Rain is pain. Especially as a bird.

(Bonus images below)

As I took the slight detour from my usual walk down the hill from work heading home, it started pouring. Cats and dogs as they say. Nothing scares birds more than cats and dogs. So off they fly. I keep walking wondering where birds disappear when the clouds decide to relieve themselves in a fit of rage. A quick web search told me that some take shelter in the thick canopies of decades old trees, on the leeward side. Some tuck themselves away in old pecker holes. Some birds just brave the elements and keep birding, especially the ones with waterproof clothing. I finally reach my happy place. The tiny col between the peaks of the hill where peckers are usually observed exfoliating pines and oaks, ridding them of bugs (ugh). Through the thick rain and fog I spot something black and fluffy on a branch. I whip out my camera that usually does double duty as a portable monocular. Anyone who had the misfortune of using a fujifilm camera for wildlife knows that the autofocus is best at detcting branches and foliage than actual birds and animals. (Random AJ thought: Did they pick an AI model that hallucinates for the AF detection?). I switch to manual focus and oh my god is that a woodpecker braving the rain? Why is she out? Girl aren’t you suppsed to be cozy in one of the thousand cubbyhole apartments that youve carved out in the trees around? Has she decided that shelter is for lesser birds? I watch her puff her feathers, spread her wings and try to stay dry. Several shots later, I have this masterpiece. Off she flies to a nearby branch. I follow her and she makes the cutest pose ever for me.

Thanks for reading, kind stranger!