Species

Black Vulture, Turkey Vulture, Canada Goose, Trumpeter Swan, Bald Eagle. Rock Pigeon, Mourning Dove, Belted Kingfisher. Red-bellied Woodpecker, Yellow-bellied Sapsucker, Downy Woodpecker, Northern Flicker, Pileated Woodpecker, Blue Jay, American Crow, Carolina Chickadee, Tufted Titmouse, Red-breasted Nuthatch, White-breasted Nuthatch, Carolina Wren, Winter Wren, Ruby-crowned Kinglet, Eastern Bluebird, Hermit Thrush, American Robin, European Starling, Eastern Towhee, Fox Sparrow, Song Sparrow, Swamp Sparrow, White-throated Sparrow, Northern Cardinal, Red-winged Blackbird, American Goldfinch

Bill Sefton reports:

So, I have to tell you right up front that even though we had some very nice weather and a crackerjack group of 17 birders, we really struggled to reach our well established competency threshold of 33* species for this walk. When we headed to the upper fields to end the walk, we only had 22 species. But, thanks to a small explosion of new birds in the upper fields, we finished the day at a respectable 34 species.

The bird of the day honors belonged 5 Trumpeter Swans that flew low over us – and gave a nice nasally “honk” to cement the identification. After the walk, some of the birders relocated the Trumpeters on a nearby pond and photographed them (see below – photo courtesy of Marc Manheimer). Other good species included a singing Fox Sparrow and good looks at Winter Wren, Hermit Thrush, and Eastern Bluebirds.

*For those new to our walks, one of our founding members – Fred Fallon – claimed that any competent birder could identify 32 species on any given day. With that in mind, we set a goal of at least 33 species to demonstrate that not only are we barely competent, we are actually quite competent! (Take that, Fred!!!)