Snowed overnight. Gentle, steady snow for a while—no wind to speak of (as usual, in my one winter’s experience)—accumulating to a depth of three inches or snow. Jack and I took to the trails, as usual, and had ourselves a nice hike.
There were quite a few mule deer. And birds. Robins, magpies, chickadees, towhees—even a pair of siskins. More in town (where I made a quick trip for groceries, taking pandemic precautions of course).
(My favorites today, I think, were siskin and towhee.)
Grandeur Peak Area List Beginning at 9:15 a.m., I hiked a couple hundred feet up the mountain.
1. Black-billed Magpie* 2. American Robin* 3. House Finch* 4. Black-capped Chickadee 5. Woodhouse’s Scrub-jay (v) 6. Pine Siskin 7. Spotted Towhee
Elsewhere
8. Song Sparrow (v) 9. Eurasian Collared Dove 10. European Starling 11. Rock Pigeon 12. Mourning Dove 13. House Sparrow (v)
Colder today than during yesterday’s snow, but clear with a warming sun. Encountered no one else during my hike with Jack—but there were plenty of tracks in the snow. Mice, deer, dog, human. Quite a few birds out, too.
And then I caught sight of a distant hawk. Too far away to ID in the field, but I thought perhaps it was a red-tail. It flew low, then perched up the mountainside near a mule deer. Through my optics, I saw that it perched upright and seemed to be wearing a dinner jacket—but that’s about it. Decided just to keep my eye out.
On our return trip, my eye spied a nearer hawk. I saw right away it was a goshawk. And it struck me that it was the same bird. (Accipiters tend to fly low, then swoop up to a perch. They have an upright posture and are nearly as large as a Red-tailed Hawk.) Felt good to solve that puzzle.
Coincidentally, in town, I spotted a red-tail, perched on a utility tower.
Grandeur Peak Area List Beginning at 9:30 a.m., I hiked a few hundred feet up the mountain.
1. House Finch* (v) 2. American Robin* (v) 3. Dark-eyed Junco* 4. Woodhouse’s Scrub-jay 5. Black-billed Magpie* 6. Black-capped Chickadee* 7. Northern Goshawk 8. Lesser Goldfinch** (v) 9. Song Sparrow** (v) 10. Pine Siskin
Elsewhere
11. Red-tailed Hawk 12. European Starling 13. Rock Pigeon 14. Mourning Dove 15. Eurasian Collared Dove 16. House Sparrow
Mammals
Rocky Mountain Elk Mule Deer
(v) Voice only *Also elsewhere **Voice only elsewhere
Dog and I headed up the mountain a little early this morning, as an overcast swept in quickly following a clear dawn. Tonight we’re supposed to receive the leading edge of a snow storm—one that is forecast to last more than 24 hours. Tomorrow’s hike could prove an adventure.
Today’s was quiet, warm, gray. No elk, few deer, but plenty of birds up there—including the usual corvids, chickadees, flickers, and a large flock of starlings. Also a distant golden eagle.
Plenty of birds in the neighborhood, too, among them the resident singing song sparrow—and the first mourning dove I’ve seen in a while.
Grandeur Peak Area List Beginning at 9 a.m., I hiked a few hundred feet up the mountain.
1. European Starling* 2. House Finch* 3. Black-capped Chickadee 4. Black-billed Magpie* 5. Woodhouse’s Scrub-jay (v) 6. Song Sparrow* (v) 7. Golden Eagle 8. Northern Flicker 9. Dark-eyed Junco
Elsewhere
10. Mourning Dove 11. Lesser Goldfinch (v) 12. American Robin (v)
Bird Report is an intermittent record of what's outside my window in Rockport, Maine, USA (44°08'N latitude, 69°06'W longitude), and vicinity. —Brian Willson
