My buntings were so cooperative on my last morning adventure that I returned to the backyard that afternoon.  In general, the birds tend to be more active in the mornings than in the afternoons, but it was still a fun couple of hours.

My first visitor was a Red-bellied Woodpecker.  He perched on my neighbor’s palm tree and extracted bugs from the bark.  We don’t often see woodpeckers in the neighborhood but they are slowly becoming more common as the trees age.

It took a while for the Painted Buntings to make their first appearance.  I wonder where they go when they leave my backyard.  They have a distinctive flight pattern as they return, then you can hear their call notes as they communicate with each other.  Before they hop out to the feeder, they often survey the territory from a safe perch…

I’m getting better at learning how to place perches in their favorite spots in order to get better photos!

My dad’s favorite bird is the bright red cardinal. So this one’s for him!

The cats like it when I hang out in the backyard.  It means I can supervise them out on the screened porch.  It’s always fun to look over and see them enjoying the great outdoors. :)