Friday, April 6, 2012

He Who Wears The Crown

White-Crowned Sparrows are mighty handsome birds. They suffer a bit from over-exposure here during the winter months as they descend on the Valley of the Sun in massive flocks. Even so, I really appreciate that they're a species consistently brave enough to stand their ground when the cameras come out. I had a great time photographing some foraging White-Crowns at the DBG a few evenings ago. Watching birds feed...does it make you pine for the good ol' hunter-gatherer days?


With the DBG in full bloom, it was a colorful all-you-can-eat-buffet, and the White-Crowns were loving every minute of it. I'm not sure they always knew what exactly they were eating, but hey, when you look this good, you don't need to know anything.


For some reason, I'd never taken a picture of the back of a White-Crowns head. Usually a bird's backside is a throw-away shot. But whenever I see the back of the White-Crown's cap I'm always reminded how cool it is. I hope my hair goes white in such a pattern.



The sulking juvenile still seemed a bit reticent to join in the feast, as if his parents were embarrassing him or he just thought the whole thing was, like, totally lame. He perched on the rusty garden fence and sullenly observed the dine-n-dash. Eventually he joined in too, as the juveniles always do.



Pretty birds. I'll miss them when they're gone.

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10 comments:

  1. Mia McPhersonApril 7, 2012 at 6:21 AM

    White-crowned Sparrows are regal, beautiful Sparrows. Thanks for sending them north so I can see & photograph them too!

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    1. Laurence ButlerApril 7, 2012 at 11:48 AM

      That was always the plan Mia, looking forward to your White-Crowned posts.

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  2. Hilke BrederApril 8, 2012 at 10:07 AM

    Lovely shots! Happy to see these sparrows. They haven't arrived here in NE yet.

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    1. Laurence ButlerApril 9, 2012 at 8:10 AM

      Thanks Hilke. They do seem to be lingering, which is very curious since it's prematurely warm down here. If anything, I would assume that'd speed them along. Well, I'm looking forward to seeing what's coming up your way these next few weeks.

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  3. Nicholas MartensApril 8, 2012 at 5:20 PM

    WCSP is an awesome sparrow, and these are all great shots. We found an stray first-winter in S. FL last year, but we still have an adult to look forward to. The yearning, it grows...

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    1. Laurence ButlerApril 8, 2012 at 10:28 PM

      Thanks Nicholas. That's pretty nice getting the stray in Florida. I hope more visit you soon in Georgia. However seeing as you all have Brown Thrashers and White-Thorated Sparrow, I don't feel too sorry for you either while you wait.

      Now, if you wanted to work out some sort of Sparrow trade...

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  4. Debbie Miller @HooootOwlApril 10, 2012 at 10:33 PM

    Just beautiful! Especially love the low angle and perspective you shared on the last view.

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    1. Laurence ButlerApril 10, 2012 at 10:58 PM

      Thank you Debbie. It was fantastic to have them so close and cooperative. Not that I really intended it, but it does seem like that last pose is a good, dynamic one for those ground-feeding birds.

      Thanks for stopping by.

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  5. Kathie BrownApril 11, 2012 at 5:21 PM

    Ah, but here's the wonderful thing...they will return again! I love your sense of humor and I would love to see your hair grow in that pattern! If it does, will you post a photo on your blog? Now that I live on the east coast, I do not see these birds very often but I did see one in my mother's yard last autumn. We get mostly the white-throated sparrows instead. A few are still hanging around my yard but they too, will soon be migrating north!

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    1. Laurence ButlerApril 11, 2012 at 5:59 PM

      Kathie, I don't know if I can wait or leave it up to chance. when I dye my hair White-Crowned colors, I will definitely post a photo.

      It's a fun Sparrow trade-off between East and West. I've never seen a White-Throated, although they do pop up here in AZ from time to time. We'll have to arrange a trade of some sort. Thanks for stopping by Kathie. You always leave such exceedingly kind comments.

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