Birds with my morning coffee

The birds are having a feast on the tall stalks that my yuccas sent up over the past month. I took these pictures while sipping my morning coffee in the front courtyard. 

The stalks are also quite striking against the sunset.

This stunning golden breasted bird is a hooded oriole. I had to get my birding friend, Sandy, to identify it.

 

I don't know what these birds are, above. Do any of you know?

But I do know hummingbirds, and we get a lot of them here all year. This little guy wasn't intimidated by my flip flop propped on the water fountain. He took his time getting a long drink.

Then he buzzed up to fight off an intruder ...

... and stayed up there until it was gone.

This cluster of birds was in the tree across the street. It's a favorite spot of birds at sunset.

Doves are everywhere here, and it seems like there's always one on my roof and my neighbors' roofs. That's the big prickly pear cactus on the corner of my house, reaching up to the roof.

Here's another type of bird: the splashy Mexican bird of paradise plant. This one is in my neighbor's yard, but they thrive all over town in the summer heat.

This last photo has nothing to do with birds, but I wanted to show you my two granddogs from Wisconsin! They were rescued at different times but they look identical, except for their sizes. Cute cute cute! And they are very pampered dogs, as you can see by their raised sunbathing mat. Their pool will be set up soon.

Have a colorful day