Scarlet Tanager.
Cool and gray and blustery first thing. I took Jack and headed up a hill.
Again, I heard a singing tanager first thing—and plenty of other singing birds. But the new foliage and the swaying trees and the dimness in the understory and just the general furtiveness of the birdlife at this time of year kept things out of sight for a while. Except for a vireo. And soon a couple towhees, a couple redstarts, some skulking yellowthroats, even a song sparrow. Chestnut-sided Warblers tend to be tame enough to see. Catbirds. At the summit, I saw one of the paired-up phoebes sitting on the wall at Beech Nut, as it likes to do.
Common Yellowthroat.
And pairing up is certainly happening. Not only have I spied a few birds with wads of nest material in their beaks, but I’m starting to get to know individual birds that sing in individual places—that redstart in the grove of trees, the yellowthroat in that trailside tangle. I bet I can list ten or twelve nesting spots already, just from dependably singing birds. Like that particular dark woodlot beyond that particular stone wall, where that Black-throated Blue Warbler sings. And Ovenbirds are still chasing each other around. They’re territorial little boogers, Ovenbirds are.
Coming back down through the woods today, I heard another singing tanager. Not the one from earlier: this bird had a slightly different voice (six notes instead of five, and somewhat clearer tones). Of course that might’ve had something to do with the drab-yet-comely female I saw closeby, chasing her little lick of flame around in the trees. Birds do tend to change their songs a bit when there’s nesting going on. Don’t know if this pair will nest just there—although I tend to hear tanagers in that area nearly every year—but I’ll be listening for ’em in hopes they stick around.
Three or four times in recent days I’ve seen an Osprey at about the same time, flying about the same beeline above the trees. I wonder how large an Ospreys territory is. I wonder if this is one of the Clam Cove nesting pair.
Later today, it rained. Then the sun came out for a while, and then it rained a little more. A minute ago I looked up at the new crescent moon setting through the trees up the hill out back. The new moon of May might be my favorite.
Thinking about that tanager again. That first glimpse of the male made me suck in a breath on the cool of this overcast morning.
Beech Hill List
Beginning at 7 a.m., I hiked all trails.
1. Ovenbird**
2. Northern Cardinal
3. Black-throated Green Warbler** (v)
4. Red-eyed Vireo (v)
5. Tufted Titmouse (v)
6. Scarlet Tanager
7. American Robin
8. American Redstart**
9. Veery
10. Common Yellowthroat
11. Eastern Towhee
12. Black-capped Chickadee (v)
13. Ruffed Grouse (booming)
14. Chestnut-sided Warbler
15. Nashville Warbler (v)
16. Gray Catbird**
17. American Crow*
18. Black-and-white Warbler (v)
19. Alder Flycatcher (v)
20. Yellow Warbler**
21. Song Sparrow
22. Blue Jay (v)
23. American Goldfinch (v)
24. Mourning Dove* (wing beats)
25. Northern Flicker (v)
26. Purple Finch (v)
27. Eastern Phoebe
28. Brown-headed Cowbird (v)
29. White-breasted Nuthatch
30. Black-throated Blue Warbler (v)
31. Northern Parula (v)
32. Double-crested Cormorant
33. Eastern Wood-pewee (v)
34. Osprey* (v)
Elsewhere
35. House Finch (v)
36. Herring Gull
v = Voice only
*Also elsewhere
**Voice only elsewhere
Tags: alder flycatcher, American crow, American goldfinch, American redstart, American robin, black-and-white warbler, black-capped chickadee, black-throated blue warbler, black-throated green warbler, blue jay, brown-headed cowbird, chestnut-sided warbler, common yellowthroat, double-crested cormorant, eastern phoebe, eastern towhee, eastern wood-pewee, gray catbird, herring gull, house finch, mourning dove, Nashville warbler, northern cardinal, northern flicker, northern parula, osprey, ovenbird, purple finch, red-eyed vireo, ruffed grouse, scarlet tanager, song sparrow, tufted titmouse, veery, white-breasted nuthatch, yellow warbler
