Cold sun and clouds

A freeze is predicted for tonight.  There were a lot of clouds at dawn but they moved away. Pelicans, herons and osprey checked the creek for fish.  There were ducks as well but I didn't see what kind.  The warblers still battled over the suet.  A pair of house finches were shoved off the seed feeder by a white throat.  Other white throats poked through the mulch.  The cloud cover returned by late morning. 

Lunchtime was a riot of gorgeous birds.  A male Baltimore oriole discovered the suet.  A pair of bluebirds were also interested but no match for the oriole.  A titmouse visited both feeders.  The woodpeckers and the yellow rump warblers spent more time competing than eating.  A female pine warbler also showed up.  And the regulars - cardinals, chickadees, finches - came too.  I glimpsed a male towhee by the faucet, looking very dull compared to the oriole. And a starling hit the suet briefly.  Its beak was already summer yellow. 

On the creek pelicans, herons, osprey, and cormorants fished.  The water was surprisingly still given the gusty wind in the trees.

The clouds looked stormy in the middle of the afternoon but there was sun later.  Some people claimed to have seen snowflakes.  The Western horizon was clear at sunset though there were smoky clouds overhead.  Venus was bright.