Colorful birds like this Western Scrub-Jay catch the attention of admirers more than the dull brown or grey birds that hide in the brush.
This entry is for the elusive birds of grey and brown. I caught a glimpse of them as they came out of the tangled vines to drink from a small mud puddle at Lake Hemet.
First sighting was the Wrentit. This bird lives in dense coastal shrub or montane chaparral. You may hear their rapid pingpong ball like song but it is tough to see them. They are the least traveled birds. This ultimate homebody travels about 1300 feet.
To the extreme, this Golden-crowned sparrow nests in Northern Alaska and western Canada...about 4,000 miles from this mud puddle.
The Hermit Thrush is another bird that is usually heard but not seen. It has a beautiful flute like song that fills the forest in the Spring where it nests far from this spot in the brush.
Unlike the others, the White-crowned sparrow isn't elusive. It is a more common bird to see in the winter.
After watching all of these various birds drinking from the same small mud puddle before returning to their hiding places in the brush, I was reminded how critical it is to protect their habitat. It doesn't take much for these birds to survive but what they need is essential!
