Scrub-jay after Wheat Bread

Still amazed by the way this paper takes my Derwents. Really having fun layering, experimenting…

Yellow-billed Magpie

Continuing to experiment with this paper. It takes color, apparently. These were Derwent Coloursofts.

Western Bluebird

Perched on the panels set up for wildlife tranquilization target practice…

Scrub-jay after White Bread

In an attempt to find out whether any of the crows we radio-collared were still around four years later, W. threw out some white bread. But the scrub-jay wasn’t having anyone else go near it, a small feisty corvid in a region of feistier and larger corvids. It harrassed the crows and magpies so much, though, that it ended up with most of the half-loaf of bred.

On another note: I’ll be doing the Yolo Audubon Birdathon this weekend with a twist; I’ll try and sketch every species I see. Please consider sponsoring me either with a set amount or per bird sketched. I’m going to do the whole birdathon/sketchathon on foot and will walk about 4 miles west to Pedrick Road in the hope of seeing migrant warblers; from there to the UC Davis Arboretum, then home. Hoping for 60 species sketched. (Unlike normal birdathons where heard-only birds count, I am not going to sketch a bird unless I see it.)

Thanks for your support!

Cattle Egret Rookery

Last night we went to the Audubon board meeting and got there a bit early, so we walked over to North Pond to see the astonishing heron rookery. These birds are likely the displaced birds from the UC Davis Arboretum, where they’ve been hazed in an attempt to preserve historic oak trees. They are now depositing vast quantities of ammonia in North Pond. The rookery seems to be mostly a mix of cattle egrets and snowy egrets.

Mallards in the Rain

It rained hard on Monday, managed to get these two by the puddle.

House Wren

We don’t have a brush pile this year, and I fear the house wrens will be nesting somewhere else, but I managed to catch this one on the pole for a brief few seconds…

Mallards in the Puddle

Heavy rain on Sunday. It has cleared up but the lingering puddles are attracting all kinds of birds.

Yesterday afternoon a pair of mallards flew in and started digging around the base of the grasses and other plants with their bills.

After the root fest, preening began. Ducks have many more feathers than passerines to keep them waterproof and warm, and that takes a lot of maintenance…

Barn Swallow

The barn swallows are back, and right away colonized an old nest (theirs?) in the car port. The rain on Sunday has left mud everywhere for them and the cliff swallows to make nests if they need to.

Yellow-billed Magpie in the Rain

There are chips to be had.