Winter Birds

White throated sparrows migrate north to breed each spring, returning sometime in October to spend their winters here (and further south).  They are one of a handful of birds that sings all year so when they return, they bring their beautiful flute-like songs.  And there is nothing quite so nice on a snowy winter day as hearing the ethereal song of the white-throat!  This is one of two common color morphs with dark brown and tan stripes on the head.  The slightly more common color variation has vibrant white stripes on the head - stay tuned.  

I met up with two friends at the Wildlife Refuge this morning where we enjoyed a nice walk along the marsh.  Unfortunately, the Refuge management has drained most of the water from the marsh to allow for reseeding certain plants.  As a result, there are way less ducks and waterfowl that we usually see this time of year.  And, of course, we haven't had any rain in a month, so that doesn't help either.  Still, we saw loads of sparrows and a full assortment of raptors.  And although it was much cooler today, it was still very enjoyable to be out in the sunshine.

We are past the peak of fall foliage now although there is still a decent amount of color.  This image was taken on our cherry tree which has just started getting its fall color.  Some years they cherry trees finish with some brilliant oranges - hoping for some of that color, but time will tell.

My mom is having surgery tomorrow to release her "trigger" thumb.  It should be a simple and quick surgery only requiring local anesthesia.  Then she will have to be patient while it heals - which won't be easy!

Off to pick Jax up soon - he's been playing with his doggy friends today, no doubt having a great time.

xo
Debbi