Back in the days when the pandemic was just a Ted talk by Bill Gates or a big budget movie, in other words, 2017, I would take pictures of birds randomly when I got a good opportunity. But I never went back to figure out what birds I had in my catalog until COVID times shut down my travel and I starting noticing birds all over the place in my backyard. After that, I realized that I had dozens and dozens of species from all over the country, taken as a random picture here and there as I traveled. I probably have over 140 species now. For example, this Steller's Jay was shot in Bryce Canyon National Park. Obviously, this is not a bird you would see in Illinois, although it is a relative of our more common Blue Jay. I knew it was a Jay when I took it but I never heard of a Stellar Jay. Anyway, you have to agree this is a beautiful bird, with wonderful shades of blue and indigo. Definitely, one of my favorite bird shots.
