I almost forgot to share this photo of a young male House Finch in molt. By the end of August, he was starting to get his more colorful chest and head feathers.
Young male House Finch in molt – Canon R7, f8, 1/500, ISO 1250, Canon 100-400mm at 400mm, natural light
When he came to the feeder, I was sitting nearby and took quite a few images of him. Then, he was photobombed by a Carolina Chickadee coming in hot. When I saw the chickadee in my viewfinder, I laughed out loud.
Life is too freaking short, so I’ll leave it to other people to be serious all the time. I’d rather have fun and laugh a lot.
I do have other photos of the immature male House Finch without the photobomber, but this is the image I wanted to share. I love to laugh, don’t like being too damn serious all the time, and photobombers tickle my funny bone.
It’s a little harder for me to tell when I’m looking at a young female House Finch at this time of the year, but I can easily identify the young males.
By the way, the Carolina Chickadee didn’t bump the immature House Finch from his perch. The chickadee flew under the vine on the left side of the frame in the next image of this series. The finch stayed put until it dropped down to feast on the sunflower seeds in the basket below.
Yesterday morning, I saw a low of 47°F, the first cool morning since early spring. I actually had to put a sweatshirt on the first time I stepped outside to stop the chill.
I’m hoping the cooler temps mean I’ll be seeing some migrants coming through soon. I’m excited for my first fall photographing birds in this neck of the woods!
Life is good.
Mia
Click here to see more of my House Finch photos plus facts and information about this species.
Interesting pic. As a species, Finches have always intrigued me. I love your description of the Chickadee coming in hot. That was exactly what I thought before I read your commentary. Great minds, right? Thanks Mia.
I’m envious of your need for a sweatshirt. We’re breaking all kinds of records the other way her in Southern California. Love the photobomber — the chickadee is ready for his close-up, Mr. DeMille. 😉 The scruffy finch gives me a giggle too because he looks so confused (What the hell happened to my feathers???).
HERE, not her. Sigh.
He looks as scruffy as many of our teenagers. And yes, I agree, laughter is an excellent thing.