Tiny Dancers

I could have included this image in the blog about guilty pleasures because this bird is acting very guilty. If they are not spending their time greedily pigging down the sauce and are looking around, it usually means they are feeling guilty. This is a young bird; it could even be the offspring of the grand dame of the feeder.

This is a little first-year male. I imagine he is looking at the flowers wondering how in the world he is going to sample all that nectar.

The lighting is very striking on this image. I like the chiaroscuro effect. The only thing I don't like is the wings — especially the right wing. Other than that, I really like the starkness of this picture with it's rich red and emerald green.

This is why you don't take pictures of molting birds. It is a nice photo that could have been better if the bird's feathers were in top shape. She has pin feathers still in their sheaths and a general frumpy look from her newly opened feathers not being smoothed down yet through preening.

When I first got the Allamanda, I thought a bloom that had it's petals drooped back like the blossom at the top was on it's way out. I now realize it is a new bloom that is not fully open. That knowledge does not make me feel any better about a blossom whose petals are droopy.