Bushtit, Psaltriparus minimus
Bushtit, female, 8/25/08, Palo Alto Baylands
Bushtit, male, 4/30/08, Stevens Creek north of 101
Bushtit, female, 12/17/07, Monterey Dunes Colony, Monterey Co
Bushtit, female, 7/31/07, Palo Alto Baylands
Bushtit, male, 11/10/06, Edwards NWR, Alviso
These nondescript little birds are common throughout the Bay Area, as they forage in small flocks giving their soft high-pitched calls. They are not shy, and will let you get close to them. But their small size and constant motion makes them not so easy to photograph. Females' eyes are yellow, males' dark. Cool light shows them as more gray, warm light as more brown.
Bushtit, female, 10/27/07, Stanford campus
Bushtits, pair mating, 3/6/05, Shoreline Park, Mountain View
Well, they're ALMOST always on the move... Note the leaves in the female's bill, a courting gift.
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