Birders,
Although the sky looked rather murky, my husband and I set off for Sky Meadows
early this morning. We stopped first at the intersection of Leeds Manor Road
and Rt. 17, hoping to find some Bobolinks...no Bobolinks but two Blue Grosbeaks
right along the road, a Green Heron on the pond, a few Barn Swallows, and a
dozen Eastern Meadowlarks in the fields. At Sky Meadows, we walked three miles
along the Bridle Trail up to the ridge and back down crossing the stream twice
along the Rolling Meadows Trail. At each stream crossing, there were warblers
including Magnolia, Worm-eating, Redstarts, and Chestnut-sided. We found a
beautiful bright Canada Warbler in the bushes before the first stream crossing.
Most numerous birds were Eastern Wood-Pewees and Gray Catbirds. A pair of
Great-crested Flycatchers cavorted in the tall tree limbs. We found 3
Red-headed Woodpeckers in the trees to the right of the burned-out farmhouse
along 17. (Scott Baron...this might be a new location for them???) A couple of
Common Ravens flew over the pond, croaking with mouths open, and a Green Heron
kept appearing and reappearing along the muddy shore of the pond. We also
checked the pond in Paris where 3 Eastern Kingbirds kept dashing across the
road. We then went to Blandy hoping to see the Bobolinks found by David Carr
but didn't find them. We did enjoy sorting through the swallows on the pond
where a Pied-billed Grebe floated peacefully. One Grasshopper Sparrow landed on
a wire underneath a crowd of swallows and a few Chipping Sparrows flitted in
the undergrowth. Other birds at Blandy included Cedar Waxwings eating berries
and Eastern Kingbirds. Sky Meadows list follows:
Green Heron 2
Canada Goose 15
Turkey Vulture 3
Bald Eagle 1
Red-tailed Hawk 3
RT Hummingbird 3
Belted Kingfisher 1
Red-headed Woodpecker 3
Red-bellied Woodpecker 4
Downy Woodpecker 1
Northern Flicker 2
Olive-sided Flycatcher 1 (I think)
Eastern Wood-Pewee 7
Eastern Phoebe 2
Eastern Kingbird 3
Great Crested Flycatcher 2
Trails Flycatcher (Willow?) 1
Barn Swallow 3
Blue Jay 2
American Crow 2
Fish Crow 1
Common Raven 2
Carolina Chickadee a few
WB Nuthatch 2
House Wren 1
Blue-Gray Gnatcatcher 4
Gray Catbird 6
Northern Mockingbird 4 (including one that looked like the tail was dipped in
white paint)
Brown Thrasher 1
Starling 15
Chestnut-sided Warbler 1
Magnolia Warbler 3
American Redstart 3
Worm-eating Warber 1
Common Yellowthroat 2
Canada Warbler 1 (very bright with necklace)
Northern Cardinal 10
Indigo Bunting 2
Blue Grosbeak 2
Eastern Towhee 3
Field Sparrow 4
Eastern Meadowlark 12
American Goldfinch 8
Linda Millington
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