During most of my nature walks, birds of a feather appear to live together fairly harmoniously, whether it be fishing or hunting for worms  or just generally hanging out.

Of course with the arrival of springtime, there is love in the air and with it a rise in testosterone as the males begin to stake out their territory and advertise for a mate.  While I usually wake up to the gentle sounds of birds chirping and trilling, during “the mating season”  it becomes a cacophony of birdsong.

 

Sometimes the males get so riled up they actually blush:

Territorial singing is followed up by actual skirmishes:

Once the victors are identified then round two of the courtship  commences with dancing and wooing in earnest.  Eggs are laid, chicks are born and emotions settle down.

Except – there are certain birds who never seem to lose their truculence and always have  a scowl on their faces.

And there are others who are just pissed off:

 

I guess even birds have their bad days.

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