The theme for @nelinoeva 's 45th SMAP contest this week is FLUFFED-UP Birds.
It hasn't been cold enough here yet this year for the birds to need to puff up to keep warm, but here is a photo of a female cardinal last winter on a bitter cold day.
We have been seeing huge flocks of migrating grackles the past few weeks. They don't migrate far. Grackles in the northern part of their range, the ones that spend the winter near me and in the southern part of Canada, will travel to the central and southern states.
One flock landed in my yard. There were hundreds of birds and they all went down and took a bath in the spring. They were so noisy that while we were outside watching and I was trying to get a few photos, my daughter and I could hardly hear each other talk.
Most of them were down in the water, but some stayed in the trees keeping lookout.
They didn't stay long, and when they left, en mass, it sounded like the whirring of helicopter blades!
It was quite an incredible experience to be so close to such a huge flock of birds.
I will look forward to seeing them again in the spring and wish them safe travels!
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