The chit-chatting outside lures me out with the camera, but every time the birds fly away as if they know I have my camera ready. They can sense it. It is an old problem I have. I am sure, especially the mousebirds, taunt me. They know me, they know the camera. Every time I have the camera they fly away. Every time I do not have the camera with me, they remain in the trees unphased by my presence.

The same with these mossies or house sparrows (Passer domesticus). Every time when I leave the front door, they fly away when I have my camera with me. When I am without it, they carry on as if nothing is happening.

But today, I captured them on some photographs! And I also spotted a bird friend I have never seen before, sending me off on a wild goose chase that resulted in nothing! But such is life. (Read more about this at the end of the post!)

Please enjoy some of the results of this photographic adventure until the sunset, which resulted in some nice silhouette photographs. Without further ado!

Silhouette Adventures

Just before sunset, I captured the last photographs of the day when the mossies (sparrows) decided to go back home. They were beautiful and I am glad that I caught (all three!) in one photograph.

Here one sparrow sits on the branch as if he/she is the king of their world.

Sitting on the Fence (Rail)

I run around the house to capture them on photograph. I wait like a cat or a lion around the corner and stalk them. I let them feel comfortable and walk slowly around the corner and snap them just before they fly off.

I particularly like the photograph below of the little sparrow peeking over the edge. It is such a cute moment!

They sat on the grass, just before they flew to the branches which resulted in the silhouettes above. There must be plenty of seeds because they are there every afternoon. Or there are many bugs there. I am not sure. But it sounds like the place to be!

The Wild Goose Chase Resulting in Nothing

We just left for the university when @urban.scout saw a bird in the tree. She knowing my obsession with birding, showed me. I ran into the house (again) to grab my camera and was just too late. I snapped some pictures of what we thought was the bird I wanted to get on camera, the grey go-away-bird or loerie (Corythaixoides concolor) but I knew from the start it was too dark, it needed to be grey. But nonetheless, we drove to campus. But on our way there, @urban.scout saw another bird she thought was the one I wanted to get on photographs. We stopped the car, I got out, and ran like some strange creature down the road trying to get the bird we saw on the road. I saw something and tried to take some photographs and it also was to no avail. The first bird, the photograph below, was merely the common cape starling and the second one was the alien Indian myna. Some you win, some you lose.

The common cape starling.

The alien Indian myna.

Postscriptum, or Not Giving Up

The Grey loerie is very similar to the grey mousebird. But I feel it is going to be the same situation in which it will taunt me. Their calls echo through the streets, it is now a very soothing sound, but soon it will become a taunting voice, calling me out to take photographs of them, just to fly away the second I want to press the shutter. But soon I will get them on film (photograph) I can sense and feel it.

For now, the mossie friends are keeping me company whilst I am struggling to get into the mood to write the new chapter that needs to be in in a couple of weeks. Such is life.

I hope you enjoyed this birding photographic adventure with me. Even though the goose chase led to nothing in terms of the bird I want to photograph, it still led to some beautiful birds!

Happy birding, stay safe.

All of the photographs are my own, taken with my Nikon D300 and Tamron 300mm lens. The musings and writings are also my own.