The shutter clicked merrily at the tiny, pear-shaped bird perched on the feeder. “I’m so glad Joker has started coming regularly.”

“Joker?”

“I named her after her song, which sounds kind of like laughing.”

Another bird, this one grey above and brown-streaked yellow underneath, fluttered up. “Get out of here, Warby! You better not scare Joker!”

Irrespective of the scolding, the bird perched on the nearby set and began to eat.

“You do know that Warby is a Kirtland’s warbler, right? One of the rarest birds in the world and one that never, ever comes to feeders? Why are you trying to shoo it away in favor of a common red-breasted nuthatch?”

“Oh, Warby comes five times a day, but Joker’s new.”

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