Started with a bug and ended with a bird...

Lately, these pesky little flies or gnats have been multiplying under the bird feeders in our back yard. I'm not sure yet what they are, but I'll figure'em out soon. They don't bite or seem too bothersome. I hope and assume they'll die out soon. This afternoon, I figured I'd shoot a photo of them, which would help in their identification. From there, I wandered over to....

...the owl nesting box, where one of our eastern screech owls was roosting. This is the same box where the very-relaxed fox squirrel was reclining the other day. I took a photo or two of the owl, then it flew away. Darn. So then....


...I leaned down and photographed the flame acanthus that's begun to bud out. Such a promising sight...


...as are the young sprouts of the nearby yellow columbine. Despite our severe drought, nature keeps going. Or at least tries. As I was walking back to the house, I spotted a little bird on the ground under the feeders. Hmmm. I snapped one frame, inched up closer, snapped another, inched up more. Soon, I was on the ground, nearly at eye level...

...shooting this little pine siskin. It didn't seem to even notice or care that I was there! It kept eating and eating, poking its beak in the ground, scooting along, eating eating eating....


....it didn't mind at all that I kept shooting away (surrounded by those dratted flies), changing my position, leaning closer, moving away, snapping more. Then I began to wonder if something was wrong with it. Could it be sick? Why wasn't it afraid, like a normal bird? Who knows.




Finally, it finished dining. Well, sorta. Because it flew up and landed on our new yellow thistle feeder....

A few minutes later, it had enough there and flew over to the thistle sock. Would this little guy ever get enough to eat?


It took off, and I set my camera down on our patio table. I kept my eye on the bird, though. It landed on yet another feeder but not for long. From there, it was on to a bird bath on the ground. I went back for my camera and got another shot or two....


Will this tale/tail ever end, you must wonder by now? Me, too! From the bird bath, I foll0wed the little guy up into the oak tree, where it perched on some ball moss long enough for me to snag a few more photos. By then, both of us had had enough! It flew higher up in the branches, and I turned off my camera.

(Click on the photo!)

So goes my story that started with a bug and ended with a bird.