Spherical sparrow

Feeds:: Posts; Comments

Spherical sparrow

February 5, 2021 by Mike Powell

A lot of birds puff up their feathers to stay warm in the cold weather, but I don’t know that I have ever seen a more extreme case than this spherical White-throated Sparrow (Zonotrichia albicollis) that I spotted yesterday morning at Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge.

It was right around the freezing mark and I must confess that I was bundled up in multiple layers and also looked a bit more rotund than normal. It is well known that the camera adds ten pounds and makes you look heavier. When it comes to staying warm, all vanity goes out the window for me.

Posted in Birds, Nature, Photography, Portraits, wildlife, Winter | Tagged Canon 50D, Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge, spherical sparrow, Tamron 150-600mm, white-throated sparrow, Woodbridge VA, Zonotrichia albicollis | 19 Comments

19 Responses

on February 5, 2021 at 10:33 am | Reply Eliza Waters

🙂 Sweet!
on February 5, 2021 at 11:18 am | Reply doerfpub

“One more wauffer thin mint” ha!
- on February 5, 2021 at 11:24 am | Reply Mike Powell
  
  Monty Python? 🙂
  - on February 5, 2021 at 2:04 pm doerfpub
    
    Yep! As soon as I saw the puffed feathers I thought of the diner skit
on February 5, 2021 at 12:07 pm | Reply Patricia M Osborne

He does indeed look very puffed up. Great shot.
on February 5, 2021 at 12:14 pm | Reply Jazz Jaeschke

All those feathers put to good use!
on February 5, 2021 at 2:02 pm | Reply Laura (PA Pict)

If I needed a bird to represent the shape I have become during pandemic life, this would be it.
on February 5, 2021 at 5:38 pm | Reply Finding Subjects Podcast

👍🏻 I notice this a lot myself, Mike. Especially lately with the frigid temps.
- on February 6, 2021 at 6:47 am | Reply Mike Powell
  
  I am amazed that the birds survive in sub-freezing weather, but they obviously know what they are doing.
  - on February 7, 2021 at 11:42 am Finding Subjects Podcast
    
    Yes!!! More than me. I was freezing my butt off! 😂😂
on February 5, 2021 at 6:13 pm | Reply Reed Andariese

Nice Mike! Never saw a small bird that puffed up! Or maybe it had a really BIG meal!
- on February 5, 2021 at 6:30 pm | Reply Mike Powell
  
  Thanks, Reed. All birds seems to fluff up their feathers, but the effect is not usually so extreme.
on February 6, 2021 at 10:29 am | Reply Ellen Jennings

Fun post, Mike, and great capture of this puffed up fellow. The birds are definitely better adapted than us humans; I’m becoming less fond of going out with all those extra layers as time goes on.
on February 7, 2021 at 2:22 am | Reply krikitarts

Love your title. I was immediately reminded of a tradition of sending family news via written letters (before email) from one relative to the next, to be added to and passed on eventually to return, and we called that a “round robin!”
- on February 7, 2021 at 8:49 am | Reply Mike Powell
  
  I am definitely going to have to photograph a robin with puffed up feathers now. We too used the term “round robin” a lot–don’t be surprised if I borrow it for a blog title sometime soon. 🙂
on February 7, 2021 at 3:11 pm | Reply Molly Lin Dutina

Some of the birds on our deck and the feeder here are harder to identify due to their puffiness!
- on February 8, 2021 at 6:35 am | Reply Mike Powell
  
  🙂
on March 19, 2021 at 4:19 pm | Reply sv-anui.com

All fluffed up and looking cosy.
- on March 19, 2021 at 7:38 pm | Reply Mike Powell
  
  I feel the same way when it is cold outside–I don’t care how bulky I look as long as I can manage to stay warm. 🙂