I happened to glance out the window this rainy afternoon, and spotted a little brown bird I didn't recognize. It was a little bigger than a sparrow, but its behavior was decidedly un-sparrowlike. It hopped along the edge of the sidewalk, then scurried under the leaves of the lilies and hostas, hunting for bugs. It poked its slim beak into the ground, delved about, and pulled up a worm.
I ran for my camera and the 300mm lens. The pictures I got aren't the best, on account of the dull day and the glass I was shooting through. I had a notion I knew what the little bird was... looked it up... and found, sure enough, it's a wood thrush. So that's what I've been hearing sing so prettily a good part of the days lately!
Just listen to how they warble:
Notice that in this photo, something had spooked him a bit, and his crown feathers have risen.
He hasn't moved much -- but now his feathers are smooth again.
Pulling up another worm
Oops, he spotted me at the door.
He flew a little ways... landed on a dead branch...
... and performed a bit of clean-up on his beak. Falconers call this 'feaking'. It can be to clean food off the beak... or to shape their growing beaks and prevent chips and cracks... or sometimes to get essential oils from the tree branch onto their beaks.
Poor bedraggled clematis
Iris
Lilac just starting to bloom
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