I want top mention first that on February 3, 2016, we had a Bewick’s wren competing with House sparrows for a feeding port on our hanging sunflower feeder1

Now back to California…

Here’s a male Ruby-crowned kinglet putting the stare on the camera and me…

This Common raven was photographed in Joshua Tree National Park…

This was my first known observation of a California thrasher.  Unfortunately this was the best photo I could obtain…

This was an Orange-crowned warbler, in what as a non-horticulturist I believe to be a bougainvillea bush,  just outside the condo in which we stayed.  There was one just outside our door for each of the four days we stayed at the location in Desert Springs.

This is a bird I’ve long wanted to photograph… a Verdin.  The Verdin is a bird of the desert and drier areas, but I have seen one just outside Fredericksburg, Texas (not quite a desert area… yet!) on a friend’s ranch.  This bird builds a hanging sock-like nest somewhat akin to the Bushtit’s.

And finally, a life-bird for my non-existent life list… a male Nutttal’s woodpecker.

There’s yet more Palm Springs area to come.  But perhaps the best news is that I have been notified by Nikon that my lens will be back in my hands next week… just in time to benefit from the cataract surgery I’ll have on my primary eye next week!