For the Birds, Part I (My wild kingdom)

(Editor's note: I wrote this series of 5 posts 3 years ago and I have reposted it here on my blog)

We live in the city, but our backyard is a jungle.



It is very welcoming to birds, and we have lots of visitors. From hummingbirds on the small side, to owls and hawks on the large end.



I'don't often photograph owls, but the hawks are very prominent in the garden. And often fighting with crows.

There are lots of songbirds this year. Most are very bright and very noisy. And they must be very fast, or they become lunch for the hawks.




And we have a few dozen wild parrots in the neighborhood, escaped about 30 years ago and have been roaming ever since.



Because we are near the coastline, we see aquatic birds too. Seagulls are always flying overhead (usually very high - going from bay to bay)



Pelicans are now common again in our area, though not in our yard.



(I really must get down in the garden and clean up the debris)

In fact, there are more species sighted in this area than in most regions of the world. Local turkeys shown here.



OK, the swans aren't in my yard - this is the River Thames. I was just checking to see if you were awake.

Now perhaps I am exaggerating too much. Let's go onto Part ii and see some hummingbirds.