Bobolink.
Ah, sunshine. It had been a while.
Warmed up, too. Took a nice, sweaty bike ride, then headed up to Beech Hill with Jack.
American redstart.
Lots of birds. Not only the usual resident species, but a couple interesting, somewhat less common ones. Like the broad-winged hawk calling down in the lower woods; like the usually quiet nuthatch; like the usually shy flicker; like the bobolink. Had not seen a bobolink up there in a couple-three years, I bet. Then, as I talked with a couple of tourists at Beech Nut, pointing out the Savannah sparrow perched on the rock porch wall, a pair of bobolinks landed about thirty or forty yards beyond the sparrow. The male perched in a small clump of greenery and began to sing.
Earlier, incidentally, while out cycling, I spotted another broad-winged hawk as it sailed slowly over Route 1. It looked like it was carrying something like a chipmunk or a turkey chick.
I guess it’s that eat or be eaten time of year.
Beech Hill List
Beginning at 4:30 p.m., I hiked all trails.
1. Red-eyed vireo**
2. Black-throated green warbler (v)
3. Ovenbird**
4. Eastern phoebe**
5. Chestnut-sided warbler**
6. Gray catbird**
7. Veery (v)
8. Common yellowthroat**
9. Eastern wood-pewee (v)
10. Black-capped chickadee (v)
11. Tufted titmouse** (v)
12. American goldfinch** (v)
13. Scarlet tanager (v)
14. Hermit thrush (v)
15. Northern flicker
16. American robin**
17. Broad-winged hawk* (v)
18. Eastern towhee
19. Field sparrow (v)
20. Alder flycatcher
21. Savannah sparrow
22. American crow* (v)
23. Yellow warbler** (v)
24. Song sparrow**
25. Mourning dove*
26. American redstart**
27. White-breasted nuthatch (v)
28. Chipping sparrow (v)
29. Black-and-white warbler (v)
30. Cedar waxwing**
31. Herring gull*
32. Bobolink‡
33. Great crested flycatcher (v)
Elsewhere
34. Rock pigeon
35. Laughing gull (v)
v = Voice only
*Also elsewhere
**Voice only elsewhere
‡First-of-year bird
Tags: alder flycatcher, American crow, American goldfinch, American redstart, American robin, black-and-white warbler, black-capped chickadee, black-throated green warbler, bobolink, broad-winged hawk, Cedar waxwing, chestnut-sided warbler, chipping sparrow, common yellowthroat, eastern phoebe, eastern towhee, eastern wood-pewee, field sparrow, gray catbirdv, great crested flycatcher, hermit thrush, herring gull, laughing gull, mourning dove, northern flicker, ovenbird, red-eyed vireo, rock pigeon, savannah sparrow, scarlet tanager, song sparrow, tufted titmouse, white-breasted nuthatch, yellow warbler
