Autumn Mix, and Hummers Hangin' On

The hummers are gone at the office deck on Lake Travis, but seem to still be active at the yard in Liberty Hill. Enjoy this week's offering of an Autumn mix, and some hummers still hangin' in there.

 The unmistakable call of the Scrub Jay had me running for the window at the office deck.

 Like the Blue Jay, these guys are skittish hit-and-run artists, so it is rare for them to hang around long enough for a photo shoot.

 This one was very obliging, and offered many poses.

 My friend Butch Weston says the Scrub Jay redefines 'blue'.

 My faithful Lesser Goldfinches making good use of the thistle sock.

A rare shot of a Cardinal and Goldfinch sharing the water dish.

 Early morning at Wes's breakfast buffet.

The male and female House Finch enjoying the full feeder.

Scanning the view at the office deck, and your eye spots a solid red bird, most likely a Cardinal. But wait, look closer. Glad I trained my lens on this one; a male Summer Tanager.

 My blue buddies doubled up on me this week with just as rare a visit. This Blue Jay was a willing subject for my photography.

 I marvel at the design and variety of blues in his coat.

A feast for the eyes.

 Running the sprinkler in the yard on a Saturday morning to see what it will bring in. This is a female White-eyed Vireo.

The Carolina Wrens are still busy around the yard, and oh so vocal.

 These Ruby-throats have really been chasing around the yard lately.

She's checking for in-coming.

 This day I moved out into the yard, hoping to get a little closer to the consistent activity at the Mexican sage.

 This young male Ruby-throated humming bird stayed very busy and focused.

 He enjoys perching and seeing what he can reach in the blooms.

And always keeping watch for what might be dropping out of the sky 

to challenge his current position.

We close this post with the true birds of Autumn, the Wild Turkey, largest game bird in North America. Sunday morning the Red-shouldered hawk flew across the pond and lighted high in the pecan tree. I noticed the turkey was about 10-15 feet below the hawk. I headed in for the camera, and as I came back out, the turkey flew up to challenge the hawk, and the hawk flew away. I guess we know who the top dog is!