We had a lovely hike on the hill this morning, dog and I—many birds, big skies, just a very wonderful experience. But the highlight of this day happened at evening. About 8:30 this evening, in fact, at a friend’s house near Clam Cove, less than a mile from me. Off in the woods I heard the voice of a Chuck Will’s Widow.
Decades ago, I used to hear Eastern Whip-poor-wills here on the coast at night—multiples even. But for the past twenty years or more, the only goatsucker I’ve encountered has been (very rarely) a Common Nighthawk in flight. Chuck Will’s Widows aren’t even supposed to range this far north along the coast.
Made for an exciting day for me.
Beech Hill List Beginning at 6:45 a.m. sun time (7:45 DST), I hiked all trails.
Another day when rain showers didn’t come early, as forecast. Instead, some blue sky appeared, and sun streamed down into the woodlands as dog and I headed up the trail. The sky was kind of amazing, actually—blue patches, big piled-up clouds with dark bottoms, reflections on the bay. And in our little birding patch, quite a few more species than in recent days.
Notable would be the random goose flying over, a Savannah Sparrow for a change, and just watching my old dog rolling over and over on the sweet green grass atop the hill. Matter of fact, I hiked up again in early afternoon with my friend’s young dog, when I added two species to my list (and heard of a sighting of a Mourning Warbler—which would be a new addition to the Beech Hill List—from a pair of birders coming down).
Quite a few birds posed for photos, even. And tomorrow’s forecast looks similar to today’s actual weather. That’d be real nice—I do love a variable, dramatic sky.
Beech Hill List Beginning at 7:30 a.m. sun time (8:30 DST), I hiked all trails.
1. American Redstart 2. Ovenbird 3. Red-eyed Vireo 4. Song Sparrow 5. Chestnut-sided Warbler 6. Eastern Wood-pewee 7. Black-and-white Warbler 8. Black-throated Green Warbler 9. Veery 10. Tufted Titmouse 11. Great Crested Flycatcher 12. Northern Cardinal 13. White-throated Nuthatch 14. Eastern Towhee 15. Scarlet Tanager 16. American Crow 17. Common Yellowthroat 18. Hermit Thrush 19. Alder Flycatcher 20. American Goldfinch 21. Yellow Warbler 22. Field Sparrow 23. Eastern Bluebird 24. Chipping Sparrow 25. Canada Goose 26. Turkey Vulture 27. Common Raven 28. Eastern Phoebe 29. Ruby-crowned Kinglet 30. Mourning Dove 31. Gray Catbird 32. Red-winged Blackbird 33. Rose-breasted Grosbeak 34. Savannah Sparrow 35. American Robin 36. Pileated Woodpecker 37. Broad-winged Hawk 38. Red-bellied Woodpecker
Went to bed last night thinking dog and I would have to hike in sprinkles for the second straight day, but no. A simple, misty overcast greeted us when we arrived at the trailhead—a couple hours earlier than yesterday. And nearly twice as many bird species showed up.
Notable was a singing Veery (seen), two singing Scarlet Tanagers (unseen), a random flicker (unseen), and confirmation that the juvie Hairy Woodpeckers have left their nest hole.
Truly a lovely overcast, this one. Tomorrow’s supposed be showery.
Beech Hill List Beginning at 7:30 a.m. sun time (8:30 DST), I hiked all trails.
