Junco madness!

I'm going crazy for dark-eyed juncos.  There's a pair nesting on the back patio, like they did last year.  I've also set up a birdbath (cough, old frisbee) and see them bathing daily.

I'm taking tons of photos, and probably getting my Facebook feed blocked from all my friends' timelines. Their loss!

Want some photos?  OK!

My only shot with Mr. and Mrs. I think that's the female on the right. I could be completely wrong, though :)

At first I just saw them (him? her?) bathing. I can't reliably tell sexes or individuals apart, so I don't know if it's just the same bird on a hygiene kick. I shot this through the screen door, so it's kind of weird lighting.

Preening after a bath. I love this photo :)

Patio furniture doubles as bird drying rack.

Then I saw them holding and carrying stuff!  NESTING stuff!

Leaf skeleton - cushiony and flexible.

Dead leaf. This is the position of the nest, in the same potted Nematanthus as last year's nest.  The new nest is close to the old one, but they don't seem to have disturbed it or taken nest material for their new construction - the remains of an unhatched egg are still in place.

Speaking of eggs, here's the first one!  I think this one did not survive, though - the next day it was accompanied by another unspeckled blue egg, possibly a cowbird's.  (Kicking myself that I didn't get a photo).  The day after, there was only one speckled egg again.  My theory was that both previous eggs had been removed/eaten/predated, and a new egg, the third, lain. Potential nest predators in my neighbourhood include raccoon, crows, skunks, ravens, scrub-jays, rats, etc.

I believe this is egg 3 and egg 4.  The nest is difficult to photograph, it can be in quite bright light, as above, or deep shade, as here.  I even had to take the zoom lens off my camera!

Potential nest parasite, brown-headed cowbird. 

So far so good! They don't seem to mind me snapping away at them, and a few times I've set up the camera on a tripod with a remote shutter to keep further out of their way.  If I go out on the patio while they're around, they chip and chip at me.  Stay tuned for updates!

Photos - Don Edwards NWR Alviso

 Jackrabbits are awesome.  This one has that ripped up ear tip, so you know he's tough.

Black crowned night heron

A wind-ruffled song sparrow.

Peregrine falcon blowing by.  I took this photo without really LOOKING at the bird, so wasn't sure of the ID until I got home, and not even really then!

Photographs from today

I went for a walk with the dogs today by the bay.  We started at Sunnyvale Water Treatment plant, and took the Bay Trail north.  The first pond we passed was full of interesting critters.

Carp - a detrimental invasive species.

Cinnamon teal - not the most common of duck species (that would be the mallard!)

A great blue heron - I saw one catch and eat a ground squirrel once, it was AWESOME!

Canada geese - on the hillside of the landfill.  Someone who should have known better once told me they're called "Canada" not "Canadian" because they're named after someone called Mr. Canada.  FALSE.

A male Northern Harrier - a very common raptor of wetlands and grasslands.

Muskrat - at first I thought it was a baby beaver, until I saw the tail.

I was quite surprised to see him swimming about in broad daylight (it was around noon) - I would have expected this species to be crepuscular or nocturnal.

Pied-billed grebe - adorbz.

Red-eared slider, another introduced species.  This pest species is now found worldwide thanks to the pet trade, and unscrupulous pet owners dumping them once they stop being so tiny and cute.

Nuttall's woodpecker - from the back patio!  I'm always excited to see woodpeckers.

He caught something!