I saw her again on Friday and there was no mistaking her identity. She was perfect in size, her white eyebrow shining in the sun, her pale bill so obvious. She was gorgeous. Our first female Red-breasted Grosbeak had indeed arrived. It shouldn't have been much of a surprise. After all, I spotted the first male on September 24.
She came to one of the feeders for a nice meal. Such a beauty.
So, why was I viewing this bird with such mixed feelings? Because the arrival of the females signals the departure of the males. When I saw her, I knew I would have only a few days to see this bird:
Or this one:
Just as we do every fall, we have so enjoyed seeing the bright (and not so bright) males. We are very fortunate that they seem to love our woods and interrupt their long journey to take a little respite here. In a few days, the males will be gone, but we will have more and more females to join our early arrival. We will love them as well, and lament their decision to travel on.
And with the spring will come the even more brilliant males. We already look forward to seeing them.
13 comments:
Such gorgeous birds. I don't think I have ever seen a rose-breated grosbeak here in central PA. Don't know if they migrate through here or not--I have just never seen one.
Maybe since I live in the 'burbs--not enough woods around?
Love that first shot. It looks as if she's resting her wings.
You are indeed lucky - I see them in the spring, but if they come back through in the fall, I have missed them....they are really gorgeous, and your pictures are great.
Beautiful post.....enjoy the moment.....
We see them usually in the spring too, though this year, I only saw them two or three times, and then they were gone. They are such beautiful birds. :c)
You always post such detailed and delightful pictures. I would love to see all these grosbeaks. My feeder seems to be a little empty these days as many of our spring and summer visitors are probably flying your way! :-)
I thought our grosbeaks were all gone but I saw a couple of them hanging around the yard just today ... coming in for a drink.
WOW! These are superb captures! They are truly beautiful birds!!
Nice pictures of your visitors. They are beautiful birds, but I guess time and grosbeaks wait for no one! Enjoy them while you can!
Beatiful birds. A male graces me once each Spring. My jelly is always waiting.
Carolyn: How I do love the colors of these males, they are very special.
I've only seen them in the spring, and I never knew the males looked like that in the fall. Very cool pictures!
Thanks, everyone, for the comments. Yes, time moves on whether we are ready or not, and we must enjoy the moment.
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