New Seed, Familiar Faces

This gallery has 2 images. These daily visitors of ours have rapidly depleted the 1 kg of wild bird seed that we bought for them in mid-December, and today’s replenishment was with a new 6 kg bag and an even greater variety of seeds for them. Our feathered friends have quite different personalities. The Dark-Eyed Juncos, or “junkies” as we’ve nicknamed them, are the least skittish (and most common) of our backyard denizens (furred or feathered). They are often the first to feed, and the last to leave at the end of the day. They often come in groups, and don’t often scatter when a camera is close by.

Daily Prompt: The Little Things

Shiny smile by Takashi Hososhima, CC-BY-SA-2.0

One of the things I love and defines my world but is often overlooked is a smile. If eyes are the windows to the soul, and hugs warm the heart, a smile unlocks doors, and melts the ice between strangers who may not even speak the same language.

Smiles bridge generation gaps, and ignore political differences. A smile that is warmly and genuinely given can boost moods and make you feel good inside in a way that money or tangible items can’t. A smile makes one less cynical, and more like a child,

Eclectus Parrots

This gallery contains 7 images. Named Ruby and Kiwi for their colours (as well as their genders), these resident Eclectus Parrots are an exception to the avian rule that males are much brighter coloured than their female counterparts. In fact, if you didn’t already know about this species of parrot, you might think that they are of two separate species.

Eclectus Parrot Ruby profile

Eclectus Parrot Kiwi sleepy

Eclectus Parrot Ruby grooms