Bustits on rabbitbrush

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Bushtits are one of my favorite birds and these are foraging on one of my favorite native shrubs-rabittbrush. Though so nondescript in appearance they are such cute little birds that I see all but the most diehard lister light up when they hear their chittering calls. However they are almost always very busy foraging, often upside down, that they can be challenging to photograph without the blur of movement. This flock has been around the east end of the Canon City Riverwalk off and on for several days. These two Bushtits are females as they have yellow eyes. There is brown plumage around ear coverts forming a mask that is found on the subspecies P. m. plumbeus However, Birds of North America online says, "it is now clear that the amount of black in the face is a polymorphism, the frequency of which varies geographically." SeEtta

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