Today I worked from my old digs at Central Park Zoo, in Manhattan. The day began as rainy in Brooklyn. I came up from the F train at 57th street to ice. The ice was so intense that I could not fold up my umbrella as it was covered in a sheet of ice. By 1:30, the ice changed to fluffy snow. The snow was beautiful, but the weather combinations made it not so fun to walk around.
One thing I was looking forward to seeing, aside from my favorite zoo animals was a house sparrow. What could be so great about a house sparrow? Well this one is different, he stands out from the others and he has been living at the zoo since I began working there in 2011. I kept an eye out for him when in or around the zoo. I saw lots of other birds seeking shelter from the weather and hoping for a free meal from the zoo birds. But would I see my favorite sparrow?
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I took a lunchtime walk through the zoo, seeing the animals and any wild wildlife doing their thing in the falling snow. Biru, the red panda is right at home in this weather. |
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A grackle grabs some fresh water, a lot of the fresh water sources out in the park are becoming more and more, if not completely frozen over. |
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A snowy squirrel wonders where all the tourists are that feed him all the time. Gotta revert back to his wild squirrel ways... |
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White throated sparrow in the most Southern end of Central Park on my walk to the subway to go home. |
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A white throated sparrow assumes the floofy look, this helps to trap air between its skin and feather to insulate and keep warm. |
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A lot of white throated sparrows out today... And not shy at all, or just too cold to move. |
And then, as I exited the park, I saw a group of house and white throated sparrows feeding on a pillar. And who was there in the group? No other than my most favorite house sparrow! Was so glad I took a long glance before crossing Central Park South, because I do love seeing this little male sparrow:
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This sparrow has some piebald on its wings, its primary flight feathers are perfectly white. He is gorgeous in flight, flashing white. |
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I love finding something exciting in the ordinary everyday. I love that this little sparrow is still frequenting the same area for the last few years. Here is a post I made about him over a year ago. |
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Just doing his thing, surviving like the champ he is. |
Seriously, seeing this little bird was one of the highlights of my day. I used to see him every day when I worked at the zoo, so being able to see him today made me smile.
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