August Yard Birds

Yesterday was the first day in several days that we had sun and I had some time to send in the yard so I assembled the camera and took my post.  My objective was to obtain photos of the Black-headed grosbeak.  I have found them to be shy and therefore difficult to photograph, but my earlier preparations with regard to feeding stations have paid off and I was able to get some fairly good shots. 

This is a male House finch that was probably produced this year...

This is a close cousin of the House finch, a male Fan-tailed finch, a rare migrant from South America.  (Don't ask... how should I know?) 

I also saw numerous chickadees, nuthatches, House sparrows and American goldfinches in the yard.  Our family of quail (male and female and six chicks) seems to be thriving and usually visits the yard several times daily.  I also saw, but failed to get a photo of, what seemed like a juvenile Downy woodpecker.  A sparrow which had the visual characteristics of a female House sparrow but not the behavior of one garnered my attention.  I suspect it was actually a juvenile White-crowned sparrow.  I did get photos so I'll do a little more research or consult a better birder than I.