Posts in: Birds

House Finches are gorging on shriveled up elderberries in our backyard A small bird with red undercarriage and head perched among branches with dark shriveled elderberries, partially obscured by a blurred blue tarp. The bird’s beak is stained by the berries.


A Lesser Gold Finch gorging on sweet basil seeds in our backyard A small bird with grey and yellow plumage perched on dry, brown stems with wilted leaves, amidst a few green sweet basil leaves. The bird has a beak full of black seeds. A small yellow-bellied bird with a beak full of seeds is perched among dry plants and foliage. An orange pin flag is partially visible among the greenery in the background.


Welcome back, small yellow bird! #Birds #WarblerOrNot #BirdWatching #Fujifilm #SOoC 🪶A small yellow bird is perched upside-down on a grape vine, pecking at a cluster of shriveled red grapes against a backdrop of green and orange leaves. A white metal trellis supports the vine.


Today we made a quick visit to the Sacramento National Wildlife Refuge. There’s no missing the White Fronted Geese now and there’s still plenty of dragonflies but there’s no significant population of migratory songbirds yet #SacramentoWildlifeRefuge #BirdWatching #Dragonfly #Fujifilm #SOoC A dragonfly with transparent wings featuring dark patterns rests on a vertical reed, set against a background of dry, intertwined reeds. A large flock of White Fronted geese rests im a wetland area surrounded by water and tall grasses. The landscape includes trees and distant rice hulling silos under a clear blue sky.


Inspector Woodpecker was quite enthusiastic about this eucalyptus #Birds #SacramentoWildlifeRefuge #NorthernFlicker #Fujifilm #SooCA black and white woodpecker is perched on the trunk of a eucalyptus tree, surrounded by green foliage.


At the refuge, the only newcomers are white crowns and white fronted geese. But I only photographed a Black Phoebe that just pooped and a rather brave squirrel. #SacramentoWildlifeRefuge #BirdWatching #BlackPhoebe #Squirrel 🪶A small, Black Phoebe is perched on a barren, leafless branch against a clear blue sky. The branch extends across the photo and ends at the center where the bird is. A falling drop of bright white bird poop is barely visible below the bird. A ground squirrel standing on its hind legs next to a fallen Willow tree with branches, in a dry grassy environment.


For now, here’s an urban Black Phoebe #BlackPhoebe #Birds #BirdWatching A small bird is perched on a tree branch amidst dense green foliage. The bird has a black head, back, and wings with a light-colored belly. Dappled sunlight filters through the leaves.



The temperatures are in the 70s and it is quite overcast with clouds and smoke. So we took advantage of the fall-like weather and went to Black Butte Reservoir. Here are Western Grebes, a Double Crested Cormorant, a Robin, and an Osprey A group of Western grebes swimming in a body of water. The image is taken from a distance, showing the long, curvy necked  white and black birds spread out across the water’s surface. A cormorant flying low over a body of water with its wings outstretched. The water surface appears calm with gentle ripples, reflecting the bird’s silhouette. A red breasted Robin sits in a bush with red berries and green foliage. It has a speckled white and black face. An osprey, white and brown, is perched high on top of a utility pole surrounded by power lines. The background is a green orchard with some dry grasslands. Large trees with dark green foliage is visible on the left and right of the bird.


I guess this is one way Scrubjays cool themselves off? All splayed & fluffed out with its beak wide open. This jay is very comfortable around us so it often hangs out under our patio messily gorging on seeds for caching elsewhere. It likes to bravely stare at us 😆 A blue scrub jay bird has its wings spread out, feathers fluffed out, near a rectangular container filled with birdseed on a sunlit concrete surface. Dried vegetation and gravel are visible in the background.


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