Nashville Warbler.
My friend and bird expert Bryan Pfeiffer posted a wonderful piece today about warblers—their allure, their magic, their ability to make birders out of nearly anyone (given the chance). Read it.
OK, now that you’ve done that, here’s my little story of this morning with Jack at Beech Hill.
Raccoon.
Sunny and chilly, but not too chilly. Breezy, but not too breezy. Right away I heard—then saw—a Blue-Headed Vireo. In short order: Ovenbird, Black-throated Green Warbler, Black-and-White Warbler. After a little while, Yellow-rumped Warbler, Northern Parula, and my first-of-year Nashville. I even got a passable photo of the Nashville, a notoriously shy one. (It happened to zip up to a nearby branch while Jack and I were standing completely still.)
Up toward the summit, some minor drama: I noticed movement in the periphery and noticed a raccoon poking about near an old stone wall not thirty or forty feet away and right away began to take a video. It took a second or two for Jack to see it, and he growled and pulled on the leash, which got the coon’s attention, and it scrambled up a nearby tree and posed for a photo.
Ran into some friends down at the Beech Hill Road lot, and we came back up the hill together. Song and Savannah sparrows, Tree Swallows, the jazzy drumming of a Yellow-Bellied Sapsucker. Still a ton of yellow-rumps moving through on one particular point on the trail.
Not as many birds as yesterday, but no less fun and inspiring.
Yellow-rumped Warbler.
Beech Hill List
Beginning at 6 a.m., I hiked all trails.
1. Mallard
2. Blue-headed Vireo
3. Ovenbird
4. Black-throated Green Warbler
5. Eastern Phoebe
6. Black-and-white Warbler
7. Black-capped Chickadee
8. American Robin
9. Eastern Towhee
10. Veery
11. Tufted Titmouse
12. American Crow
13. Northern Flicker
14. Mourning Dove
15. American Goldfinch
16. Common Grackle
17. Common Yellowthroat
18. Northern Cardinal
19. Nashville Warbler†
20. Yellow-rumped Warbler
21. Gray Catbird
22. Tree Swallow
23. Song Sparrow
24. Field Sparrow
25. Northern Parula
26. Brown-headed Cowbird
27. Yellow-bellied Sapsucker
28. Double-crested Cormorant
29. Savannah Sparrow
30. Blue Jay
31. Chipping Sparrow
32. Downy Woodpecker
33. House Finch
Elsewhere
34. Herring Gull
35. European Starling
36. House Sparrow
v = Voice only
*Also elsewhere
**Voice only elsewhere
†First-of-year bird
Tags: American crow, American goldfinch, American robin, black-and-white warbler, black-capped chickadee, black-throated green warbler, blue jay, blue-headed vireo, brown-headed cowbird, chipping sparrow, common grackle, common yellowthroat, double-crested cormorant, downy woodpecker, eastern phoebe, eastern towhee, European starling, field sparrow, gray catbirdt, herring gull, house finch, house sparrow, mallard, mourning dove, Nashville warbler, northern cardinal, northern flicker, northern parula, ovenbird, ree swallow, savannah sparrow, song sparrow, tufted titmouse, veery, yellow-bellied sapsucker, yellow-rumped warbler
