Where have all the swallows gone?

 I need to think of a new title for this annual post,
but it's the only one that seems fitting when my feathered friends disappear 

to South America every September without so much as a "see you next year."

 They began acting strangely on Saturday. I watched them gather in a great big

disorganized clump high above the corral, much higher than they usually hang out.

It's like they were having a meeting. Maybe they were deciding who would leave first.

 In any event, by yesterday, all the swallows were gone. 

Interestingly enough, the majority of the flies have now disappeared as well. 

We'll only miss the swallows.

Thirsty Birds

This goes on all day:

It was too windy to use the audio from the GoPro, 
(which was strapped to the water hydrant, not my head)

so I replaced it with Naturescapes Music's "Dancing on The Water."

Ranch Journal ~ January 2, 2018

We're now at 88 consecutive days without measurable precipitation.

It has to rain eventually, right? Until it does, we'll just have to deal with

the never-ending swarm of birds flying in for a drink of water.

They're leaving behind an epic amount of bird poop

in and around all the tubs, which means more work for me.

I'm ok with that.
"I've got time to deal with it," she said, ever so smugly.

 

Saturday encore ~ Hummingbird, don't fly away, fly away

This encore post is from September 2, 2016.

***
 
The feral beast and I had just finished a photo shoot of the vine

when who should cross our garden path but a female broad-tailed hummingbird...I think.

I'm pretty bad at the whole bird identification thing.

Whatever species...

...she sure was a beauty, and fearless, too –

I was standing about a foot away.

Hum along if you remember the Seals and Croft song from the seventies.

The sweetness of your nectar

Has drawn me like a fly

I just love you, love you, love you

I don't even know the reason why

Me: Don't even think about it.

Hummingbird: Is he fast enough to grab me out of the air?

Me: I hope not.

Hummingbird: Just one more sip and I'm out of here. No point taking chances.

A bird in a bush

I'll move back so you can see where I found the bird (a warbler? a finch?)
and the bush (Russian sage).

 

 See him?

Saturday encore ~ Birdland

This encore post is from June 28, 2016.

***

I'm astonished by the number of birds that hang out here...

...despite the ever-present feral beast.

Between the swallows, the curve-billed thrashers, the doves, the ravens, and

who knows what else, the Audubon Society could set up shop and sell tickets.

The feral beast has a front-row seat on the action...

...but the birds are clever enough to keep their distance.

Watching all this activity can be exhausting.

Hanging out with a sparrow

 This little guy was hanging out at the barn last evening.

 He hopped from perch to perch,
offering me his best side whenever he landed.

I think he's some sort of sparrow.

He got his feathers ruffled now and then,

but was generally cool about the whole paparazzo experience...

...until he flew up into the rafters for a bird's eye view.

Perhaps not surprisingly, he left for good

after passing judgment on the bones.

Heatwave blamed for nursery collapse – no casualties reported

Yesterday morning, I was interrupted by quite a ruckus 

on the front porch.

 

Imagine my surprise to find a pair of young swallows trying on my shoes.

Apparently, the relentless heatwave caused their nest to detach

from the wooden beam.

Swallow #1: Climate change is for real, girlfriend.

They looked big enough to take care of themselves,

but I was concerned about their parents finding them before the cat did.

 Swallow #2: It's about time you got here. We're starving.

Swallow #2: That's all?! 

Swallow #1: Feed me now or I'll poop in your shoe again.

Thievery

The first time I saw a raven flying overhead with a great big egg in his mouth,

I wrote it off to my active imagination. 

The second time I saw a raven flying overhead with a great big egg in his mouth,

I felt sorry for the poor mother bird who left her nest unattended.

Then I saw a great big egg on the ground just behind my barn

with a raven-beak-sized hole in it.

It takes a very clever and brave raven to waltz into my chicken coop

and steal eggs from the nesting boxes.

I suppose I should be thankful that the raven is stealing the eggs and not the chickens.

Smarter than the average dove

 Another day, another kamikaze dove.

This one appears to have kept his eyes open upon impact.

I'm not finding any bodies below the window, so my assumption is that 

New Mexico doves are very good bouncers, though not very bright.

Then again, maybe the feral beast eats them
before I find them.

 Uh-oh. 

Ok, so maybe they're not as intellectually challenged as I thought.

When doves fly ... into windows

Hummingbird, don't fly away, fly away

The feral beast and I had just finished our photo shoot of the vine

when who should cross our garden path but a female broad-tailed hummingbird...I think.

I'm pretty bad at the whole bird identification thing.

Whatever species...

...she sure was a beauty, and fearless, too –

I was standing about a foot away.

Hum along if you remember the Seals and Croft song from the seventies.

The sweetness of your nectar

Has drawn me like a fly

I just love you, love you, love you

I don't even know the reason why

Me: Don't even think about it.

Hummingbird: Is he fast enough to grab me out of the air?

Me: I hope not.

Hummingbird: Just one more sip and I'm out of here. No point taking chances.