What a difference a day makes, so they say. Yesterday galloped in like a wild river rider, fast and bucking and splashing water all over everything. Today dawned cloudless and merely breezy. As expected, fallen branches littered all preserve trails (along with a couple of toppled trees). I managed to neaten things pretty well, though—and was rewarded with a nice selection of bird species.
Notable were a hummingbird, a fish hawk, a vulture. And elsewhere—including a pleasant drive down a coastal peninsula—a kingfisher, geese, and an eagle.
Simply a lovely September day.
Beech Hill List Starting at 7:28 a.m. EST (8:28 DST), I hiked all trails.
1. Black-capped Chickadee** (v) 2. Blue Jay** (v) 3. Tufted Titmouse (v) 4. Red-eyed Vireo (v) 5. Gray Catbird 6. American Crow* 7. American Goldfinch (v) 8. Osprey 9. Eastern Towhee (v) 10. Ruby-throated Hummingbird 11. Turkey Vulture* 12. American Robin (v) 13. Cedar Waxwing 14. Northern Flicker** (v) 15. Eastern Wood-pewee (v) 16. White-breasted Nuthatch (v)
Elsewhere
17. Herring Gull 18. Belted Kingfisher 19. Rock Pigeon 20. Canada Goose 21. Bald Eagle
(v) Voice only *Also elsewhere **Voice only elsewhere †First-of-year
The temperature dipped into the 50s (F) overnight, and a stout breeze was blowing when dog and I headed up the wooded trail. Very few birds made themselves known at first—my list had only five or six species by the time we reached the summit—but one of them (I found out later) proved to be rather exciting.
Not until I looked at my photo of the Swainson’s Thrush did I recognize it. (I’d assumed it was a Hermit Thrush, one of which I’d seen shortly before.) I’ve encountered only a handful of the species at Beech Hill—usually, it seems, at about this season. This one turned out to be today’s highlight.
Tomorrow—for the first time in I cannot remember how long—we might not go hiking in the morning. There’s a tropical storm warning: We’re in the path of Hurricane Lee. Gonna be very wet and very windy. We shall see!
Beech Hill List Starting at 7:14 a.m. EST (8:14 DST), I hiked all trails.
1. Eastern Wood-pewee (v) 2. Tufted Titmouse (v) 3. Hermit Thrush 4. Swainson’s Thrush 5. American Crow* 6. Black-capped Chickadee** 7. Common Yellowthroat (v) 8. Eastern Towhee (v) 9. Song Sparrow** 10. Red-breasted Nuthatch 11. Turkey Vulture 12. American Goldfinch 13. American Robin (v) 14. Blue Jay** (v)
Elsewhere
15. Carolina Wren (v) 16. House Finch (v) 17. House Sparrow (v) 18. Herring Gull 19. Osprey 20. Rock Pigeon 21. Mallard
(v) Voice only *Also elsewhere **Voice only elsewhere †First-of-year
The forecast rain didn’t arrive, and the fog at the beginning of my hike with dog vanished within about twenty minutes, but still I didn’t list too many bird species this morning. However, toward the end of this daily excursion of ours, we encountered another little mini fallout.
Today’s warbler species included redstart, yellow-rump, parula, and chestnut-sided. Chickadees and a vireo were a part of this antic collection of little flitting birds.
I love this time of year.
Beech Hill List Starting at 7:14 a.m. EST (8:14 DST), I hiked all trails.
1. American Crow* 2. Blue Jay** (v) 3. Black-capped Chickadee** 4. American Goldfinch 5. Gray Catbird** 6. Common Raven (v) 7. Common Yellowthroat (v) 8. American Robin 9. Savannah Sparrow 10. Eastern Bluebird (v) 11. Eastern Wood-pewee (v) 12. Song Sparrow 13. Yellow-rumped Warbler 14. Red-eyed Vireo 15. Eastern Towhee 16. White-breasted Nuthatch** (v) 17. Pileated Woodpecker (v) 18. Northern Flicker (v) 19. Cedar Waxwing (v) 20. Turkey Vulture 21. Chestnut-sided Warbler 22. Northern Parula 23. American Redstart
