Carolina wren.
Got up early. Hiked all over Beech Hill with dog. Got back home at 9:15 a.m., two and a half hours later. There was a lot to see and hear up there this morning—including a Carolina wren.
American kestrel.
The little bird with the big voice was first Carolina wren I’d ever seen at Beech Hill. In fact, it’s only the second Carolina wren I’ve seen in Rockport. In fact, other than those two, the only Carolina wrens I’ve seen (or heard) in Maine were in the Monhegan Island population. Thryothorus ludovicianus doesn’t even appear on the Beech Hill bird list.
Anyway, that was the highlight of the hike. But I also saw my first blue-headed vireo of the year. We also ran into my birder friend Ed and his new dog, a long-distance rescue (from Chile). Ended up with thirty-two species—until this afternoon, toward the end of a thirty-mile bike ride, when I was zipping along South Street and looked up to see a broad-winged hawk circling the barrens.
Still thinking of that loud little wren.
Beech Hill List
Beginning at 6:45 a.m., I hiked all trails.
1. American robin*
2. American goldfinch**
3. American crow*
4. Eastern phoebe*
5. Black-capped chickadee*
6. Herring gull*
7. Hermit thrush (v)
8. House finch** (v)
9. Tufted titmouse** (v)
10. Eastern towhee
11. Northern flicker (v)
12. Blue-headed vireo
13. Yellow-rumped warbler
14. American kestrel
15. Dark-eyed junco
16. Blue jay** (v)
17. Song sparrow**
18. Savannah sparrow
19. Field sparrow
20. Pileated woodpecker* (v)
21. Northern cardinal** (v)
22. Tree swallow (v)
23. Great blue heron
24. Brown-headed cowbird**
25. Ruby-crowned kinglet
26. Downy woodpecker (v)
27. White-throated sparrow (v)
28. Mourning dove*
29. Carolina wren†‡
30. Common raven
31. Golden-crowned kinglet (v)
32. Wild turkey (v)
33. Hairy woodpecker** (v)
34. Broad-winged hawk
Elsewhere
35. European starling
36. Turkey vulture
37. Rock pigeon
38. Canada goose
v = Voice only
*Also elsewhere
**Voice only elsewhere
†First-of-year bird
‡First-of-hill bird
Savannah sparrow.
Tags: American crow, American goldfinch, American kestrel, American robin, black-capped chickadee, blue jay, blue-headed vireo, broad-winged hawk, brown-headed cowbird, Canada goose, Carolina wren, common raven, dark-eyed junco, downy woodpecker, eastern phoebe, eastern towhee, European starling, field sparrow, golden-crowned kinglet, great blue heron, hairy woodpecker, hermit thrush, herring gull, house finch, mourning dove, northern cardinal, northern flicker, pileated woodpecker, rock pigeon, ruby-crowned kinglet, savannah sparrow, song sparrow, tree swallow, tufted titmouse, turkey vulture, white-throated sparrow, wild turkey, yellow-rumped warbler
