What a morning. Nippier than yesterday but much brighter, and with a wide array of bird species. In fact, after five or six days of eighteen or nineteen (mostly nineteen) spp. on my list, today I ended up with twenty-one. (Was happy enough to have had twenty, until I looked at photos this evening and saw one of a raven.)
Captain Jack and I had fun. Didn’t meet anyone else on the trail until we’d nearly finished our round-trip. Highlights for me were the pair of harriers, the pair of red-tails, a posting yellow-rump, and more.
March is about over. Mud Season is nearly here. Soon I’ll be able to report many more firsts-of-year.
Beech Hill List Beginning at 7 a.m. sun time (8 stupid DST), I hiked all trails.
1. Tufted Titmouse 2. White-breasted Nuthatch 3. Black-capped Chickadee 4. Downy Woodpecker 5. American Goldfinch 6. American Crow 7. Pileated Woodpecker 8. Brown Creeper 9. Herring Gull 10. American Robin 11. Red-winged Blackbird 12. Northern Cardinal 13. Blue Jay 14. Yellow-rumped Warbler 15. Song Sparrow 16. Northern Harrier 17. Eastern Bluebird 18. Red-tailed Hawk 19. Red-breasted Nuthatch 20. Common Raven 21. Hairy Woodpecker
Elsewhere
22. Mallard 23. Wild Turkey
(v) Voice only *Also elsewhere **Voice only elsewhere †First-of-year
Oddly, it being a Saturday, dog and I didn’t meet anyone else on the trail this morning. Not counting wild birds. Because the air—chilly though it was—still seemed awful springy.
Notable on the list were the cries of a Red-shouldered Hawk, the booming drums of a partridge, and a harrier flyby. Bluebirds and yellow-rumps still, along with woodpeckers, tits, corvids, a couple gulls, and a sweetly singing Song Sparrow.
Supposed to snow a little tonight and rain tomorrow, but I don’t expect it to be any less springy.
Beech Hill List Beginning at 6:46 a.m. (7:46 fake time), I hiked all trails.
I knew it’d be nippier than yesterday, but wasn’t expecting to get snowed on at dog and I started up the main Beech Hill trail this morning. Sure enough, a brisk west wind was blowing little flakes around, and I was thankful I decied to wear my winter coat. Captain Jack, of course, is always wearing his winter coat.
