Spent a glorious and frustrating morning at Casper Park. The weather was fine, a bright sun and a cool breeze, with lots of birds, plants, and crawly things to see. Unfortunately, what makes for good observing doesn't always make for great picture taking. The landscape is oak sage chaparral with lots of old sycamores and walnuts mixed in. The birds were zipping about, almost always backlit by the strong sun or down low in shadow. So it goes; you shot as best you can and hope.
This is an endangered Pacific Coast cactus wren; they usually sit in scrub or atop paddle cactus at eye level. Today, he decided to show off and, after 15 minutes, I finally spotted him twenty feet up at the very top of a dead oak.