With sunshine angling down between fluffy white clouds, I headed up the wooded trail for a change with Captain Jack this morning. Quite a little wind blowing (nearly lost my hat a time or two), and fewer bird species than even yesterday, but dog and human hikers were numerous compared to recent days—no doubt because of it being Indigenous Peoples Day.
Thrushes again, and woodpeckers, and woodpeckers, but yellow-rumps remain the most numerous birds migrating through.
Yellow sun and chill in the air and falling leaves—definitely autumn.
Beech Hill List Starting at 7:59 a.m. EST (8:59 DST), I hiked all trails.
1. Downy Woodpecker 2. Black-capped Chickadee 3. Blue Jay (v) 4. Hermit Thrush 5. Red-bellied Woodpecker (v) 6. Yellow-rumped Warbler** 7. American Goldfinch (v) 8. American Crow* (v) 9. Song Sparrow (v)
Elsewhere
10. Herring Gull
Mammals
Meadow Vole
(v) Voice only *Also elsewhere **Voice only elsewhere †First-of-year
Our ceiling on this morning’s hike was a gray overcast, and the air was damp and breezy. The forecast rain would not arrive until later in the day, though, so we’d keep comparatively dry, dog and I. And there was no shortage of bird species—including three corvids.
Of the three—crow, jay, and raven—the most notable was the solitary raven flying above us, accompanied by a single crow. (The crows were many and vocal, apparently gearing up for their annual October convention on the hill.)
Beech Hill List Starting at 7:19 a.m. EST (8:19 DST), I hiked all trails.
1. American Crow* 2. White-breasted Nuthatch** (v) 3. Black-capped Chickadee 4. American Robin (v) 5. White-throated Sparrow (v) 6. American Goldfinch 7. Yellow-rumped Warbler 8. Northern Flicker (v) 9. Blue Jay (v) 10. Song Sparrow 11. Red-bellied Woodpecker (v) 12. Brown Creeper (v) 13. Common Raven 14. Gray Catbird (v) 15. Red-eyed Vireo
Elsewhere
16. Mallard 17. Herring Gull
Mammals
Eastern Chipmunk (v)
(v) Voice only *Also elsewhere **Voice only elsewhere †First-of-year
The past few mornings of hiking the hill with dog, I’ve heard the distinctive tseet! note of migrating White-throated Sparrows. I’ve had no good looks at white-throats—they mostly flit through leafy tangles, staying out of sight—but they’re always on the move this time of year.
Today, surprisingly, I had a chance glimpse of one along the wooded trail and managed a (not great) photo. Ta-da!!
You never know in early October. Wonder what we’ll encounter tomorrow.
Beech Hill List Starting at 7:39 a.m. EST (8:39 DST), I hiked all trails.
