Spatzie

"Spatzie" is a nickname used by some people for House sparrows.  These busy little sparrows always make me smile.  They always seem busy and cheerful.  This one was bouncing about in a blackberry bush while I was sketching.  Fortunately for me, this sparrow and his buddies kept coming back to the same bush so I had a lovely opportunity to sit in my car and sketch him on a winter day.

Life in our care...

This tiny sparrow came into our care yesterday, when she appeared, injured, on our front porch. I don't know what's wrong with her--a broken leg, an injured wing--but she's hanging in there. Funny how important a life becomes when it's in our care--even though these are considered a "pest species." Her coloring is elegant, and her will to live impressive. We'll take her to Pete, my vet, who is a wildlife rehabilitator, this morning...he's more likely to tell what's wrong with her and if it's fixable.

I sketched her off and on all day, offering my respect...

I believe it's a young or female house sparrow...

Baby House Sparrow

My next door neighbour called me over to put a baby bird back into the nest. It was a house sparrow that had fallen out of the low rafters and had survived the fall to the concrete. My neighbour couldn't manage to do it as he had broken a rib and being the soft-hearted caring fella he was, he called me from over to help. My husband stood by for a couple of quick photos. We noted his brightly coloured mouth; no doubts for the parents where the mouth is! (Hubby said it looked like a sad clown mouth.)
After groping blindly with a tentative hand above my head, I managed to figure out where the occupied nest was ( there seemed to be several nests on the go) and felt the beak of another nest-mate ( they were all being quiet and holding their breath while this monstrous thing groped around) and then I tipped the bird back in and you should have heard all the peeping from his siblings! And yes, I know house sparrows are the bane of existence, right up there with starlings, ivy and purple loosestrife, but I couldn't let the little thing bake in the 32 degree heat. No way.
For all my moaning to my husband about invasive species, at least I know I'm a hypocrite :)