Lovely cool hike this morning. Managed to tally eighteen species—including a juvie Red-tailed Hawk being mobbed by robins, finches, and at least one oriole.
Then, this afternoon, dog and I had a meet-up with visiting friends at Sugar House Park, a nice green area in town with a creek and pond. Fun conversation amid a whole bunch of wild birds: geese, ducks, hummingbirds—and a plethora of Barn Swallows tending nests in the corners of the pavilion roof.
Could hardly get enough of the swallows.
Grandeur Peak Area List Beginning at 8:30 a.m., I hiked a few hundred feet up a mountain.
Rained much of the night. Stopped long enough for a morning hike with dog. Damp, green, humid, lush. Interesting walk—including a first-of-year patch of fireweed (ate my first blossom of the year, yum), Mourning Dove singing from the chimney of Beech Nut, Philadelphia Vireo singing by the road, A white-tail showing up in a photo I took of a flicker.
On way back home I stopped in traffic on Route 1 to let a little family of Mallards cross.
More rain later. Precipitation is generally not a bad thing.
Beech Hill List Beginning at 8:15 a.m., I hiked the open trail.
Flushed two woodcock this sunny morning. Flushed one of them twice. All three times I hunted carefully for youngsters but didn’t see any—although I didn’t want to pester the woodcock families too much.
Also saw my first Beech Hill Bobolink in at least three years. Also, somehow, ended up with thirty-three species on today’s list.
Later today there came a couple of thundershowers, which was fun.
More fun tomorrow.
Beech Hill List Beginning at 7:30 a.m., I hiked the open trail—and then some.
1. Eastern Bluebird 2. Blue Jay** 3. American Goldfinch 4. Veery (v) 5. American Woodcock 6. Chipping Sparrow* 7. Chestnut-sided Warbler** (v) 8. American Crow* 9. Rose-breasted Grosbeak (v) 10. Alder Flycatcher 11. Ovenbird (v) 12. Tree Swallow 13. Eastern Towhee 14. Song Sparrow** 15. Field Sparrow (v) 16. Savannah Sparrow 17. Nashville Warbler (v) 18. Gray Catbird** (v) 19. Common Yellowthroat (v) 20. Eastern Phoebe* 21. Cedar Waxwing 22. Red-eyed Vireo** (v) 23. Eastern Wood-pewee (v) 24. Hermit Thrush (v) 25. Black-throated Green Warbler (v) 26. Black-throated Blue Warbler (v) 27. Black-capped Chickadee** 28. Bobolink 29. Herring Gull* 30. Great Crested Flycatcher (v) 31. Mourning Dove* (v) 32. Northern Cardinal** (v) 33. American Redstart (v) 34. American Robin*
Elsewhere
35. Mallard 36. European Starling
v = Voice only *Also elsewhere **Voice only elsewhere
