Cursed cats

Bird count conditions 8-9am: sunny, 35^o, and a murderous cat that plowed up the mulch around the birdbath when it went after a warbler. Nevertheless, I counted 2 goldfinches eating rue seeds, 2 starlings, a white breasted nuthatch, a yellow rumped warbler, 2 white throated sparrows, a pine warbler, 2 chickadees, a crow, 2 house finches, a dove, a titmouse, a brown headed nuthatch, a pelican, and a blue jay.  A female oriole showed up too late to be counted.

While cooking I counted again from 10:45am to noon.  By then I had refilled the feeder dishes.  The sky was white but there was sunshine.  The temperature rose from 46^o to 49^o, and there were more cats.  Five orioles came for jelly - four females and one male.  A pair of house finches, two bluebirds, two pine warblers, four yellow rumped warblers, three crows, and an orange crowned warbler all wanted lunch.  So did the cats.  On the creek, I saw a pelican and a pair of mallards. 

The cats, and possibly my cooking, brought to mind verse five of the 23rd Psalm, "Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of mine enemies..." One could view that from either the birds or the cats point of view.  The male pileated woodpecker arrived after lunch.  The warblers posed more nicely then as well.