Birds who reside in a park near my residence seem more active early in the morning when there are fewer people around. A couple weeks ago, I decided to go for a morning stroll. The golden hour and the cool dewy morning air were just starting to fade, I completed a short loop and after seeing a bunch of common House Sparrows, I decided to return home with a resigned feeling about not waking up earlier.
As I continued on the path, there was “chip-chip-chip…..buzzzzzzzz…” sound coming from a small bush of flowers in the distance. There was a small round object sitting in the brush. I quickly pulled out my binoculars and to my delight, an itty bitty Savannah Sparrow was singing!
The picture above was taken with a 400mm camera lens approximately 30 feet away with some minor post-production cropping. With the unaided eye, he blended in very well with the background and the flowers.
The Savannah Sparrow can be easily overlooked because of its size (it’s a wee tiny little critter!) and its preference to sit in brush or twigs in a field. Below is an picture taken with the same aforementioned lens with more post production cropping.
If one looks closely, you can see the little bird’s signature yellow spot near its eye!
All About Birds from the Cornell Lab reports this feathered friend is a medium-distance migrant who travels from the southern United States and Mexico to arrive in Alberta in the spring for its breeding season and stays until the fall. A traveler, indeed!!
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