A Thrush, a Dove, and Two Little Goldfinches

This morning, the birds were out earlier than usual.  They were out around eight to eight-thirty.  I also heard a coyote yipping when I got up.  Speaking of coyotes, I heard two or three of them last night, all yipping at the same time.

Back to the birds, I saw a Cassin's kingbird in one of the trees in my backyard, a tall jacaranda. It was flying from its perch to catch the tons of little flies flying around.  Unfortunately, I didn't get a photo of it.  Actually, I've never gotten a photo of a Cassin's kingbird, even though there are many of them around all year round.  However, I've gotten multiple pictures of western kingbirds, which are only here in the summer.

I also discovered that the hermit thrushes have not left!  I saw one in my yard, though it quickly hid when it saw me.  I got a photo of it.  Here it is below.

Hermit Thrush

There was also a Eurasian collared-dove walking around in the grass.  I don't know about other places, but in my neighborhood, the collared-doves are very big.  They look like they're almost the size of small chickens.  They also make strange dinosaur-like noises.  Here's a picture of one of the giant doves.

Eurasian Collared-Dove

Two tiny birds that I saw this morning were lesser goldfinches.  Lesser goldfinches are the smallest goldfinches in the United States, being only about four and a half inches from beak to tail tip.  They have yellow and greenish-yellow bodies with dark gray and white wings and tails.  Males have black caps on their heads.  They live all year round in most of the southwest United States and Mexico.  They eat weed seeds, like dandelion seeds, and are very common visitors at thistle feeders.  They are often very noisy.  Here is a photo of a male.

Lesser Goldfinch