Beech Hill List Beginning at 10:45 am, I hiked the open trail.
Yellowthroat in fog.
Rained from early until mid-morning, pouring for some of it. But then Jack and I took our daily hike up a muddy foggy hill, and we encountered a plethora of bird families there.
Yep, the birds were definitely out. A bunch of ’em, too—way more than I’d expected. All their vocal interactions, for some reason, got me thinking (not for the first time) about clear communication. Modern humans don’t seem to have a whole lot of this, but birds sure do.
Cool morning. Sun—turning during the day to hazy sun to hazy overcast. Cool breeze. Fewer mosquitoes. Quite a few birds, several of whom are setting up for second nests, among them bluebirds, phoebes, and (possibly) chippies.
First little green blackberries, still-blooming milkweed , still bluing blueberries.
I love this day.
Beech Hill List Beginning at 7:15 a.m., I hiked the open trail.
In fast, efficient summer, new things happen every day. Today, most conspicuous (to me), was the blooming of the milkweed. A week ago, the only milkweed I saw were very young plants, but now they’re full grown, everywhere, and blooming.
Also, more birds are moving around—and others have disappeared. No Tree Swallows for several days now. No chippies in the spruce grove. Yellowthroats frantically feeding. And catbirds. And towhees. And Yellow Warblers.
Day lilies popping up all over the place. And a new dragonfly every day, seems like.
Never a dull moment at this time of year.
Beech Hill List Beginning at 8 a.m., I hiked the open trail.
