My Grandparents' Birds and Lizards

Yesterday I went to my grandparent's house, and there were many birds there (a lot of them I could hear, but not see).  Though in the neighborhood there were many manicured yards, there were also many seed and hummingbird feeders and thick trees.  The neighorhood is also very near Camp Pendleton, which is known as a very natural area.  Below is a view from my grandparents' yard of the neighborhood, some trees, and Camp Pendleton beyond.

There were tons of tree swallows flying around, probably because of the fields nearby.  Below is a photo of one of the tree swallows, and the first one I've ever taken.  Most often, tree swallows can be identified by the large amount of white underneath.  Violet-green swallows are also very white, but they are more likely found in small groups, while tree swallows are found in large groups.

Tree Swallow

There were also tons of birds of prey around.  Besides the red-tailed hawk below, there were two other red-tailed hawks, a Cooper's hawk, and a few turkey vultures.

Red-tailed Hawk

There were a few northern mockingbirds around that were hopping around in the bushes and singing.  Below is one of them.

Northern Mockingbird

There were also many house finches around.  Below are two photos of them.  The top one is a male, and the bottom is a female.

House Finch

House Finch

A few Anna's hummingbirds were attracted to the hummingbird feeders, such as the one below.


Anna's Hummingbird



I will finish with a southern alligator lizard, which isn't uncommon, but it's always exciting to see.  They are pretty big lizards and look like miniature alligators.  When they run, they wiggle and keep their legs close by their sides, making them look like snakes slithering along the ground.  There were two of them at my grandparents' house.  The one below was the smaller one.  It was only about a foot long.