Predators

Yesterday's wind was no more.  The sun shone on a mirror of water.  The feeders were very quiet at breakfast.  A few white throats kicked mulch until they all suddenly flew off.  Then the reason why stuck its head up above the top step.  The feral cat was back, but it gave up on the empty scene.

Sometime later birds began to appear.  Female orioles were wise to keep a wary watch.  An immature cooper's hawk shot across the yard and landed in the redwood.  I only got one photo (through a screen) before it took off again.

Time passed and a nervous male red bellied woodpecker landed on the feeder post.  But the suet must have felt too exposed because he flew away. A myrtle warbler ventured out, soon followed by a downy woodpecker.  Then the orioles returned.  Pine warblers joined them, the males looking a bit like shrunken female orioles.  Finally, a male oriole arrived, but only for a minute.

In the afternoon, a few buffleheads floated on the creek while a heron observed from a channel marker. The red bellied woodpecker circled through the trees.  A myrtle warbler and the orioles stayed up in the trees too.  The afternoon got warm enough to hatch a midge but I didn't see other insects.  A squirrel ate dogwood buds.  Sunset painted a pink blush on haze and thin pleats of cumulus.