An American Tree Sparrow in the Snow

A little American Tree Sparrow rested in a crabapple tree just outside our family room window Saturday morning. He seemed very pleased with the additional five inches of snow. After all, he is a bird from the far north and is well adapted to our cold winters. This spring he will pick up and head back home, flying over 2,000 miles to reach his breeding grounds in Manitoba, so we have to enjoy him while we can. He's our special part-time bird with a wintertime job of brightening our cold, grey days. The warm chocolate brown color that runs through his feathers and the cheerful, rusty cap on his head fit his happy self perfectly and help him do his job. I also love his two-toned bill and dark stickpin in the center of his chest. Last year our little winter flock numbered about 20. This year it seems a little higher...maybe 25+. Last winter the flock stuck to the feeders outside my kitchen window, but this winter they have ventured to the feeders in the front of the house outside my office window and to the feeders in the back outside the family room. Wherever I go, I can catch a glimpse of them, twittering and hopping around...