Lighten up already, after all there are birds around.

Black-capped Chickadee fledgling.

Over the past two summers the makeshift bird bath in the garden hasn't ever seen much activity. When the weather turned so hot this year, I gave it a little more attention, cleaning it out once after algae colored the water green. Now every night when I water the garden, I empty and refill it. That keeps the algae under  control and at least in part may be the reason the bath has received more traffic this year.

Chickadees, Pine grosbeaks, white-crowned sparrows, woodpeckers, robins, juncoes, Pine siskins and gray jays have all taken a dip or a sip from it at one time or other.

Gray jay.

The other day four species were using it at once. Of course by the time I had the camera ready all but one had flown away. With a little patience I managed to catch three of them one at a time later in the day. The one I missed was the White crowned sparrow, a species that seems more wary than the other three.

I still think I need to find a prettier bird bath.

Pine siskin

Springtime visitors