The benefits of managing our backyard as wildlife habitat are increasingly in evidence.
Various hawks visit periodically.
This year a pair of orchard orioles arrived with the northern orioles. After two weeks, the orchard orioles no longer appeared but the northern orioles have remained and are nesting. We are located at the northeastern edge of the orchard orioles' range. Each autumn, the wind carries the leaves to the edges of the yard under the trees and shrubs where a good duff layer is accumulating. Rich in insects and other invertebrates, this feature has attracted chipping sparrows and song sparrows.