Yellow-rumped Warbler.
Earliest morning this spring so far, I’m pretty sure. Nearly cloudless but nippy, with a little frost here and there. Within a hundred yards of the trailhead, I’d counted a dozen species—including a fast-moving Brown Creeper (heard one singing later on). We flushed a partridge, Jack and me.
Coming up into the open fields, sure enough, there sat a sparrow hawk on an upper twig, surveying the grass. Out of nowhere, a large winged shape appeared, and I watched too stunned to raise my camera as a good-sized Cooper’s Hawk approached us not very far off the ground. The kestrel scrammed, and the Cooper’s cruised lazily overheard. First one of those I’ve seen this year
Hermit Thrush.
Lots of Ruby-crowned Kinglets still, and more yellow-rumps than yesterday.
Up at the summit, we caught the brunt of a westerly wind. Somewhere in that wind, I heard the song of a Field Sparrow—another FOY bird. The Savannah’s are laying low, still, but singing. Still a bunch of cowbirds. A pair of mallards zipped overhead.
Returning down through the lower woods, we encountered a large dead pine that had fallen in (I assume) yesterday’s high wind. It fell on a curve, completely blocking the trail. Just beyond the pine, I heard the distinctive distant drumming of a sapsucker. It had found a loud tree. Within a few moments, another woodpecker began to drum from another direction—not a sapsucker, though. (a Hairy Woodpecker, I’m pretty sure.)
Four woodpeckers, five sparrows, a couple thrushes, one warbler. Within a week or so, there’ll be more warblers, catbirds, rose-breasted grosbeaks, another thrush species or two.
An exciting time of year.
Beech Hill List
Beginning at 6:30 a.m., I hiked all trails.
1. Tufted Titmouse (v)
2. Ruby-crowned Kinglet
3. House Finch** (v)
4. Hairy Woodpecker (v)
5. Eastern Phoebe
6. Blue Jay (v)
7. Hermit Thrush**
8. Northern Flicker*
9. Brown Creeper
10. Black-capped Chickadee**
11. American Crow*
12. Eastern Towhee
13. American Goldfinch (v)
14. Ruffed Grouse
15. Brown-headed Cowbird**
16. Yellow-rumped Warbler
17. American Robin*
18. Northern Cardina (v)
19. American Kestrel
20. Cooper’s Hawk†
21. Herring Gull*
22. Field Sparrow† (v)
23. Savannah Sparrow
24. Chipping Sparrow (v)
25. White-breasted Nuthatch (v)
26. White-throated Sparrow (v)
27. Osprey (v)
28. Mallard
29. Yellow-bellied Sapsucker (drumming)
30. Pileated Woodpecker (v)
31. Mourning Dove* (v)
v = Voice only
*Also elsewhere
**Voice only elsewhere
†First-of-year bird
Tags: American crow, American goldfinch, American kestrel, American robin, black-capped chickadee, blue jay, brown creeper, brown-headed cowbird, chipping sparrow, cooper's hawk, eastern phoebe, eastern towhee, field sparrow, hairy woodpecker, hermit thrush, herring gull, house finch, mallard, mourning dove, northern cardinal, northern flicker, osprey, pileated woodpecker, ruby-crowned kinglet, ruffed grouse, savannah sparrow, tufted titmouse, white-breasted nuthatch, white-throated sparrow, yellow-bellied sapsucker, yellow-rumped warbler
