It has been pretty windy for good birding here at Falcon although I’m seeing some interesting stuff and have picked up a couple of life birds — a Long-billed Thrasher and a Cactus Wren.  These were both birds that I should have seen last year but didn’t.

Falcon, like many areas, is infested with Red-winged blackbirds.  They really are a pest: you put out a feeder and before long, dozens appear.  They tend to drive off the other birds with their noisy aggressiveness — but I know that I’ll enjoy them once we, and they, get to Vermont.

Pyrrhuloxia are one of the signature birds here — I remember seeing them for the first time last year.  They are quite friendly, coming to feeders, and are pretty birds — not as spectacular as their Northern Cardinal brethren but still quite attractive.

Greater Roadrunner

Of course, Northern Mockingbirds and Greater Roadrunners are everywhere.  Crested Cara-caras are also very numerous.

This afternoon on a walk, I came upon a very accommodating Cactus Wren who posed for pictures while the dog strained at her leash, and then went through a whole song cycle for us.  I was surprised at the size of the wren — I had been looking for a more furtive smaller bird.

Cactus Wren

I’ve seen quite a few birds that I’m not sure of — some quail that were either scaled quail or bobwhite, a little brown job that I have a picture of (and will get folks to ID it for me), and meadowlarks that are either Eastern or Western. 

The weather forecast is probably going to put a damper on birding for a few days although once the wind dies down, it may be productive if only in the high 30’s.  That’s a day we’d bird in Vermont so why not here?  I’ll let you know what I find.

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