Some of Laura's bird pictures

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Laura's George and Martha pictures

George and Martha are two Black-capped Chickadees that are nesting in a big cottonwood behind my neighbors' backyard. They come to my window for mealworms, and even divebomb me when I'm in the backyard. Now that their nestlings have hatched, they've even been begging for mealworms from my son.

I call them George and Martha because they're rather the "first couple," at least in my heart (and I think he'd make a better president--and certainly a more honest one and a more focused father--than the current George), but also because they remind me of that OTHER George and Martha, from "Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?" in that Martha's rather demanding, and George can't please her, and because he's not nearly as interested in pleasing her as she, or I, expected. Of course this George and Martha are much quieter, and if they swear at all keep it in chickadee language that at least sounds sweet and cheerful. Sometimes I can't tell the two birds apart--they dress alike, after all. If I wasn't sure, I didn't put a name to the photo. George is usually harder to photograph because he flits about, making a loud wing-whirring sound, when he wants mealworms. Martha is more likely to sit patiently waiting for me to finish snapping shots--maybe she just likes paparazzi more.

All these photos were taken with my Sony DSC-H1. As with all my photos, some are better than others. But I find with bird pictures, as with my children's baby and grad photos, that I really can't bear to throw out any that show even a little spark of difference from the others.

The six above photos are all George--notice that he has some spider silk on his head. You'll see more of that in photos below, that were taken a day or two earlier.
     
George Martha George
Martha George George
Martha Martha Martha
Martha Martha  
     
Martha Martha Martha
Martha Martha George

 

 

 

All my writing, images, videos, and sound recordings are copyrighted © 1997 - 2007 by Laura L. Erickson. I love to share my work to promote bird conservation and education, and to help people enjoy and learn about the birds and other creatures who live with us on this little planet. I produce this webpage, my radio program, and my photography and sound recordings entirely at my own expense. I could not bear for my hard work to be used to promote any product, company, or organization that is in any way harmful to birds. Please do not use any of my work in any for-profit projects without written permission from me. You can ask for permission by emailing me at chickadee@lauraerickson.com.