This Friday I was able to finish work a little early and head right to the park. It was another warm and
mostly sunny day. There were some dark rain clouds that were moving east making the sky periodically look purplish when the sun shined on it and this made for some interesting lighting.
Roughly 2 weeks ago -maybe more- I spotted a Painted Turtle and a Mourning Cloak Butterfly on the same day. That was crazy-early in the year to see such things but I wasn't able to get any photos to prove it. Today I saw both again and this time they both stayed still for a photo. The Turtle was one of 3 sunning themselves in the little pond on the east side.
Then about 5 minutes later this Mourning Cloak stopped at the end of a twig right off the trail. It kept it's wings closed at first and I was just about to move on when it spread open its wings. I haven't seen a Mourning Cloak caterpillar at all this year which makes me wonder if most of them have already turned into butterflies already -especially with this warm Spring. Near the end of my walk I noticed a small flash of bright red up above in a tree. I've nearly given up trying to get a photo of this small bird because they really move quickly. But this one stayed put for longer than normal -probably because I was almost directly underneath it. Unfortunately this angle didn't provide me the opportunity to see the top of its head -which would have told me whether it was a Purple Finch or a House Finch.
At first I really thought it was a Purple Finch because the red coloring was so intense, but now I think it is a House Finch based on the brown streaking on the belly. The two birds are apparently very similar and though common birds, I just don't see them close up enough to quickly tell them apart. I see similar birds in the winter time but have never seen them sit still long enough for a photo.
Roughly 2 weeks ago -maybe more- I spotted a Painted Turtle and a Mourning Cloak Butterfly on the same day. That was crazy-early in the year to see such things but I wasn't able to get any photos to prove it. Today I saw both again and this time they both stayed still for a photo. The Turtle was one of 3 sunning themselves in the little pond on the east side. 
Then about 5 minutes later this Mourning Cloak stopped at the end of a twig right off the trail. It kept it's wings closed at first and I was just about to move on when it spread open its wings. I haven't seen a Mourning Cloak caterpillar at all this year which makes me wonder if most of them have already turned into butterflies already -especially with this warm Spring. Near the end of my walk I noticed a small flash of bright red up above in a tree. I've nearly given up trying to get a photo of this small bird because they really move quickly. But this one stayed put for longer than normal -probably because I was almost directly underneath it. Unfortunately this angle didn't provide me the opportunity to see the top of its head -which would have told me whether it was a Purple Finch or a House Finch. 
At first I really thought it was a Purple Finch because the red coloring was so intense, but now I think it is a House Finch based on the brown streaking on the belly. The two birds are apparently very similar and though common birds, I just don't see them close up enough to quickly tell them apart. I see similar birds in the winter time but have never seen them sit still long enough for a photo.
