Song sparrow in the wildflowers, Ellis Creek Water Recycling Facility

A song sparrow singing in the yellow wildflowers that line the ponds of the Ellis Creek Water Recycling Facility in the spring.



Here it is singing in the other direction, I suppose just to ensure that everyone heard the song.



See more singing sparrows in my Song Birds Gallery.

Song sparrow sings a spring tune, Ellis Creek Water Recycling Facility

There are many more Yosemite landscapes waiting to be processed, but for today I'll switch back to wildlife with a song sparrow singing in the yellow wildflowers that line the ponds at Ellis Creek Water Recycling Facility in Petaluma, CA.



Taking a moment to catch it's breath in between solos on the wildflower stage.



Back to belting out that wonderful spring song!



Visit my Song Birds Gallery.

Submitted to World Bird Wednesday -- follow the link to check out this week's posts!

Perched song sparrow

A lovely song sparrow that was singing to me while I walked around the trails of Ellis Creek Water Recycling Facility in Petaluma, CA.

Stilted reflection

I have a bunch more bear images sitting in the queue, but I thought I'd go with something of a more typical variety for my blog this Monday morning to mix things up a bit. Here's a lovely black-necked stilt walking through the shallows of Shollenberger Park in Petaluma. I just love to see these birds, and I think they are especially striking in photographs with their starkly contrasting plumage. With the very shallow water along the edges of the pond, this frame really shows off the wonderfully long legs of this species. In fact, they have the second longest legs of any species relative to their body size, with only the flamingo being longer.

A young swallow

A young swallow in the bush on a breezy morning in Shollenberger Park. This one was really getting tossed about on the branches, and it appeared as though it wished it had landed somewhere else.

Singing blackbird

Last week I posted some shots of this red-winged blackbird posing among the yellow blooms, but my real hope when I started shooting him was to get some nice shots of him in mid-song in this terrific setting. They have such a wonderful unique call, and I always enjoy it in early spring when we start hearing them again in the local parks.

Mute Swan an Ellis Creek WRF

There were a handful of swans swimming through the freshwater ponds at Ellis Creek Water Recycling Facility in Petaluma, CA. This particular swan was quite agitated that a Canada Goose was also swimming around its pond, and continually swam after the goose until it decided to leave.



Later on I understood its unhappiness with the other bird around, since when I walked around the backside of the pond that was overgrown with rush, I saw another swan sitting on what I guessed to be her nest.



Even though this is an introduced species in America, they are still quite fun to see, as they truly are a beautiful species.

Quick Post -- Blackbird at Ellis Creek WRF

This blackbird will likely make a few more appearances on my blog in the near future. He was really quite a showoff, and the sinuous branches with yellow flowers made for a great setting.

Quick Post -- Red-winged Blackbird

A male red-winged blackbird showing off for me along the trail at the Ellis Creek Water Recycling Facility in Petaluma. He bounced from branch to branch while singing, giving me a few different takes on the scene with a variety of background colors (this is a seasonal wetland behind him). It would have been nice to capture the end of the branch in this frame, but the wind was blowing (cause of his ruffled feathers) and he was floating around in space far too much to control.