...Spring wardrobe change!

I was having a tough time deciding what to blip today, but decided on this one because it is kind of unusual and won't be seen again for awhile. This is an American Goldfinch (Carduelis tristis) male in mid-molt. Those bright yellow spots are his summer plumage starting to grow in. From all appearances, he's going to be quite a catch for the lucky lady goldfinch! The tree is now past its peak and in another week there won't be any blossoms - you could say that both the tree and the goldfinch are molting!

The other shots of the day, if you'd care to have a look...

Turdus Migratorious in the Cherry Tree... (feel free to giggle)

Puffy the blue jay, giving me a look

His Royal Redness sitting in the blossoms

Dark eyed junco, contemplating migration

And, in other breaking news, renovations are continuing on the Summer Cottage! Yes, several times today the chickadees have been back and they've now progressed from excavating the opening to actually going inside to rearrange the furniture! So, it's looking better for that summer rental... Now, let's hope the House Wrens don't show up and evict the chickadees, or that the blue jays don't figure out how to eat the nestlings or some other grisly trick of nature... I take consolation that although there was a cowbird sitting on top of the nest box, she won't be able to lay any eggs in the chickadee nest ... unless she can master projectile egg hurling to get it through the opening... What a thought.

Happy Hump Day Blippers!

Post script ... I have to add a link to Gladder's blip today as it is one of the most stunning landscapes I've ever seen.