Savannah sparrow.
I slept in this morning. I knew it’d be raining, and sure enough it was—as I confirmed when I heard the liquid rush of car tires on the road out front—so I went back to sleep and didn’t rise until 7:30 or so. Things were supposed to dry up this afternoon, so I figured dog and I would hit Beech Hill late in the day.
Beech Nut.
Which we did. Right about 5 p.m. Gray was the sky, drippy were the trees, muddy were the trails. We had to walk about a hundred yards before we hear our third bird (usually we’ll hear and/or see twice that many in that distance)—vireo, waxwing, ovenbird. But the lush, green, dripping hillside unveiled a series of gifts: a pair of rose-breasted grosbeaks chasing through the canopy; a flitting family of chickdees foraging in a poplar grove; the sound of a clutch of yellowthroat chicks being fed by their mother, who then paused to scold us for passing by.
An afternoon list differs form a morning list. No yellow warblers today or alder flycatchers or titmice. No redstarts or Nashville warblers—but black-and-whites were vocal. The air felt humid, and the birds’ voices sounded oddly near. I watched a veery sing it’s magical song.
Beech Nut, blue sky.
At the summit, the sun came out. A revelation unexpected. Fog and mist cloaked the bay and adorned the tops of the inland hills. But blue sky opened up, and sunlight streamed down around Beech Nut, and birds began to sing. All five sparrows again. Hermit thrushes in the steamy woods. Swallows in miraculous flight above the fields. Particularly notable were two species I never heard, but saw: black-billed cuckoo and northern flicker—each bird flew across the trail right in front of me like a field guide illustration of the species.
Returning, the clouds overspread the sky again. Among the several species hanging around the spruce grove at the summit, I heard the unmistakable strains of a purple finch and saw a collection of goldfinches heading off in bouncy flight. Waxwings perched and preened. And ovenbirds ruled the lower wooded trail—as without question they’re supposed to do.
And some earlier visitor had picked a wildflower and left it on the porch of Beech Nut. A sweet gesture. A lovely summer day.
Beech hill fields.
Beech Hill List
Beginning at 5 p.m., I walked all trails
1. Red-eyed vireo (voice)
2. Cedar waxwing
3. Ovenbird (voice)
4. Common yellowthroat
5. Chestnut-sided warbler
6. American goldfinch
7. Rose-breasted grosbeak
8. Gray catbird
9. Eastern towhee
10. American robin (voice)
11. Veery
12. Black-capped chickadee
13. American crow (voice)
14. Mourning dove
15. Black-and-white warbler (voice)
16. Tree swallow
17. Song sparrow
18. Eastern phoebe (voice)
19. Field sparrow (voice)
20. Savannah sparrow
21. Hermit thrush (voice)
22. White-throated sparrow (voice)
23. Black-billed cuckoo
24. Chipping sparrow (voice)
25. Hairy woodpecker (voice)
26. Blue jay
27. Purple finch
28. Northern flicker
Elsewhere
None that I didn’t also see at Beech Hill.
Wildflower.
Tags: American crow, American goldfinch, American robin, black-and-white warbler, black-billed cuckoo, black-capped chickadee, blue jay, Cedar waxwing, chestnut-sided warbler, chipping sparrow, common yellowthroat, eastern phoebe, eastern towhee, field sparrow, gray catbird, hairy woodpecker, hermit thrush, mourning dove, northern flicker, ovenbird, purple finch, red-eyed vireo, rose-breasted grosbeak, savannah sparrow, song sparrow, tree swallow, veery, white-throated sparrow
