Bird Watching: All grown up (or nearly so), 1 by 2dCousinDave

2dCousinDave wrote:
During the summer it was the female house finches that moved with the bluebirds. Then as fall commenced, it was the chipping sparrows. Now it is mostly the chipping sparows and the gold finches, although I still see the house finches too.

The thing that amazes me is how the bluebirds can tell the difference between a house sparrow and a chipping sparrow. I know there is a difference in size but their back feathers look very similar and except for the reddish markings on top of the head, the chip to me looks a lot like the HOSP. Yet the BB's seem to be able to tell the difference from such great distances. They tolerate the chipping sparrows perching on the nest box and even looking in, but if a HOSP tries it, the BB's come from out of nowhere to chase them.

A few days ago I tried putting meal worms outside the cage, hoping I could get a few group shots of the blues before the starlings noticed. Here are three. (It's still raining so no new pictures).