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Common Bird in Uncommon Setting



Uncommon for me maybe but not the House Finch.  I was out 'Bunting Hunting'
the fields near Heathwood Hall in southeast Columbia.  I  had Indigo
Buntings  and Blue Grosbeaks perched and singing on dead shrubs number 4 and
5 but I was  looking at 1 male House  Finch and 2 females (possibly 1
immature) gleaning grain  in the field to my left.  They were close and the
male was just plain beautiful in the setting sun.   They would fly up,
hover, and come back down.  Is this a mating thing? I watch these birds at
my feeders all day but just seeing them out of my element (not theirs of
course) put them in a new light.  The sun went behind a cloud of the rest of
the afternoon.  I saw a few more Indigos and Blue Grosbeaks but the Painted
Bunting didn't show.  Maybe he needs sunlight to show off his pretty colors!
How  vain!!  And I wore my new khaki birding shorts with matching bincocular
strap for the occassion!!

On the way out there for Columbia folks, there is a vacant field on the left
(with  a lot of shrubs of Willow Oak, Black Cherry, tall Hackberries and
dead Loblolly Pine stobs) right before you get to the intersection of South
Beltline and Bluff Road.  I birded there for a few minutes and got a  Summer
Tanager, female  Orchard Oriole and a Great Crested Flycatcher.  Could
provide some future visits for this lazy city limit birder.

I would like to thank the Petersons for showing up yesterday and viewing
birds with me and my friend Jim out at the Heathwood Fields.  Always good to
meet new friends!!

Hope everyone had a good birding weekend!!

James

-- James Wilson
820 1/2 Buckingham Road
Columbia, SC 29205
http://toadshade.home.mindspring.com/toadshade.html
Home: 803-738-2880