Refuge Greeters

It's always nice to receive a warm welcome when you arrive at the Sacramento National Wildlife Refuge!

This Black Phoebe was on the sign, waving us in...

And this Say's Phoebe was right there on the other side of the road, doing his part to welcome visitors, too!

And here's a bonus pic of a Red-tailed Hawk and his impressive nest, just down the road...

Sacramento River National Wildlife Refuge ☼ Codora Unit

We took a walk through the Codora Unit of the Sacramento River National Wildlife Refuge, looking for songbirds...

Here a few of the swallows' nests under the overpass...

The birds were tough to see, even with no leaves on the trees, but they sure make a lot of noise!

Ruby-crowned Kinglet

Bewick's Wren

Black Phoebe

And when we arrived at Packer Lake, guess what we saw! Our very first beaver sighting!

Visit my travel blog, Vaughn the Road Again, for more about the refuge and to watch the video highlights from our walk!

Land Right Here!

This spot in my backyard is getting some serious bird action!

Besides the Sharp-shinned Hawk that landed here last week, I've spotted quite a few backyard bird visitors in this very same spot...

Western Meadowlark

(Keep in mind that these photos were taken through my tinted sliding glass door!)

Male Western Bluebird

And he even brought his girlfriend along!

Female Western Bluebird

These adorable little guys are one of my favorites and I always have a tough time getting photos of them in the wild because they are so quick. And here I'm taking pictures of him from my couch!

Yellow-rumped Warbler

And, because it's always nice to see birds in motion, I took some video...

Blustery Day ☼ Backyard Sharp-shinned Hawk

It was a dark and stormy night...

Nah, not really. It was a rainy afternoon and the wind blew a disheveled Sharp-shinned Hawk into my backyard! The poor guy took a few minutes to get his bearings and then he was back off to brave the weather and go hunting...

(Please excuse the quality of these photos--they were taken through my tinted sliding glass door!)

Luckily, I managed to get some video, too! The wind was really blowing his feathers around, and the yelp he let out at the end shows just how irritated he was by the weather!

Moment of Zen ☼ American Dipper Edition

Today's birding moment of zen is brought to you by Lassen Volcanic National Park's resident American Dipper of Manzanita Creek!

More bird videos...

American Kestrel ☼ Hunting & Hovering

This American Kestrel was hovering so quickly that my camera's focus could barely keep up!

Birds of Colusa National Wildlife Refuge

Here are some of the birds I've spotted during my visits to the Colusa National Wildlife Refuge throughout the seasons...