Savannah sparrow.
It rained overnight, but it stopped early. Damp and overcast and cool the rest of the day. House sparrows and house finches around my place. Also crows, cardinals, and evidence of phoebes.
A long workday ended—after a quick drive to do errands in town—with my usual Beech Hill hike with Jack. Ours was the only vehicle at the Rockville Street parking lot. The air seemed cool enough that I took a sweatshirt, and the afternoon seemed dark and damp enough that I didn’t expect much in the way of bird activity. Just proves a point about expectations.
Common yellowthroat (female).
Didn’t see or here much of anything for the first hundred yards or so, then the standard calls began to emerge from the whispering canopy: chestnut-sided warbler, red-eyed vireo, ovenbird, veery. I even spotted a couple of veeries (which had also spotted us) but they were too far off in the shadows to even think about photos. Rather than strike out completely, in fact, I took a couple of flash shots of slugs on the trail.
Then I began to hear the voices of a couple other typical species—and suddenly a new sound. A blackbird, in overflight. A red-wing, I’m pretty sure.
Not so many mosquitoes as the past couple days. A few. A couple chickadees. Heard both crows and gulls. Then, coming up into the open field, an unexpected sight: a hummingbird, zipping directly toward us about twenty feet up. Hummingbirds can can really make a beeline when they’re in a hurry.
The wild rose bushes are blooming in front of Beech Nut. As we circled the hut, a savannah sparrow—the savannah sparrow—jumped up onto the rock porch wall. Also caught sight of one of the phoebes nesting in the eaves. (This pair must’ve started their nest a little later than the pair out back of my place.) Coming back down, I heard a sharp chip! from the first little wooded area. It sounded like the chip of a black-and-white warbler, to me, but I never saw the bird.
Soon after we began our descent, I heard a cedar waxwing calling from high in the trees. Twenty birds already. Then, in fairly quick succession, I heard the voices of a black-throated green, a wood-pewee, a jay, and a hairy woodpecker. (Also spotted a secretive gray squirrel—they’re not that common on the hill, that I’ve noticed.) Not a bad list for a dark, damp day.
Slug.
Back home, I heard chickadees, cardinals, house finches, and a yellow warbler across the road. Also saw a catbird directly out back.
After dark, a firefly flashed by within feet of my back door. And a minute ago, I stood outside for a little while listening to the twin moans of the local aids to navigation.
Beech Hill List
Beginning at 5 p.m., I hiked the wooded trails.
1. Chestnut-sided warbler
2. Red-eyed vireo (voice)
3. Ovenbird (voice)
4. Veery
5. American redstart (voice)
6. Eastern towhee (voice)
7. American goldfinch (voice)
8. Red-winged blackbird (voice)
9. Black-capped chickadee
10. Gray catbird
11. American crow (voice)
12. Hermit thrush (voice)
13. Ruby-throated hummingbird
14. Common yellowthroat
15. Song sparrow (voice)
16. American robin (voice)
17. Savannah sparrow
18. Herring gull (voice)
19. Eastern phoebe
20. Cedar waxwing (voice)
21. Black-throated green warbler (voice)
22. Eastern wood-pewee (voice)
23. Blue jay (voice)
24. Hairy woodpecker (voice)
Elsewhere
25. House finch
26. House sparrow
27. Mourning dove
28. Northern cardinal
29. Yellow warbler
Beech Nut.
Tags: American crow, American goldfinch, American redstart, American robin, black-throated green warbler, blue jay, Cedar waxwing, chestnut-sided warbler, common yellowthroat, eastern phoebe, eastern towhee, eastern wood-pewee, gray catbird, hairy woodpecker, hermit thrush, herring gull, house finch, house sparrow, mourning dove, northern cardinal, ovenbird, red-eyed vireo, red-winged blackbird, ruby-throated hummingbird, savannah sparrow, song sparrow, veery, yellow warbler
