The tiny Verdin, a Bushtit-sized bird, differs from the tiny Bushtits in that it is a mostly solitary unlike the Bushtits that move in a brigade. The Verdin moves acrobatically through the trees and leaves of the Cottonwood and desert brush searching for tiny insects, a few of which are visible on its beak. Seconds before I took this shot, this Verdin was inside the curled leaf nibbling on the tiny bugs when it suddenly dropped out of the secluded protection of the leaf into the open and looked back as if to scold me for watching. It brought to mind Midnight Cowboy‘s Ratso Rizzo (played by Dustin Hoffman) who challenged anyone who got in his way as he crossed the streets of Manhattan saying, “Hey, I’m walkin’ here” along with a few curse words. The Verdin, with a challenging look of its own, could be saying, “hey, I’m eatin’ here!” No curse words included.