It looked like a male house finch, though instead of the usual blushy ... Last fall, a Mojave desert tortoise went viral for its prickly pear lipstick, a byproduct of munching on the cactus ...

DEAR JOAN: A male house finch that is a regular visitor to my deck for sunflower seeds appears sick. He’s less active, and when he perches, he gapes his beak open and closed, over and over ...