Birds
Yesterday: Red-winged Black Birds at the local wildlife refuge. Likely some Starlings in there too.
A ravenous Yellow Rumped Warbler visited our grapes again. Eat up, little bird!
This Yellow Rumped Warbler (Audubon’s) is yet another bird feasting on our raisins. Yesterday’s Ruby Crowned Kinglet might actually be an Orange-crowned Warbler. No bars on its wings! 🤷♂️
Ruby Crowned Kinglet (update on 12/17: more likely a Orange-crowned Warbler, as the Kinglet has bars on its wings, this one — the Warbler — does not). Such a lovely chirpy & frenetic bird.
I am super excited to now have the XF70-300mm telephoto lens. I’ll no longer feel crazy constrained taking pictures of birds and aircraft (mainly). Bonus that it is rather good at close range for macro.
Western Mockingbird foraging for raisins in our backyard.
Got a Kinglet in one place for a few moments!
Some kind of Kinglet, maybe a Ruby Crown Kinglet, in the grapes this time. Was moving fast as birds do.
Western Mockingbird enjoying a desiccated grape in our backyard.
Backyard House Sparrows - 84mm equivalent & cropped to zoom, using those X-T5 40 Megapixels! I am planning to get a 200 mm lens in a few months & really start birding.
More signs of Fall with flocks of birds migrating overhead.
The very first storm of meteorological Fall and White Crown birds have already descended upon our backyard. It’s cool that they prefer our warmer backyard to cooler stormy mountains. We’ll see them consistently until June. Welcome back!
Eurasian Coots in the Pagodenburger See at the Schloss Nymphenburg in Munich.
A very comfy Eurasian Collared Dove. Glad our backyard can be a refuge from the neighborhood outdoor cats
Spotted a Hooded Oriole in the front yard as we we started an after lunch walk. What luck. A first!
Mockingbirds are going to have an amazing late summer of grapes from our cultivated California grapes. These have an amazing assortment of bugs too. Still have ladybugs in them. 🌱
Pineapple guavas have been blooming for a few weeks now. The Mockingbirds love munching on the flower petals.
Area scrub jays have really got the hang of our feeder. Although, recently one jay tried to peck at the seeds through the transparent canister.
Eurasian Collared Dove drinking party.
After weeks of warmer than normal weather, weather swung the other way and we had freezing temps for a few days. Had to cover up the weaker & less freeze tolerant trees. I don’t see damage to my earlier than normal blooming trees yet: all citrus, all stone fruit, one avocado 🌱🤞
