You can count on the crows and the chickadees. Even in deepest winter (granted, not quite as deeply icy cold as it used to be), most days these two bird species will make themselves known around here.
E.g., the first bird call I heard after stepping out of the truck today was a crow. It took about a half-hour to hear a chickadee—but a few were active during my hike with dog this morning. A mostly overcast, mostly breezy, chilly, interest morn.
Ran into a trail friend (and her dog) and we hiked together for a while, which was fun. Only got a distant photo of a robin.
Later, however, some birds showed up: a red-tail flying across a Route 1 parking lot in Rockland, and a crow posing for a portrait in Glen Cove. But possibly the most auspicious sighting was a tiny flying insect on the Beech Hill wooded trail. Certain a sign of spring
Won’t be long now.
Beech Hill List
Beginning at 8:00 a.m., I hiked all trails.
1. American Crow*
2. Tufted Titmouse** (v)
3. Black-capped Chickadee** (v)
4. American Robin
5. Downy Woodpecker (v)
Elsewhere
6. American Goldfinch (v)
7. Herring Gull
8. Red-tailed Hawk
9. European Starling
10. House Sparrow (v)
(v) Voice only
*Also elsewhere
**Voice only elsewhere
†First-of-year
Tags: American crow, American goldfinch, American robin, black-capped chickadee, downy woodpecker, European starling, herring gull, house sparrow, red-tailed hawk, tufted titmouse
