The bay.
The sunlight that bathed the landscape this morning did so through a veil of clouds. Or a blanket. A quilt. Kind of a lumpy quilt. And the air was nippy enough to convince me to don a sweatshirt. And wear socks within my sandals.
American kestrel.
But when Jack and I took Sarah to the bus stop, we saw a pair of small ducks (buffleheads?) flying swiftly over the ferry terminal, where herring and ring-billed gulls veered and soared. Also pigeons.
Then I got so busy at my desk that I burned breakfast. But that’s OK—busy is better than bored. Plus, I designed my first Greek alphabet, for an old map font (Antiquarian). But by mid-afternoon, I got antsy. Had to move. So dog and I jumped in the pickup and headed over to Beech Hill.
A few cars in the lot. Jack met a new dog. I spied a couple chickadees and some yellow-rumped warblers—they’re still moving through pretty steadily—and the usual gang of crows. The lumpy quilt still hung over everything, lighter in some spots and darker in others. The bay glowed a kind of silvery gray. Then I spotted the kestrel.
A solitary bird, hovering over the eastern slope. We stopped. A female, I’m pretty sure, though it kept fairly distant. Watched it dive once, but I don’t think it caught anything.
Sumac.
You could tell rain was coming, but you could also tell it was several hours away. I’m not sure how you could tell, but you could.
Tonight, about 10 p.m., the rain still hasn’t arrived. But I fully expect it’ll be wet out there in the morning.
Beech Hill List
Beginning at 3:30 p.m., I hiked the open trail.
1. Black-capped chickadee
2. Yellow-rumped warbler
3. American crow
4. American kestrel
Elsewhere
5. Northern cardinal
6. House finch
7. Herring gull
8. Rock pigeon
9. Ring-billed gull
10. Blue jay
11. Double-crested cormorant
12. American robin
Beech Nut.
Tags: American crow, American kestrel, American robin, black-capped chickadee, blue jay, double-crested cormorant, herring gull, house finch, northern cardinal, ring-billed gull, rock pigeon, yellow-rumped warbler
