On the chilly morning of a warm day, dog and I had a lovely hike up in the foothills. Some nice sightings of bird species doing interesting things. (E.g., a Chukar calling from high on a ridge.) A few decent photos, too. A lot of spring things for Jack to smell.
Interesting to me was watching a pair of chickadees excavating a nest about halfway up the gully trail. We we got to their nest cavity, I didn’t see or hear the birds at all—which I attributed was due to a Cooper’s Hawk nearby—and sure enough a Cooper’s took wing, calling, and then the chickadees showed up, taking turns entering the hole and exiting with mouthfuls of chipped wood. (While in there, I could hear their excavations.)
Lots of birds at home, too. For possibly the first day this season, there was no trace of deep-seated doubt that spring is here.
Grandeur Peak Area List
At 7:58 a.m., sun time, I hiked a few hundred feet up a mountain.
1. Eurasian Collared-dove
2. Pine Siskin**
3. American Robin*
4. Spotted Towhee
5. Black-capped Chickadee
6. House Finch*
7. Song Sparrow* (v)
8. Northern Flicker*
9. Cooper’s Hawk
10. Woodhouse’s Scrub-jay
11. Ruby-crowned Kinglet
12. Chukar
13. California Quail* (v)
14. Hairy Woodpecker
15. Turkey Vulture
Elsewhere
16. Lesser Goldfinch
17. House Sparrow
18. European Starling
Mammals
Mule Deer
Red Squirrel
(v) Voice only
*Also elsewhere
**Voice only elsewhere
Tags: American robin, black-capped chickadee, California quail, chukar, cooper's hawk, Eurasian collared dove, European starling, hairy woodpecker, house finch, house sparrow, lesser goldfinch, mule deer, northern flicker, pine siskin, red squirrel, ruby-crowned kinglet, song sparrow, spotted towhee, turkey vulture, Woodhouse’s scrub jay
