Critters on the National Mall Today

Finally! The sun was out this morning. It was such a strange sight after three weeks of cold, rain, and damp. Yesterday we saw a red tail hawk swooping about next to the carousel on the mall. Today, all the critters were active catching up on activities that are long overdue! We passed by a baby bird who was obviously lost, and mom was letting us know to stay away. The robins had their beaks full of nesting material all around the Smithsonian gardens - such a great spot to set up housekeeping. There is plenty of food, water, and entertainment. The pigeons were mysteriously all laying down and not moving in the middle of the mall. They are usually pecking away on the walkway - not sleeping on the grass. A brown tailed squirrel grabbed a huge French fry from the garbage can and ran for his life once he noticed we may be interested. And finally, there was the duck family lazily resting on the edge of the reflecting pond in front of the capitol. Dad was plucking his feathers and mom was keeping a watchful eye on the brood. I think we were all so happy to see the sun shining. I'm sure tomorrow we'll all be complaining about the heat.