Lovely, calm, warm, blue-sky morning. Cirrus clouds wafting high above, the slight sounds of young fledglings begging from the hedgerows. Bluebirds were assuming the summit bird box, abandoned when the Tree Swallows fledged. Several species hanging around the spruce grove.
Tonight there are fireworks within earshot—near earshot, to be precise. Damn, do I hate fireworks. (Why worship bombs bursting in air?) I’d rather be watching a red, white, and bluebird preen and sing its lovely, subtle song.
As Roy Bedichek wrote: Patriotism is the love of country. That is, country. You know—hills, trees, rivers, mountains, shores—“not flag and a lot of gaseous intangibles.”
Beech Hill List Beginning at 7:45 a.m., I hiked the open trail.
Beech Hill List Beginning at 7:45 a.m., I hiked the open trail.
Great Crested Flycatcher.
A sunny, calmish, summery day. Bird’s still a little skittish and quiet, but many have fledglings and are moving around. Watched a quiet Great Crested Flycatcher moving from perch to perch, settling for a moment on a bluebird box. At the summit of the hill saw chippies and a bright red purple finch and a Morning Dove.
But the best treat for me this morning was meeting a dog named Raisin—a young female rescue who went from a hero in this community to needing expensive medical care a month or so ago—and got it through donations. She seemed perfectly happy and healthy.
Got some work done, then took a long bike ride. Just a lovely day.
1. Veery (v) 2. Chestnut-sided Warbler (v) 3. Tufted Titmouse (v) 4. Song Sparrow** 5. Common Yellowthroat** 6. Eastern Towhee 7. Ovenbird (v) 8. American Goldfinch 9. Gray Catbird* 10. Northern Flicker (v) 11. Great Crested Flycatcher 12. Alder Flycatcher 13. Purple Finch 14. Tree Swallow 15. Field Sparrow (v) 16. Cedar Waxwing 17. Red-eyed Vireo (v) 18. American Crow* 19. American Robin* 20. Eastern Bluebird 21. Chipping Sparrow 22. Nashville Warbler (v) 23. Mourning Dove* 24. Northern Cardinal (v) 25. Eastern Phoebe 26. American Redstart (v)
The forecast was for an overcast sky, but the morning brought cloudlessness and bright sun. A yellow sort of day—with goldfinches, Yellow Warblers, Common Yellowthroats, and Tiger Swallowtailbutterflies.
A new moon day, with a full solar eclipse happening in Chile somewhere. A day with scattered afternoon thudnershowers here along the shore.
(I love thundershowers. We don’t have very many here on the 44th parallel.)
Beech Hill List Beginning at 8 a.m., I hiked the open trail.
1. Veery (v) 2. Eastern Phoebe** 3. Tufted Titmouse (v) 4. Ovenbird (v) 5. American Redstart (v) 6. Chestnut-sided Warbler 7. Common Yellowthroat** (v) 8. Northern Cardinal (v) 9. American Crow* 10. American Goldfinch 11. Song Sparrow** 12. Alder Flycatcher (v) 13. Tree Swallow 14. Field Sparrow (v) 15. Gray Catbird** (v) 16. Eastern Towhee 17. Nashville Warbler (v) 18. Purple Finch (v) 19. Red-eyed Vireo (v) 20. Chipping Sparrow 21. Cedar Waxwing 22. Yellow Warbler
Elsewhere
23. Herring Gull 24. House Sparrow 25. Mourning Dove 26. Rock Pigeon
v = Voice only *Also elsewhere **Voice only elsewhere
