Morning Grooming

September 11, 2017 —— Moira Yip

Follow the author’s personal photographic blog of her global travels and her life in Maine here:  “Eyes on the Wild”

I am used to seeing birds preening, but I hadn’t really paid attention to the fact that bees groom too. After a very heavy rainfall, this bee spent twenty minutes or so using its hind legs to groom its fuzzy body, top and bottom.

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The same morning, this Chipping Sparrow found a sunny rock, and then yawned.  You can see his tongue.

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The young male Hairy Woodpecker, whose plumage was still not quite how he wanted it to be, embarked on a serious grooming session. Notice how he uses his tail to brace himself against the tree branch.

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Then he worked his way around his body, missing nothing.

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Quite like any teenager.