Well, the forecast was correct, and the skies this morning were as grey as clouds that form a thick blanket that blocks out most of the sun. Luckily for us, I have plenty of bird pictures left over from yesterday when the sun was out and the sky was blue.
Let’s start with a great spotted woodpecker, which I didn’t even know came into town, up against some of that beautiful blue. I eventually saw two of them acting as though they were excited to see each other, but I couldn’t tell from the ground if they were excited in a good way or a bad way. I’m sure they’ll sort it out, however, without my help.
An even bigger surprise for me was spotting a Eurasian jay. I saw one or two every so often out in the countryside, but they were shy as heck, and I had a devil of a time getting a picture of one, for you. The ones I saw in town yesterday were nearly tame by comparison.
Plus, there at least three of them, maybe four.
And they were chattering up a storm, which was fun to hear.
You may recall that I got a nice portrait of a female blackbird last weekend, and I lucked out when this male gave me a similar opportunity yesterday.
Another shocker from yesterday was a pair of European goldfinches, whom I haven’t seen in the countryside since October. They are supposed to be here all year, as with the American goldfinches, but not where I was looking, I guess.
It was starting to feel yesterday as though someone had opened a box in town of all the pretty birds I had discovered so laboriously over the summer out on the polder. Here’s a common chaffinch, which I didn’t spot until June 12 and only managed to show you three other times.
Finally, the parakeets were making a racket, as usual, but surprisingly willing to be seen while doing so. And here’s one just showing off in the gorgeous low-sun light against some more of that pretty blue sky.
Besides these beauties, I also saw rock pigeons and wood pigeons; carrion crows, jackdaws, and magpies; blue and great tits; a couple of Eurasian robins and redwings; a song thrush; and even another short-toed treecreeper. Not a bad haul at all for late January, eh?
Signs of Life in Estabrook Park 
