The Mockingbird: State Bird of Texas

While I've posted a fair number of photographs of birds, I really haven't had a specific goal of looking for birds when I go on my walks. They are, however, one of the few animals that tend to be active in the late morning when I manage to stumble out the door and head to the trail.

This past Friday on the Oak Loop Trail in Hardberger Park, I happened across this mockingbird that apparently had found insects to feast on under the fallen leaves. He (or she) spent several minutes hopping around, turning up the leaves on the ground giving me long enough to take a series of photos.

The mockingbird is the official bird of the state of Texas. In 1927, the Texas State Legislature proclaimed:

"[The mockingbird] is found in all parts of the State, in winter and in summer, in the city and in the country, on the prairie and in the woods and hills... [It] is a singer of distinctive type, a fighter for the protection of his home, falling, if need be, in its defense, like any true Texan..."

So, in honor of the State Bird of Texas, I present: