A Little Ornithology

Okay, so I'm not officially in the "science" of studying birds - but lately, we've been a little enthralled by them. By sitting in one of the couch facing the back patio door, you get a pretty good view of the evergreens, that are often times the chosen "hide and go seek" locale for some pretty cool birds. Take these two, for example:



I'm almost positive that they are both Western Tanagers, migrating north this time of year from Mexico. (This information brought to you by our local paper and a conversation Brayden had with his science teacher about a really colorful bird trapped in their gym one day). Living on the west coast, we do not have cardinals, so seeing any birds with red on them is pretty dazzling. I get excited about seeing red-winged blackbirds. (And, just in case you don't remember my "bird background" - I actually was part of an animal behavior class in high school where we were quizzed on id'ing a lot of birds. Much of that knowledge is lost now, but I consider that class to have been one of my favorites....and taking this "rabbit trail" even further, I actually had the grandson of that teacher in the class I subbed for today!)

So, back to colorful birds. We spotted these two yesterday bouncing around in our tree. I think we tried to capture them on camera on three different occasions - they were fine to stay where they were as we looked at them through the glass, but once one of us got outside, they'd fly away. Finally, we got some good shots. I'm pretty sure the one with the berry in its mouth is the male and the female is the one in the tree - this assumption based entirely on the general rule of thumb that the more colorful gender in birds is the males.

Wow, who knew you'd get a lesson on birds from The Cozy Corner today? I just get a kick out of wildlife in general, and between these guys and the squirrels running crazy down our fence lines, it just makes me a little bit giddy in thinking summer's on its way. Brayden announced today that this is his last 5 day week....21 days left for the two of them. Woo hoo!

I hope you've had some fun visits lately from feathered friends, furry friends, or friends in general that have started your weeks out with a smile too.