#295: Birdies, Part Two

An active day at the bird log

One of my favorite little birdies is the spotted towhee. Alas, I hear them far more often than I actually see them. Unlike some other birds whose preference is to sing loud and long from the tops of trees and bushes,¹ spotted towhees prefer to hang out amongst the leaves, where they’re difficult to see. I was thrilled to get a few shots of one singing a couple of weeks ago, especially with its red eye clearly visible.

Spotted Towhee

I went up to the bird log in the Sandias last week for the first time this year. I hung out for close to an hour with very little bird action. Finally a group of people came along, chattering non-stop in low voices. I thought, “Now I’ll never see any birds.” I was so wrong — all the birds I’d been hearing finally began showing up.

Male Cassin’s Finch and Yellow-Rumped Warbler

There’d been a small bird flitting about in the leaves that I couldn’t quite see and definitely couldn’t photograph. All I could really sense was a general rosy hue. Once it finally came out onto the log, I managed to get a few shots of a male Cassin’s finch. The bird on the right is a yellow-rumped warbler, the only one I saw that day.

MacGillivray’s Warbler

I got a couple of shots of another bird which I thought was probably also a warbler but which I knew I’d never seen before. I was correct on both counts: it was a MacGillivray’s warbler, which I’d never even heard of previously.

Female Northern Flicker

Best of all was when the flicker couple I’d been hearing the entire time finally decided to grace me with their presence. Not both at once, of course, but I was grateful simply for the opportunity to see them at all.²

Male Northern Flicker

They took turns sitting on the exact same branch.

Male Northern Flicker

I was thrilled to have a chance to see the beautiful red chevron on the back of the male flicker’s head, and thought the way it so perfectly echoed the shape of his bill was a truly masterful touch on Mother Nature’s part.

1. Here’s looking at you, curve-billed thrashers and scrub jays.

2. I think flickers are ultra-cute.