I have been watching the breeding cycle of a pair of Eurasian Blackbirds in my garden in the U.K. Their first attempt in early spring failed due to predation of both chicks, by who knows what. The male started singing from our rooftop again, and then a week or so ago I noticed that he was frantically collecting food and sitting on our back fence before darting off behind my garden office. Each time he saw me he would could call loudly protesting my presence. I managed to get a few photos on a beautiful sunny afternoon, but due to his agitation I did not follow up trying to find his nest, as I felt a great deal of empathy for this hard working chap. You can see the wear and tear on his feathers in the photo. I am pleased to report they have successfully fledged two chicks that were still around yesterday, and still being fed by the male. I have not yet managed to photograph the fledglings. This is a common resident species, but I have derived a great deal of pleasure witnessing their success in my garden and I hope that by holding back on trying to find their nest I have contributed to their eventual succes.

My parents have been lucky enough to have a pair of migratory prothonotary warblers nest on their back porch the last two years.  Prior to their first visit, we didn't really know anything about these birds, other than to expect to hear their distinctive call and flashes of yellow feathers in early spring.  Both birds are quite tolerant of our presence (flying back and forth from the nest even when we're in the yard or on the porch), so I've been able to observe them closely and learn a lot.  The nest is situated so I can do most of my watching from a window without disturbing them, but I venture outside occasionally to photograph them.  I did have an incident once with the male, similar to the kingfisher story that Melissa describes in her video, in which dad warbler arrived to the porch area with an insect to feed the nestlings, but saw me waiting with my camera and decided to fly away before delivering the food.  I thought I had placed myself far enough away so as not to bother him, and I was really disturbed at how my presence obviously impacted the bird's behavior in a potentially negative way, so I think I've become more reflective and aware of bird behavior in general since that moment.  I'm still pretty new to all of this and learning a lot!  Here are a few shots of our warbler family this spring:

About a month ago (although what is time in the Covid era?) I had a pair of nesting Blue Jays in the maple in my front yard. I have a fierce kitty that I brought with me when I moved home from Guatemala and I was terrified that she'd ruin their family. Trying to keep her inside for the entire cycle until the babies fledged wasn't an option (she's got no qualms about walking into a room I'm in, getting my attention and then peeing on the nearest wall). So I researched ways I could keep her from the nest and ended up buying a roll of chicken wire and creating a baffle around the two branches that would allow her access to the nest. Then I climbed into the tree (it's a huge tree so I picked the branch farthest from the nest) with some snacks and drinks and settled in for a long wait. Papa Jay finally decided I wasn't a threat after about an hour and brought some food. I was a bit worried about the stress I was causing but they did nest in the middle of a bustling neighborhood so I hoped that by remaining relatively still and not trying to get any closer, I wasn't causing irreparable harm. I'm not sure the baby appreciated my efforts...

I am very intrigued by the Canyon Wren, and especially its song, which reminds me of a small toy engine running out of batteries. :-). The first time I saw and got a shot of one was along a rock cliff, but not by water.  I never spotted one again at this location. The research told me that in addition to rocky canyons, they are also likely to be near water.  Hence, this evening  I visited  a beautiful rocky canyon that starts at the top of a 100 foot cliff and descends to a river.  I observed many Canyon Wrens this time! I was able to sit down on a rock, stay still and quiet, and spot several of them.  The research also indicated that they will often disappear into the rocks and pop up again, so I remained patient.

A pair of house wrens have taken up residence in a birdhouse located in my backyard.  I look forward to applying what was discussed in the modules in this section to learn more about them -  in preparation for photographing them.

Lark sparrow Northern California Being relatively new to the west coast I have been studying western sparrows. I found this lark sparrow just where I expected on the ground on the edges of a riparian area.