Cool, breezy, sunny, birdy. What a lovely morning—complete with familiar voices. Birds were all over the place (young and old), so I wasn’t hurting for photographs.
We had ourselves the run of the hill this morning, oddly. Where were all the early Sunday morning hikers I’m accustomed to seeing? It was weird.
But that left more birds to pay attention to. A couple of minor oddities: Red-winged Blackbird in flight, and the voice of a (migrating?) Ruby-crowned kinglet. Many, many juveniles.
Dewy blueberries, too.
Beech Hill List Beginning at 7:15 a.m., I hiked the open trail.
A cool, cloudless morning. Dog and I arrived at the hill in time to hear the sounds of early bird species awakening—and, later, the music of later sleepers. A couple of oddballs (including a Song Sparrow that began its tune with two clear, ringing notes of differing pitches.
My favorite of the day, though, were the juvie bluebirds.
Beech Hill List Beinning at 7:30 a.m., I hiked the open trail.
1. Red-eyed Vireo** (v) 2. Black-capped Chickadee (v) 3. White-breasted Nuthatch (v) 4. American Crow* 5. Black-capped Chickadee** (v) 6. Eastern Towhee 7. Song Sparrow 8. American Goldfinch 9. Chestnut-sided Warbler 10. Common Yellowthroat 11. Gray Catbird* 12. Eastern Phoebe* 13. Northern Flicker (v) 14. Ovenbird (v) 15. Field Sparrow (v) 16. Mourning Dove* (v) 17. Purple Finch (v) 18. Tufted Titmouse** 19. Cedar Waxwing 20. Eastern Bluebird 21. Blue Jay (v) 22. Chipping Sparrow* 23. Common Raven (v) 24. Yellow Warbler (v) 25. Northern Cardinal (v)
This morning was a morning of catbirds and bluebirds. Catbirds mewing everywhere under the cool early overcast. And bluebirds fluttering around the summit in high numbers.
The bluebirds upstaged the catbirds, in fact, as gangs of five or six—adults and youngsters—fluttered and called together, practicing high flight and (perhaps) plucking flies from mid-air.
One adult male even stopped to pose against the blue bay.
Beech Hill List Beginning at 7:30 a.m., I hiked the open trail.
1. American Robin 2. Red-eyed Vireo (v) 3. American Crow* 4. Black-capped Chickadee (v) 5. Tufted Titmouse (v) 6. Chestnut-sided Warbler** 7. Gray Catbird** 8. Song Sparrow** 9. Northern Cardinal** (v) 10. Chipping Sparrow* 11. Eastern Towhee 12. Herring Gull* 13. Common Yellowthroat 14. Yellow Warbler (v) 15. Mourning Dove* 16. American Goldfinch** 17. Cedar Waxwing 18. Eastern Phoebe* 19. Eastern Bluebird
Elsewhere
20. Rock Pigeon 21. Great Black-backed Gull
v = Voice only *Also elsewhere **Voice only elsewhere
