Sunday, August 25, 2002

All Shook Up

Yesterday I looked out the kitchen window and saw an interesting bird sitting in the tree out front. It was pretty large--about the size of one of our Scrub Jays. He was preening all of his feathers and sat there for about ten minutes. It almost looked like a cat had gotten a hold of it because it was "all messed up." The poor thing had some kind of ordeal because its feathers were all cockeyed and crooked.

It had an all brown face and eyes and a long tail with white underneath. It had black feet and a long thick black bill. The closest thing we could find to it in the field guide is some type of Kingbird. But it also could have been some sort of Flycatcher, which it also looked similar to.

This morning in the backyard we saw a pair of European Starlings again. They are really incredibly beautiful birds with spots and iridescent colors that shine in the sun. I can't help but wonder if they're the same pair we saw in the same spot a few months ago.

Saturday, August 17, 2002

Coastal Dreams


Stayed the night in Fort Bragg on the coast. We saw lots of seagulls. There are about 27 different types of gulls in my field guide and it is difficult to determine what specific types we saw because some look so similar.

While exploring the tide pools at a state park, we saw a group of Black Oystercatchers. They made quite a lot of noise, probably to protect their babies from us. The babies were very brown.

We also saw some small type of blackbird rummaging around the parking lot at a nearby marshy lake. The closest thing in the field guide is the Eurasian Blackbird because of the orange eyes.

Saturday, August 10, 2002

Camping...

We went camping in Mineral at Gurnsey Campground. Saw lots of Scrub Jays. They sure are aggressive. They stole bread scraps and peanuts from the chipmunks!

Sunday, August 4, 2002

Kamikaze Hummingbirds

We constantly have Anna's Hummingbirds at our feeders. They're usually in pairs in the backyard playing, dive-bombing and chasing each other through the obstacle of trees in our yard. They chase each other through the patio making us duck down! One I saw today had an all red shiny head with a white stripe around his neck and the rest of his body was green. I also see the mostly brown ones that I assume are the females.

It's so hard to get a really good look at these magnificent little creatures because they move so quickly. I've also seen all green ones, too. The pictures online and in the field guide are hard to match to what I've seen.

I put some bread scraps around all three feeders and all the birds seem happy to have found it. The scrub jays are scavenging in the back yard now. Insects must be easier to see in the freshly mowed grass.

P.S. I haven't heard the mockingbirds for about two week now. Can't say I miss their obnoxious behavior!