’Tis the season of the Ovenbird. This perky little terrestrial-nesting warbler—with his stylish orange mohawk—nests in a dutch-oven-style nest of leaves on the sun-dappled forest floor and declares its existence from a tree limb twenty or thirty feet above: Teacher, teacher, teacher, teacher, teacher!
They also chase each other with great speed, zipping between trunks, a frantic sort of demonstration of their territorial imperative. But mostly, these mid-May days, their voices echo loudly in the woodlands.
Otherwise notable this lovely (if nippy) morning: a first-of-hill Ruby-throated Hummingbird. Such a fun time of year.
Beech Hill List Beginning at 6:18 a.m. sun time (7:18 DST), I hiked all trails.
It seemed a little early to have a tanager show up on the hill during my morning hike with dog, but there he was. I heard him first—as is nearly always the case—and crept up close enough for a photo. Last year I don’t believe I encountered a tanager at all (not sure), but know I didn’t see one. They used to arrive in late May, early June. A sign of warming? Likely so.
Coincidentally, about the same time I spied the tanager, I noticed an Olive-sided Flycatcher perched high on a small snag, with nothing but blue sky beyond. Those were the only firsts-of-year on our hike this morning.
But what a fun and lovely morning it was.
Beech Hill List Beginning at 6:05 a.m. sun time (7:05 DST), I hiked all trails.
The day dawned with a sort of humid haze that lasted much of the day. Temps in the mid-50s (F) as dog and I started up the wooded Beech Hill trail. And there wasn’t much wind at all. I had no expectations—other than hoping for another first-of-year or two. Welp, I got three!
Right off the bat, I heard the voice of a Baltimore Oriole, which kindly flew up to a limb above us. Coming up the upper trail, I heard the voice of a Nashville Warbler. And at the summit, I heard—then saw—an American Restart.
Otherwise, we met five trail friends (and three dog friends) and oversaw the blooming blueberries and rhodora and little wild fruit trees.
Gonna be another good ’un tomorrow, I can just tell.
Beech Hill List Beginning at 6:18 a.m. sun time (7:18 DST), I hiked all trails.
1. Ovenbird** 2. Song Sparrow 3. Black-throated Green Warbler** 4. Baltimore Oriole† 5. Downy Woodpecker 6. American Goldfinch 7. Blue Jay (v) 8. Purple Finch 9. Chestnut-sided Warbler** 10. Northern Parula (v) 11. American Crow* 12. Brown Creeper 13. Black-and-white Warbler (v) 14. Eastern Towhee 15. Blue-headed Vireo (v) 16. Gray Catbird 17. Nashville Warbler† (v) 18. Tufted Titmouse (v) 19. Common Yellowthroat (v) 20. Black-capped Chickadee 21. Field Sparrow (v) 22. Yellow Warbler 23. American Robin 24. White-throated Sparrow** 25. Red-breasted Nuthatch (v) 26. Yellow-rumped Warbler (v) 27. Chipping Sparrow** 28. American Redstart† 29. Eastern Bluebird 30. Tree Swallow 31. Eastern Phoebe 32. Northern Cardinal (v) 33. Hairy Woodpecker (v) 34. Veery (v) 35. Northern Flicker** (v)
(v) Voice only *Also elsewhere **Voice only elsewhere †First-of-year
