Captain Jack, age 15, has been limping a little (front foot), so I made the hard decision to let him sit out this morning’s hike for the first time in years. A very hard decision.
Memorial Day was sunny and cool and breezy, and people were out and about, and so were birds. Most notable was probably the individual Cedar Waxwing I spied at the summit. Only the second waxwing sighting of the year—although more will show up in summer for the annual fly hatch up there.
Felt bad that dog didn’t get a hike, and a friend suggested a short trail near the house, which we three hiked in afternoon. Jack liked the new smells. We’ll do more of that going forward, for sure.
Supposed to start warming up again. We shall see.
Beech Hill List Beginning at 6:08 a.m. sun time (7:08 DST), I hiked all trails, and then some.
Again a chillier morning than the one before, but bright again, with less wind. My ol’ dog didn’t want to get out of the truck at first for some reason, but I finally coaxed him out and he had his usual fine time.
We didn’t end up hiking all trails today, but—as you might expect in late-May—those we did were hopping with birds. No firsts-of-year, but spied a few nice warblers and an osprey circling above the canopy. Enjoyed time again with our friend hikers, human and canine.
Tomorrow’s supposed to get into the 70s. Looking forward to finding out what’s up there.
Beech Hill List Beginning at 6:45 a.m. sun time (7:45 DST), I hiked most trails.
1. Red-eyed Vireo** 2. White-breasted Nuthatch (v) 3. Tufted Titmouse (v) 4. Ovenbird** 5. Chestnut-sided Warbler** 6. American Redstart** (v) 7. Eastern Phoebe* 8. Blue Jay (v) 9. Eastern Wood-pewee (v) 10. Black-throated Green Warbler (v) 11. Brown Creeper (v) 12. Yellow-bellied Sapsucker (drumming) 13. American Goldfinch 14. Hermit Thrush (v) 15. Black-capped Chickadee** 16. Black-and-white Warbler 17. Rose-breasted Grosbeak (v) 18. Eastern Towhee 19. Magnolia Warbler 20. Osprey 21. Hairy Woodpecker (v) 22. Gray Catbird (v) 23. Veery 24. Common Yellowthroat** (v) 25. Song Sparrow (v) 26. Field Sparrow (v) 27. American Crow (v) 28. Northern Flicker (v) 29. Least Flycatcher (v) 30. Chipping Sparrow 31. American Robin (v) 32. Common Loon (v) 33. Wood Thrush (v) 34. Northern Cardinal** (v)
Elsewhere
35. Pine Warbler 35. Mourning Dove
(v) Voice only *Also elsewhere **Voice only elsewhere †First-of-year
Cool and clear, as yesterday, but breezier this morning. Dog and I met up with dog and human friends for our hike, which was a fun thing. I might not have paid as close attention to the birds as usual, but I did end up with a lot of species on my list—and got a nice close photo of a Chipping Sparrow.
Chippies nest at the summit and down by Beech Hill Road. They’re one of a half-dozen sparrows I encounter regularly on the hill, but they don’t seem as bothered by humans as most. (Although Savannah Sparrows will come near once they’ve got an active nest.) They’re wee little birds, and I like ’em a lot.
Another noteworthy occurrence: I watched a catbird chase a red squirrel down from a tree trunk. Never seen that before. But every day I see things I’ve never seen before.
Rain overnight. We shall see how that changes things in the morning.
Beech Hill List Beginning at 6:18 a.m. sun time (7:18 DST), I hiked all trails.
1. White-breasted Nuthatch** 2. Red-eyed Vireo 3. Ovenbird** 4. Black-throated Green Warbler (v) 5. American Redstart** (v) 6. Blue Jay 7. Gray Catbird** 8. Black-capped Chickadee (v) 9. Black-and-white Warbler (v) 10. Brown Creeper 11. Veery 12. Eastern Towhee 13. Wood Thrush (v) 14. Hairy Woodpecker (v) 15. American Goldfinch (v) 16. Tufted Titmouse (v) 17. Chestnut-sided Warbler** 18. Scarlet Tanager (v) 19. Eastern Wood-pewee (v) 20. Common Yellowthroat (v) 21. Yellow Warbler (v) 22. Field Sparrow (v) 23. Song Sparrow** 24. American Robin (v) 25. Chipping Sparrow 26. American Crow* 27. Red-winged Blackbird (v) 28. Northern Cardinal (v) 29. Eastern Bluebird 30. Tree Swallow 31. Eastern Phoebe
