Tweets!

This afternoon, visiting friends whose house is almost exactly half way
between the two floating bridges, on the Seattle side of Lake Washington, I
saw, perhaps a hundred yards out from shore, a TURKEY VULTURE, flying south.
Strange.

Then, this evening on my deck, not far from the above location, I saw
something even stranger. While grilling a beautifully marinated flank steak
I noticed what I assumed was a female ANNA'S HUMMINGBIRD at my feeder,
perhaps eight feet from the cooker. I didn't pay much attention to it, as we
get this species here year round. I was much more intent on cooking the
steak to the correct doneness, so much so that I was using a stopwatch. I
turned the meat and, lo and behold, a male ANNA'S HUMMINGBIRD was perched on
the feeder, almost directly opposite the first bird. I froze, and as the
feeder turned in the slight breeze, noticed that the female was a RUFOUS,
not an ANNA'S. The birds eyed one another carefully and seemed reluctant to
feed while the other was present. And I, loath to burn the steak, was afraid
to lift the lid from the cooker, for fear of frightening the birds. But the
aroma of the sizzling marinade got the better of me and I, indeed, did scare
both birds away, finishing the cooking. It was only the second time in 35
years that I've seen more than one bird at the feeder at any given time.
Truly a red-letter (and rufous) day, and the steak was perfect!