Hello all,
Most exciting to me in birding as of late the increasing diversity of my
backyard birds and changes in behavior, off Vaughn's Gap, across from Warner
Park in DavidsonCty, West Nashville.
- I was happy to see a Brown Thrasher inching along, bug eating, next to my
patio early morning one day last week.
- I regularly hear Towhees close by, and have more recently been waking up to
their song. Several days last week I observed 1-3 Towhees (female and male) at
a time hopping around in fallen branches in woods next to my patio.
- I have a thistle feeder that stayed (to my dismay) full - for May, June and
July. I would dump the thistle seed in the lawn and watch the finches mainly go
to the sunflower seed, so I'd scrub out the feeder and refill it. (It's under a
wood overhang so moisture from rain isn't an issue.) For some reason just this
past week, all of a sudden, the Carolina Chickadees have been taking turns 3-4
at a time devouring its seed rapidly from sun up to sun down. I refilled it
twice in three days.
- More and more Goldfinches have started visiting my feeders lately. Mourning
Doves in pairs have begun making a daily stop.
- I have had a half dozen hummingbirds at a time at my plants and nectar
feeder, whereas a month ago one or two at time would come at a time.
- A Blue Gray Gnatcatcher was flitting around my Oak tree branch over my head
for a good bit one morning, too.
- Seeing more and more waterfowl fly over - in two's and four's and sometimes
more - always the same exact flight direction too - from the West from a number
of location guesses, to the direction of Radnor or Percy Priest lakes. (If
they're flying back West, either they are taking a different route or I'm just
missing it.)
- Occasionally, too, just after dusk, I have heard Whippoorwills.
Also:
Wood thrush have been in the woods along creek near the RR tracks at Vaughn's
Gap Rd/Hwy 100.
I keep seeing a Kestrel perched high up over the bridge by the Harpeth River
drop in on Hwy 100, and a Kestrel flying over Old Hickory at Hwy 70.
And, as I type this, at close to 1 a.m. I hear a Great Horned Owl calling!
Ashley Heeney
West Nashville
Davidson County
