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Thursday, December 5, 2013

Shiver me thrushes

It was 25°F when I drove to work along Coleman Valley Road this morning.  I stopped briefly for a few frost photos.

On a wooden fence post:


On oak leaves:




I wasn't the only one surveying (and puffed up in) the chilly morning scene:


Varied Thrush (Ixoreus naevius).  This species often blends in with its surroundings, but in this light it was notable how the oranges and blues stood out against the grays and greens.




Hermit Thrush (Catharus guttatus).  It landed in a tree right above me and peered down with its large eye.  A magical view!

2 comments:

John W. Wall said...

Pretty nice of the varied thrush to let you get a picture too! Must have been too cold to bother fleeing.

Jackie Sones said...

John! You're so right. Varied Thrushes are always disappearing into the shadows before I can take a picture. This one paused just long enough. I have a feeling I'll always be trying to get a better picture of this species.