Today I spied (or heard) four species. Other days I’ve had six—or none. They have (vastly or subtly) different calls, different drumming habits, slightly different habitats. IDs can be tricky without visual (or, in the case of downies and hairies, even with a visual).
I like the challenge. I love the drumming. Essentially, I’m infatuated with woodpeckers.
Beech Hill List Beginning at 7:12 a.m., I hiked all trails.
1. Red-eyed Vireo** (v) 2. Black-throated Green Warbler (v) 3. Common Yellowthroat 4. Ovenbird** (v) 5. American Goldfinch** 6. Blue Jay 7. Tufted Titmouse (v) 8. American Robin 9. Downy Woodpecker (v) 10. Black-capped Chickadee 11. White-breasted Nuthatch (v) 12. Eastern Towhee 13. Chestnut-sided Warbler (v) 14. American Redstart (v) 15. Brown Creeper (v) 16. Eastern Wood-pewee 17. Hermit Thrush 18. Northern Flicker 19. Gray Catbird 20. Alder Flycatcher (v) 21. Field Sparrow 22. Cedar Waxwing 23. Song Sparrow** 24. Yellow Warbler 25. Eastern Phoebe 26. Purple Finch (v) 27. Savannah Sparrow 28. Prairie Warbler (v) 29. Black-billed Cuckoo (v) 30. Pileated Woodpecker (v) 31. House Wren 32. Common Raven (v) 33. Red-breasted Nuthatch (v) 34. Chipping Sparrow 35. Yellow-bellied sapsucker (v) 36. Veery (v)
Elsewhere
37. Northern Cardinal (v) 38. Mourning Dove 39. Herring Gull
(v) Voice only *Also elsewhere **Voice only elsewhere †First-of-year
A mild, mostly overcast morning on the hill leading up to a warm, sunny day. A goodly number of bird species, gangs of visiting tourists.
Fledgling time continues. Today’s posers: a mama finch feeding a fledgling. Also had nuthatches, sparrows—and heard the syncopated drumming of a sapsucker.
Tomorrow should be another good ’un.
Beech Hill List Beginning at 8:06 a.m., I hiked most trails.
`1. Yellow-bellied Sapsucker (drumming) 2. Red-eyed Vireo (v) 3. Ovenbird (v) 4. Black-throated Green Warbler (v) 5. Veery (v) 6. American Goldfinch** 7. Black-capped Chickadee 8. Chestnut-sided Warbler** 9. Common Yellowthroat** 10. Black-and-white Warbler 11. Gray Catbird 12. American Crow* (v) 13. Eastern Towhee 14. Pileated Woodpecker (v) 15. Red-breasted Nuthatch 16. Northern Flicker (v) 17. Yellow Warbler 18. Alder Flycatcher 19. Cedar Waxwing 20. American Robin* 21. Field Sparrow 22. Purple Finch 23. Mourning Dove 24. Eastern Phoebe 25. Mourning Dove 26. Savannah Sparrow (v) 27. Herring Gull* 28. Chipping Sparrow (v) 29. Hermit Thrush (v) 30. Tufted Titmouse (v) 31. Blue Jay 32. White-breasted Nuthatch** (v)
Elsewhere
33. Northern Cardinal (v)
(v) Voice only *Also elsewhere **Voice only elsewhere †First-of-year
And summer came, and Nature held a party. There were shenanigans, there were quarrels, there was music, there was magic.
The air was cool and the sky near cloudless when dog and I started up the trail. Little wind, lots of birdsong. Notable was the syncopated drumming of a sapsucker, the subtle notes of a hummingbird (first in a while), and just the number and variety of species. I believe today’s count was the second-highest yet since our return to the Maine coast.
Eastern Coyote.
But the height of excitement came as we were strolling slowly down the open main Beech Hill trail when an Eastern Coyote emerged from the profuse shrubbery and crossed the trail not ten or twelve yards ahead of us. I imagined she was a female, perhaps having stashed her pups in that greenery, but she didn’t move overly fast—more like a slow lope. And then she stopped and cast a glance behind her.
Thank you, goddess of summer.
Beech Hill List Beginning at 7:27 a.m., I hiked all trails.
1. Song Sparrow** 2. Ovenbird** 3. Red-eyed Vireo** 4. Downy Woodpecker 5. Black-throated Green Warbler (v) 6. Yellow-bellied Sapsucker (drumming) 7. American Goldfinch 8. Veery 9. Gray Catbird 10. Pileated Woodpecker 11. Hairy Woodpecker 12. American Redstart** (v) 13. American Crow* 14. Chestnut-sided Warbler 15. Northern Cardinal** (v) 16. Black-and-white Warbler (v) 17. Ruby-throated Hummingbird (v) 18. Black-capped Chickadee 19. Eastern Towhee 20. Alder Flycatcher 21. Red-breasted Nuthatch 22. Common Yellowthroat 23. Yellow Warbler (v) 24. Field Sparrow 25. American Robin 26. Eastern Bluebird 27. Cedar Waxwing 28. House Wren 29. Eastern Phoebe 30. Chipping Sparrow (v) 31. Hermit Thrush (v) 32. Turkey Vulture 33. Prairie Warbler (v) 34. White-breasted Nuthatch (v) 35. Tufted Titmouse (v) 36. Pine Warbler 37. Eastern Wood-pewee 38. Brown Creeper (v)
Elsewhere
39. Mallard 40. Rock Pigeon
Mammals
Eastern Coyote
(v) Voice only *Also elsewhere **Voice only elsewhere †First-of-year
