We've had these birds around the feeder for the last few weeks. At first I thought they were Black-headed Grosbeaks, but they don't have black heads or conical bills. But they do have crossed bills and they were feeding in the conifers. Although most of the pictures show them as more red or pink whereas these ones are more orange. They are common but I don't recall seeing them before.
They eat the sunflower seeds, but they aren't very patient. If they can't crack the seed right away they throw it out of the feeder and take a different ones. Luckily we have a couple of pigeons that come and eat the seed that's fallen on the ground.
One of the first times I saw them at the feeder I grabbed my camera to see if I could catch them. (Leaving a pot to boil over on the stove!) Moving slowly, I managed to get quite close, which was good because I hadn't taken the time to put on the big telephoto.
As I took photos of the one at the feeder, I felt bits of vegetation falling on me from the tree above. At first I just thought it was from the wind but it seemed a little much for that. When I finally looked up, there was another of the same birds feeding in the tree. The following photos were taken looking straight up.
It looked down at me curiously.
It was a little hard to tell what it was feeding on. I'm guessing the buds for the new needles?
These photos are all of males. The females are less colorful. There are at least two males and two females around. I've also seen them in the back yard. Perhaps they have nests nearby?
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