this morning to take out the trash!).

It's really nice to have a break in the snow and cold. It's pretty uncommon to have such a "balmy" day during a time of year when we're usually experiencing our coldest weather!

We have to enjoy it while it lasts though..it's forecast that the cold weather will be back by Saturday.

The cam may not be as lively today, since the birds will have more natural food sources uncovered on the ground right now. Enjoy what visitors we have :)

Hark! Who goes there?

a small tunnel between the feet of the owl statue

For anyone who was watching the cam late last afternoon, you probably saw me taking pictures and digging around.

You see, after filling the feeder, I came inside and turned on the cam to see a little critter wandering around by the owl statue. When I looked closer, I saw that it was a Star Nosed Mole! 

The mole, hiding in the statue!

The little fellow had dug a tunnel underneath the owl statue, and was living inside of it (there's a hole in the bottom of the statue, which is hollow). I briefly lifted the statue to take a quick photo of him, and then quickly put it back in place, as to not further disturb the little guy!

Strangely enough, moles do not eat seeds. They are insectivores! It must be hard to find food during the winter when the ground is so frozen!

I hope he sticks around!

Grosbeak alert!

A visit from an Evening Grosbeak.

I can't help but get excited to see an Evening Grosbeak at the feeder! I *think* this is a female..although it may be a male with more drab, winter plumage.

Either way, it's nice to have another visit from them! It seems that whenever the bad weather strikes, a Grosbeak arrives to cheer things up!

Keep an eye on the cam! You may get a chance to see one!

Another new visitor!

Common Redpoll with Chickadee in background.

How exciting! Yesterday, I was lucky enough to have the day off from work. I was lounging around the livingroom when I noticed a flock of birds hanging out in the trees above the cam.

When I checked the cam, there were about 10 of the little buggers eating and perching and fighting with chickadees.

At first I didn't recognize them, so I consulting the bird book that my husband got me for Christmas (Formac Field Guide to Nova Scotia Birds). Finally I concluded that they were Common Redpolls! The males were gorgeous with their pink tummies and red crowns.

Unlike most winter birds that are here year round, these birds only visit our province in the winter months. Here's to hoping they stop by our feeder again!

These birds were VERY friendly. I was shocked that I could get so close to them to take photos. After some extra research, I learned that they are one of the most curious and friendly birds you can encounter. They very often will eat out of your hand with little coaxing!

For more pictures of the visitors, check out the gallery!

Featured on uStream!

We've only been with uStream for a few days now, but we're already featured on their front page under the "Winters Wild" grid!

I feel very accomplished!

I hope you're enjoying our new broadcasting with uStream! Don't forget to like us on Facebook and share us with friends!

Back up and running!

NovaBirds Cam is back up and running! Just in time for 5cm of snow later this afternoon. Brrrr!

Technical difficulties

Unfortunately we're having some internet connection issues today. Hoping to have the cam up later, but it's hard to determine if the problem will be fixed by then.

Stay tuned, will try to get it back up ASAP!

Changes

I'm currently testing out uStream as a new method of broadcasting our cam.

I love Camstreams, but uStream has a few more options that I think will enhance the "viewing experience."

With uStream, our cam can be viewed on Smart Phones using the uStream app. Also, there is the option to go full-screen when viewing, which a few people have expressed the desire for. The downfall is that there are ads, but I don't find them to be too much of a nuisance.

Please leave any feedback you have about this change.

An Exciting Visitor!

Male Northern Flicker at the seed feeder.

It's amazing how unpredictable birds can be. This morning I got a surprise when I opened the cam at work to see a curious Northern Flicker investigating the seed feeder!

We have lots of Northern Flickers around our property during the summer months. They're commonly poking around the yard, looking for insects under the lawn. In the winter however, they're less common...and even less common than that is to see one on a seed feeder. Typically if they visit a feeder, they'll go for suet, as most woodpeckers do. This guy must have been pretty hungry! I didn't see him sample any of the seed, but he looked like he was seriously considering it.

The Flicker challenges a Hairy for the
suet rack.

He flew off shortly after, and I figured it was just a fluke that he stopped by. Luckily a while later he appeared again, this time bickering with a hairy woodpecker over the suet basket. Maybe we'll be able to keep him interested in our feeders and he'll become a regular visitor!

If any of you spot him while viewing the cam, feel free to send a snapshot to nova.birdcam@gmail.com and I'll add it to the gallery! To take a picture, simply press the "Print Screen (PrtScn) button on your keyboard and then Paste (Ctrl +V) into a program such a paint.

Stay tuned! Hopefully this fellow will become a regular!

Nova Squirrel Cam?

First of all, HAPPY NEW YEAR! I hope everyone had a fabulous New Year's Eve and wish you a great year ahead!



Scram and his buddy pig out.

The Nova Birdcam is currently pretty buried in snow. We had quite a blizzard on the 29th-30th of December...and we're now in a cold snap (-20°C with windchill!) so the snow won't be melting any time soon.

Yesterday, the cam was taken over by that pesky little Scram...and this time he brought a buddy along with him! For a good couple of hours, he and his friend hogged all the seed and kept most of the birds away.

They must be in a food coma now, as I haven't seen either of them today. Just lots of birds!