Birds

I went out to fill the bird feeder (a never ending job!) and found a dead Yellow-bellied Sapsucker on the ground below our picture window. Very sad. The black and white patterning on the wings was lovely, the belly a subtle yellow. The name has become a joke, but it's an attractive little woodpecker. (The photo is from Baja)

It's estimated that over 100 million birds are killed by windows every year. And my bird feeder is right out in front of our picture windows - nice for me to watch, not so good for bird collisions. We have vertical blinds which should help. I rarely find dead birds below the window, although I do hear them bang into them occasionally.

I saw some Mountain Bluebirds yesterday. They didn't sit still for long, but the brilliant blue stood out against the browns of autumn. Pretty little birds.

In Baja we saw lots of bright yellow Hooded Orioles and a few bright red Northern Cardinals (not that Baja is very "northern"). And less colorful but still nice were the White-winged Doves and Cactus Wrens. Most people aren't as thrilled by the Turkey Vultures, but they can sure soar! And, of course, we saw lots of pelicans, cormorants, herons, and gulls.