A Winter Morning Visit From an Orange-crowned Warbler

The joys and delights of replacing our lawn with a garden of California native plants are many - and ongoing!  From reduced water use and maintenance, to the fragrance of Salvias and the beauty of year-round blooms, we couldn't be more pleased with the outcome of our project.

And the best part?  The neighborhood birds certainly approve of our plant pallet!


Just recently, I glanced out the kitchen window on a cold, cloudy morning and spotted this little ray of sunshine, an Orange-crowned Warbler, foraging for tiny insects in a 'Pozo Blue' Cleveland Sage.  He hung around long enough for me to snap a few photos through the window.


Orange-crowned Warblers are one of our winter warblers here in the Central Valley of California, but they are not nearly as abundant as Yellow-rumped Warblers.  Small insectivores, they are usually seen hopping around in shrubs and low trees, gleaning insects from the foliage.  Their "orange crown" is seldom visible, and perhaps the best field mark of the Orange-crowned Warbler is that they are basically lacking field marks!  Look for a small bird with a thin, pointed bill, muted yellow-olive in color, with yellow undertail coverts and a faint eyeline.


Watching warblers out the kitchen window while enjoying my morning cup of tea is just one of many pleasures our new garden has afforded!


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