My fountain isn’t working as it should and the bubble that seems to attract the birds to it flattens out after just a couple of hours. I have to keep my eye on it so I can fill it when it goes flat but I don’t always get to it when it needs to be filled. When I looked out Christmas Eve morning, I noticed a Ruby-crowned Kinglet on the fountain and the Bushtits were congregating. The fountain was flat but the birds were eager so instead of filling it, I grabbed my Nikon D500 with the 300mm lens and the 1.4 X teleconverter and walked outside to sit near the fountain. I had to sit for several minutes before any of the birds ventured back down to the fountain. My patience paid off though. The little male Ruby-crowned Kinglet returned, warily, to the fountain. The sound of my shutter frightened him away as did every subsequent trigger of it for a few minutes. Then, he seemed to acclimate and finished his bath with great abandon. I know it’s a male because only the males have the ruby crown. It doesn’t show in this photograph but as he bathed and contorted his body, I got little glimpses of the red feathers on the top of his head. In this shot, he seems to implore me to fill the fountain so his bubble will return. My birds don’t ask for much. I guess I’d better refill the fountain.
Merry Christmas!!
