The Western Meadowlark

I took a walk by the nearby reservoir.  The walk was pleasant until a cold rain fell on me.  Before the rain began, I spotted a yellow-breasted bird perched on some rabbit grass and singing at the top of its lungs.  Though my hands were unsteady on the camera and the lens was zoomed out to the maximum 12x magnification, the bird can still be identified as a Western Meadowlark.

Here is a glamour shot from the internet.

Here is a more characteristic pose -- shoulders back and beak open wide in song.

I don't know why the Western Meadowlark is so decorative.  That is a question best left to the philosophers.  I am just glad that God's creation has such delights.

Note: the Western Meadowlark should not be confused with the late Harlem Globetrotters star, Meadowlark Lemon.