Cedar Waxwing courtship ritual (passing berry back and forth).
Still a bit dry this morning, but breezy enough to be cool (and less conducive to mosquitos!). Harder to hear the voices of birds, though.
Still, a goodly number of species—quite a few with fledglings.
Notable were many (seven or eight) vultures, and about two dozen crows in some kind of wild rumble between families over the barrens. Which, by the way, are just about brimming with blueberries and Wood lilies.
Tonight, it rained just a tad. We’ve got ourselves a slight drought going on, seems like. Already eager to see what tomorrow might bring.
Beech Hill List Beginning at 7:32 a.m., I hiked most trails.
1. Black-throated Green Warbler* 2. Red-eyed Vireo (v) 3. Ovenbird (v) 4. American Crow* 5. Wood Thrush (v) 6. Chestnut-sided Warbler 7. American Goldfinch** 8. Black-capped Chickadee** 9. Common Yellowthroat 10. Veery (v) 11. Brown Creeper (v) 12. Blue Jay (v) 13. White-breasted Nuthatch (v) 14. Alder Flycatcher (v) 15. Turkey Vulture* 16. Cedar Waxwing 17. Osprey* 18. Herring Gull* 19. Field Sparrow (v) 20. Song Sparrow** 21. Eastern Towhee (v) 22. Savannah Sparrow (v) 23. Gray Catbird 24. Yellow Warbler (v) 25. House Wren (v) 26. American Robin 27. Eastern Phoebe
Elsewhere
28. Wild Turkey
(v) Voice only *Also elsewhere **Voice only elsewhere †First-of-year
Another fine day of hiking in mild weather through the woodlands to the summit of a scenic coastal hill with early-ripening lowbush blueberries. Things began slow—cool, breezy, rather dry—but picked up as dog and I got near the summit. Not as many species as yesterday, but plenty of action.
Notable were all the juvies around—both new begging fledglings and older youngsters (teenagers, let’s say) flitting silently around on their own for the first time. Among the latter were a pair of Hermit Thrushes, one of them seeming curious about Jack and me. Several others I only became aware of on account of their thin, subtle begging voices in the thick greenery. The likes of Chestnut-sided Warblers, I bet, and Common Yellowthroats.
Again on the open trail, we encountered a Savannah Sparrow, who perched on a trailside birch and chipped loudly to warn the youngsters.
I’d take several days like this one.
Beech Hill List Beginning at 7:42 a.m., I hiked most trails.
Had some things to do this early morning, so Captain Jack and I didn’t hit the trailhead until about an hour later than usual. It’d rained a bit overnight, and the trails were dewy—and the birds were bit quieter than in recent days.
However, over the course of our hike, birds did emerge. Quite a few species.
