Today I decided to feature two of the smallest birds that I spotted in the trees in my neighborhood after our recent snowfall. The first one is a Tufted Titmouse (Baeolophus bicolor), a little bird that is in the same family as the chickadee. The second one, I believe, is a House Finch (Haemorhous mexicanus), a bird that I don’t recall having seen before. I was really drawn to its red coloration and learned from the Cornell Lab of Ornithology website that the red of a male House Finch comes from pigments contained in its food during molt (birds can’t make bright red or yellow colors directly).
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
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I’ll bet these little guys are hoping for spring.
Benjamin recognizes the first bird as one that is a frequent visitor to the bird feeders in my backyard and I believe that he is correct. The second one has never been spotted by us, but Benjamin likes the red feathers. He also thinks that “Mr.Mike is so lucky to have all that snow!” Thank-you, Mr. Mike!!
So how does the male cardinal do it? We see house finch more in the warmer weather.