Hermit thrush.
Pulled into the Rockville Street parking lot this morning. Parked. Fog had settled in for the second straight day, but today seemed warmer—or at least more humid. Deer flies immediately swarmed my driver’s side mirror.
Got out, began to walk. Hurried between the patches of poison ivy, as usual. Began counting birds, as usual. Today’s first three: veery, crow, yellowthroat. Wasn’t sure I’d ever yet heard ’em in just that order. But otherwise nothing particularly interesting showed up for a while. Oh, I did notice that mushrooms are popping up everywhere—bright red ones, bright orange ones, great brown ones pushing up through last fall’s leaves. And moths accompanied us along the wooded trails like fairies. But, bird-wise, I imagined the day would end up kind of blah.
I couldn’t have been less foresightful.
Toad.
About two-thirds of the way up the first trail, dog and I came around a little curve and flushed a woodcock. At least I was pretty sure it was a woodcock—it was about the right size, and its wings whistled. But I didn’t get a great look. As we continued up, as I was debating whether to count it, we flushed it again. That time I got a great look: Scolopax minor. (Woodcocks have this wonderfully unique, stubby, long-billed profile in flight.) I only regretted that I’m never quick enough to catch a photo of a flushed ground bird.
Not long after, a toad hopped across the trail in front of us. Then, just over the summit, a meadow vole hustled out of the fringes and hurried across, again, just in front of us. Seconds later, a red squirrel emerged, as well, and scampered down a ways before diving into some shrubbery. What’s a red squirrel was doing so far from trees? I wondered. Eating blueberries, I guessed.
Blueberry thief.
The thick greenery near the Beech Hill Road parking lot was busy: titmice, purple finch, a cardinal, at least three species of warbler—and a robin hopping along with blueberries in its beak. Several times in the past couple days I’ve noticed adult species being harassed by their youngsters, including a chestnut-sided warbler, chickadees, finches and sparrows, the aforementioned titmice. And you can tell other birds have chicks nearby from their alarm behavior, their decoy behavior, the food jammed in their bills.
Later, heading back down toward the wooded trails, we came upon a ruffed grouse. The bird exploded from the undergrowth immediately in front of us, its wings and tail spread, flapping and mewing—it appeared ready to attack Jack, in fact, and got within a foot or two before I pulled him away. I fumbled with my camera in hopes of getting a shot, but it was really dark in there, and the bird kept moving noisily back and forth down into a wooded gully. Only then did I think to look for its brood.
I must’ve scanned the ground around us for a good couple minutes, until I could no longer hear or see the partent. Not the slightest movement. Nary a clue.
Finally, coming down the lower wooded trail where the hermit thrushes sing, I heard one very near. We slowed but kept a steady pace until I judged us about as near to its lovely song as possible. Then I looked up. It took me a good thirty seconds to see it—sitting there motionless on a fat oak limb, right out in the open, just a-singin’ away.
I was happy to take its portrait. And grateful to Nature for delivering such an interesting, inspiring beginning to another summer day.
Hermit thrush, singing.
Beech Hill List
Beginning at 7:15 a.m., I walked all trails.
1. Veery (voice)
2. American crow
3. Common yellowthroat (voice)
4. Red-eyed vireo (voice)
5. Eastern towhee
6. Ovenbird
7. Chestnut-sided warbler
8. American goldfinch
9. American robin
10. Black-capped chickadee (voice)
11. Gray catbird (voice)
12. Cedar waxwing
13. American woodcock
14. Northern flicker
15. Song sparrow
16. Mourning dove
17. Field sparrow (voice)
18. Savannah sparrow
19. Nashville warbler (voice)
20. Blue jay (voice)
21. Yellow warbler (voice)
22. Turkey vulture
23. White-throated sparrow (voice)
24. Chipping sparrow (voice)
25. American redstart
26. Tufted titmouse
27. Northern cardinal (voice)
28. Purple finch
29. Herring gull
30. Ruffed grouse
31. Hermit thrush
32. Black-throated green warbler (voice)
33. Black-throated blue warbler (voice)
Elsewhere
34. House sparrow
35. Eastern phoebe
Also of note: meadow vole, red squirrel, toad.
Indian Island Light.
Tags: American crow, American goldfinch, American redstart, American robin, American woodcock, black-capped chickadee, black-throated blue warbler, black-throated green warbler, blue jay, Cedar waxwing, chestnut-sided warbler, chipping sparrow, common yellowthroat, eastern phoebe, eastern towhee, field sparrow, gray catbird, hermit thrush, herring gull, house sparrow, mourning dove, Nashville warbler, northern cardinal, northern flicker, ovenbird, purple finch, red-eyed vireo, ruffed grouse, savannah sparrow, song sparrow, tufted titmouse, turkey vulture, veery, white-throated sparrow, yellow warbler
