The season is changing. Of course, children are going back to school, but other species are shifting over to the winter residents. Steller’s Jays are back, as are cedar bugs (aka, stink bugs).
A sign of the shift for me is the arrival on August 30th of a Horned Grebe. They are usually present, except during the summer, when they breed farther north.
The arrival of a Horned Grebe in the dying days of August was welcomed. However, this one has a rather odd extrusion of flight feathers erupting from its side. Can it fly? Well, it did arrive here.
Another fascinating post. I do hope the horned grebe will survive and wonder what might have caused this extrusion of flight feathers.