Subject: Gray Catbird
Date: Aug 27 06:29:25 2002
From: Joanne H Powell - jopowell2 at juno.com
Hi, all:
Just before I left for work yesterday there was a gray catbird in the
lilac bush outside my kitchen window. I had seen it a few days ago; I
didn't get a good look at it then but couldn't believe a catbird would be
there so I figured it was just a case of mistaken identity. (It was the
chittering of two wrens that drew my attention. They sounded just like
marsh wrens but the water is about 75 feet away and I couldn't get a
really good look at them). Yesterday the bird stayed right in front of
the window for a minute or so and was quite obviously a Gray Catbird.
What a neat surprise! It's the best look I've ever had at one. The
juvenile red-winged blackbirds are all over the seeds and suet at the
same spot. Some of the males are starting to have their red epaulets
coming through. One of them had epaulets the color of an oriole; I
supposed they will turn red like the others soon. One would hate for them
to stay orange as I read somewhere that the size and color of the
epaulets plays a big part in attracting a mate.
Regards, Joanne
Reardan (Spokane) WA
mailto: jopowell2 at juno.com