faerye , to random
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Birds looking sideways at the world: 💙🤍💙

(Tree swallow, Deschutes National Forest, , May 10)

A tree swallow perches on a broken stub of branch emerging from a much-decayed snag tree’s trunk. In the blazing midday sun of the high desert, its back feathers are a decadent iridescent marine blue that ancient craftsmen would have labored weeks to produce in pigment; its front, from cheekbone to undertail coverts, is spotless white. It tips its tiny, almost stylized face to the side to train its dark globe of an eye upon the world. It has a tiny insect-grabbing triangle of beak and a slash of dark bandit-mask across its eyes. Rampantly anthropomorphizing, it looks quizzical!
ALT
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    • + loren
    faerye , to random
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    I’ve been sorting photos from a couple weeks ago, and I have a terrible case of Barn Swallow Cute Aggression! 😬 Just behold! Behold their tiny faces!

    A barn swallow perched high on a dead branch, wide mouth open to call. It wears an iridescent indigo coat of feathers and folded wings, with a deep yam-colored swath of contrasting orange down its front. Its mouth is surprisingly large for such a small bird and small head. Bird small! Spring feelings HUGE!
    Two barn swallows on a branch: the affronted little gentlebird from earlier looking askance at another loud singer beside it. They both have the same glossy heads, the same toasted-crême brûlée breast feathers and highly sculptured brow shapes. Beautiful high-contrast little birds in wild color against a gray world.

    A barn swallow sitting on a gnarled snag-branch. Its face is turned towards us, appearing to look at us with its partly forward-turned eyes. Its long thin claws hold it on this ample perch with a quite relaxed grip. With its wide, foreshortened face — gleaming globular eyes in upswept almost quizzical orbits, tiny wide beak, and plumage that extends the line of that poutily downturned mouth — it looks indignant! Especially with its puffy fluff-feathered chest and the shoulders of its agile wings shrugged up almost onto that cartoon face: just a completely scrumptious creature affronted by our crooning adoration. “How dare you call me CUTE?”
    ALT
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    • faerye OP ,
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    Oh, how did I forget to include this one?!

    No thoughts! Just floof!

    A barn swallow perched on an extended dead branch, head cocked far to one side as if quizzical or listening. All its feathers are fluffed up, so its chest looks very fuzzy, but also its head looks big with beak and eyes indented in the fluff, like a cartoon character who’s had a blow-dry. It looks incredibly silly!
    ALT
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    • + loren
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