About a week ago, a very scruffy-looking Goldfinch caught my eye when it was sitting on my bird feeder. I didn't realize exactly how scruffy it was, though, until I zoomed in on it with my camera. I have no idea whether it's molting (as the rest of its plumage suggests), survived a run-in with a cat or some other predator, or is the result of some cross-breeding experiment involving Goldfinches and Vultures that's gone horribly awry. What I do know is that this Goldfinch was, at the time I took these pics, practically bald:
Giving me the side-eye:
And a look at the opposite profile; if you look closely, you'll see that the bird has quite a few more feathers under its eye than it does on the other side. I just hope it's all filled back in soon, as it's getting a bit chilly outside to be going bare-headed all day long:
You can certainly see its dinosaur ancestry.
ReplyDeleteYou really do need to put a book together; you're one of the best nature photographers I know, and you have the writing skills to go with it.
Ask me Monday who the bird reminds me of....hehehehe... as usual wonderful photos
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