Rain.
Late Sunday night, and the wind is roaring. I can imagine the snippets of conversation as people head to bed: “Sure is windy out.” “Man, it’s blowing.” “Do you hear that wind?” The hardest blow for a good while.
Eastern phoebe.
The wind didn’t really pick up until evening, but it was breezy all day. And rainy off and on. By the time Jack and I made our way to Beech Hill, though, it was on. Steady rain. Not heavy, but soaking. And the wind rose in the trees, drowning out most other sounds. I frankly didn’t expect much in the way of bird activity.
But right away, I heard chickadees nearby. And when I stopped to watch them, I got a glimpse of a phoebe occupying a low perch. In fact, I spotted a couple phoebes up there today, each staying close to the ground. This got me thinking that if you want to see a phoebe on a rainy day, look low.
About half-way up, I heard the note of a white-throated sparrow—a nice surprise. Nothing up top but rain and wind and water. But coming back down I got near enough a pair of robins to hear their calls of alarm. Spotted them in some trailside trees. And not long after, I heard the calls of alarm of a pair of nuthatches. Spotted them, too.
Then near the end of our hike, I heard the loud cry of a herring gull. And spotted that lone bird flying quickly over the canopy.
The summit trail.
Then the wind came. It’s really roaring out there.
Beech Hill List
Beginning at 5 p.m., I hiked the wooded trails.
1. Black-capped chickadee*
2. Eastern phoebe*
3. American robin*
4. White-throated sparrow (v)
5. White-breasted nuthatch
6. Herring gull*
Elsewhere
7. Tufted titmouse
8. Northern cardinal
9. House finch
10. European starling
11. American goldfinch
12. American crow
v = Voice only
*Also elsewhere
Tags: American crow, American goldfinch, American robin, black-capped chickadee, eastern phoebe, European starling, herring gull, house finch, northern cardinal, tufted titmouse, white-breasted nuthatch, white-throated sparrow
