Breakfast with the Birdies

I had the pleasure of sharing my morning breakfast with a parrot, a grouse, and a magpie. They were a bit noisy, and I'm not sure who surprised who more, but we all managed to get along well on my deck. They were feasting on some nuts that had fallen from the tree. The magpie seemed more interested in sunning itself on the railing, truth be told, and I was tucking in to my breakfast, with gusto.

No need for a bird feeder here; the trees seem to be doing just fine so far.

One great memory I have of my backyard in San Francisco was the hummingbirds. There was a pair of them living there year round. More than once, something zipped by my head; only later did I piece together it was one of the hummingbirds. There were flowers all year round, and a temperate climate, so they stayed around. They both had iridescent green ruffs, with flashes of red if the sunlight reflected just so. Hummingbirds have the sweetest little "peep" when they call to each other.