Dark Eyed Junco - A Bird Watcher's Delight

Now that the autumn days are relinquishing their colorful tapestries to the the colder colors of  November, all the songbirds except an occasional malingerer have left for warmer climes. The boreal forest still resonates with avian life - the dark eyed junco continues to entertain us in sheltering conifers and backyard feeders as they snatch up seeds that are knocked to the ground by other birds such as jays and sparrows

Dark-eyed juncos play important ecosystem roles by helping with seed dispersal and controlling insect populations. They also bring great joy to birdwatchers. In fact, dark-eyed juncos are often regarded as one of the most common feeder birds in Canada

Most juncos are a slate gray color, but females and juveniles show a brown coloration that I find most interesting. There appears to be an abundance of "brown" juncos at this time of the year. I have not noticed this before, but perhaps I'm just more observant of nature's design this year ! 

Did you know that the junco is the original "Snow Bird" that Anne Murray sang about in the 1970's ?