Some wonderful visitors...

It is a hub of activity in my neck of the woods these days....lots of friends have stopped by for a visit...some stay for a treat...some for a day or two...some for months and then there are those who are here year round...this is a Grosbeak...he will just stay a short time...maybe a week or two... 

 They are pretty much just passing through...I read that they like a more wooded area...they pass through every year about this time...migrating to the north I suppose...or maybe just to the local mountains...I'm not sure...but I enjoy watching them while they visit...they are always welcome! Such beauties!!

 This isn't a very good picture...sorry...this is a Scrub Jay...they are my permanent guests...here all year long...they feast on peanuts in the shell and sunflower seeds...some fruit too. I think we have about 8 regular jays that are here every day...They love hiding peanuts everywhere...and we like watching them...they each have such different personalities...I sometimes think we can tell them apart! I can't tell the difference from the male and female...like the Mourning Doves...they both look the same to me...they are characters though and I can get very close...they wait on the branch by the feeder each morning for a treat! 

 This tiny little guy is a finch...we have red, yellow and orange ones here...they are so noisy! They stay all year long and live in a very big bush right off our back porch...sometimes I think they are getting used to me...then the next day...they fly away the minute I open the back door! 

 And now for my favorite...yet the most shy of all...the Hooded Orioles...or as Don calls them...Mr. and Mrs. Cal...you will get that if you are a baseball fan! This is Mrs. Cal...a pretty yellow with gray...they feast on sugar water...like the hummingbirds...and oranges and grape jelly...this is a special feeder I got for them a few years ago when I first spotted them hanging off the hummingbird feeders! The finches have a fondness for grape jelly and oranges too...come to think of it the finches like everyone's treats!

 Mrs. Cal doesn't mind sharing...

 But she prefers to eat alone...the orioles take turns at the feeder...I never see the make and female together...someone needs to watch their nest I suppose! They nest in fan palm trees...and weave their nests from part of the dried up frond...their nest sort of hang from the trees...they stay here from about April through late July...they come all the way from South America to winter here...

This is Cal...isn't he wonderful! I am always amazed by the colors of these guys...there is a very large stand of palm trees a block or so away from here...so I think that's their home...I always make sure they have plenty to snack on! These are all the friends that would be still enough for pictures...I hope you enjoyed my friends!

I would like to take a moment to mention the tragedy in Texas...I understand that Law Enforcement has no clue yet to what caused the explosion...they are in my prayers...it is a horrible situation coming so soon after the Boston Bombing. Please keep the victims of both tragedies in your prayers...and if you able too...help them out.

Until next time...enjoy your day!!!