Camera Critters

Camera Critters is another wonderful meme hosted by Misty Dawn. You can find other critter photos by clicking on the icon above. Thank you Misty.

Remember .......?
~

Hush little baby, don’t say a word,
Mama’s gonna buy you a mockingbird.
And if that mockingbird don’t sing,
Mama’s gonna buy you a diamond ring.

~

This traditional American lullaby refers to the fact that Northern Mockingbirds were once popular as pets. President Thomas Jefferson had a pet mockingbird named Dick.

The Mockingbird is a medium-sized songbird – 9 to 11 inches - with a long tail. It is grey on the top of its body and white below and has two white wing bars. Large white patches show on the wings while in flight and it has white outer tail feathers.

Their nest is an open cup, the base of which is dead twigs built mainly by the male. The lining of the nest is made up of grasses added by the female and is usually less than 10 feet from the ground in shrubs.

There are usually two to six bluish or greenish white colored eggs with brownish markings. Incubation is by the female only and takes from 12 to 13 days. The fledglings are fed by both parents from 12 to 15 days and they can have two or three broods per year.

In the United States, Mockingbirds are the State bird for Arkansas, Florida, Mississippi, Tennessee and Texas.

Another well-known song I found on YouTube.