Ruby-Crowned Kinglet

I get so excited about seeing green this time of year... and flowers... and warmer weather... and... BIRDS (hence the "nickname" that I use for Twitter, email, my blog and other various places: strouthion (στρουθίον - stroo-thee'-on), which is greek meaning "a little bird, esp. of the sparrow sort").

Migration is in full force and I love to see our colorful winged friends arriving daily in central Illinois from locations far far away to the south. Whether they're staying local until fall or the many that are just stopping on their way to Canada for the summer... It's so awesome to see them starting to arrive. And though I haven't had the chance to see any warblers in my backyard yet, I did have a sweet ruby-crowned kinglet stop by and cheer up my day this past Wednesday... and he even waited patiently for me to run back inside and grab my camera...