lonestranger

A cup of coffee later.

First shots of the morning.

DUH. I failed to notice the location in the title, my bad.

Welcome to Whatbird, @SCOTTI B. Knowing where you're located might help narrow down the options but my initial thought was a young Eastern Bluebird, which wouldn't apply if you live on the west coast. Wait for more feedback since I am far from an expert, especially without the assistance of a photo to work with.

Smells like I stepped in something, just can't figure out what it was. I hope it wasn't...*sniff*....ewww

Were you hoping to educate or insult the plethora of people you're referring to? I could be wrong in the way I read MANY of your posts, Tony, but you come across as being extremely offended, and overtly superior, when things aren't worded just the way you like them to be. Is it too much to ask that you resist your desire to be an English Teacher when you're offering help with an ID, and not BARK at people when they use the wrong birding terms in their inquiries.

I love those little guys. We had them nesting in our old yard the past few years but unfortunately we haven't seen any yet this year at our new place.

Thanks for the half correction, I knew the proper name but obviously goofed on that one....Good thing I didn't call it a Red-BEARDED Grosbeak, huh?

That's a Rose-breasted Grosbeak chasing off a Baltimore Oriole.

If you're trying to be a comedian, I wouldn't quit your day job just yet. ?

I meant to edit out the lens flare of the last two photos but now that they're already uploaded, oh well.

I have the challenge of shooting into the sun in the mornings.

Perhaps it's because the bland colours of the females make them less noticeable than the colourful males. You know, the same muted colours that make them less noticeable when they're nesting might make them less noticeable when they're off the nest too. Then again, maybe @Miss Marge doesn't like female warblers and deliberately turned the camera away every time she saw a female warbler. *sarcasm intended* Like @Seanbirds, I wonder why you'd ask such a question. Just what kind of response were you expecting? *shakes my head*

I do notice brighter and darker birds but never considered any of them to be extreme enough to be of interest. I'll have to pay closer attention from now on. Here's another shot after the Orchard Oriole conceded to his larger cousin.

What is it that looks weird to you, colour variation? It seemed like a typical Baltimore Oriole to me.

Orchard Oriole and Baltimore Oriole negotiating who gets to feed first.

I was watching a Blue Jay do some fly catching yesterday. Acting just like a flycatcher would, it flew from it's perch, sort of hovered and maneuvered while pulling flies out of the air before returning to the same perch. The repeated activity provided me multiple opportunities to get some in flight shot. The nearly white overcast sky makes it hard to separate the white on the edge of the bird's wing and tail feathers from the white of the sky which I find disappointing. I suppose it could have gone the other way too, I could have had a deep blue sky that might have muted the blue of bird. Oh well, we can't have perfect conditions all the time, which is probably a good thing, without challenging conditions, what would we blame for those less than perfect photos.

Is it safe to say that it's also the closest you've gotten to a bird you were photographing? If the connection isn't obvious, it should be. ?

Baltimore and Orchard Orioles, Rose-breasted Grosbeaks, and Ruby-throated Hummingbirds found our feeders this past week but I have yet to see a warbler. Surprisingly, we are still seeing Juncos almost daily though.

It's been a long time since I've seen Mighty Mouse, so long that I had to double check with Google to make sure I had the right theme song matched up to the right cartoon. Old-timers memory.

I think those are the kind of comments @Charlie Spencer was trying to avoid when he said...

Hiding the cat food from site might help, but it might also provide cover for the cats to pounce on unsuspecting birds. How about a bird proof cat feeder? A feeding device that only dispenses food when there is enough weight on it. Kind of the opposite of the squirrel proof bird feeders that close with the weight of squirrel, have something designed to open with enough weight instead of closing. A teeter totter board that lifts a cover off the food bowl might be another option. Just tossing ideas out, not even claiming 2 cents worth.