...Not a Hummie!

Just when I think I have completely surrendered to hummie-madness, along comes a big, beautiful black vulture to steal my heart - just for a day. I was up at the crack of dawn this morning and since I didn't have a meeting until 11, decided to go out and walk some of the trails at Kittatinny. It is always nice to be out along the lakes and in the woods early - you just never know what you'll see. Today I saw a new bird (for me), a red eyed vireo as well as a tattered dragon and a soaring swan and a hellishly scruffy looking mockingbird. However, when I rounded a curve in the trail, looked up, and saw a pair of black vultures catching some early morning sun, I was a goner.

So, I know that vultures are not everyone's favorite bird - after all, they eat dead things, as opposed to catching their own prey. And they can be pretty scrappy. However, there is something a bit special about the black vultures (as opposed to the more common turkey vultures). For one, they are prettier than their turkey-ish cousins. And, they mate for life, which is pretty cool. They sometimes travel with flocks of turkey vultures, and you can always tell them apart because they are slightly smaller, have black heads, and grey-ish blue legs. I thought this one had a bit of a come-hither look, perhaps to charm her/his Wingy mate?

I also took a litle video of Mimsy enjoying dinner al fresco in the garden, if you'd care to have a peek! The Hummers were a bit aghast at her table manners. As for me, I was afraid she was going to try to sample the fingers that were holding the iPhone...

Thank you so much for all your comments, stars, and hearts that sent yesterday's hungry hummer to the Spotlight page. I feel fairly certain that tomorrow will see a return of the hummer blip ... you've been warned!

Have a happy Friday, blippers!