Utah birds and a flower

9.19.12   Smoke from numerous forest fires in Idaho has been so thick the past two days that I didn't go out for my morning walk.  Today the air was much clearer, and we headed out.   The melodious song of the Western Meadowlark stopped me in my tracks.  It took a minute or two of scanning the weedy bank with binoculars before I found the songster.  This male is still in his breeding plumage.
       A small flock of Pine Siskins were gleaning seeds from Musk thistle and also from Common sunflowers (Helianthus annuus).  They usually scatter when I approach, but today they were so intent on gathering seeds, they paid no attention.  While I observed their adept maneuvers, a Red-shafted flicker landed on a low branch nearby, the coppery-red underside of the wing making identification easy.   I was pleased to find these birds as last week's departure of the Swainson's Hawk and  Barn swallows that provided so much entertainment created a void.

     The Dalmatian toadflax was untouched by last night's frost, our first.  Flowers are fast giving way to seed pods, and shades of tan, umber, blonde, and brown predominate.