Click on the montage to enlarge it.
(birds in the montage - center: male House Finch; clockwise from top left: Blue Jay, Northern Mockingbird, American Robin, female Northern Cardinal, Carolina Wren, female Downy Woodpecker, American Crow, two Yellow-rumped Warbler color variations, Mourning Dove, male Northern Cardinal and Ruby-crowned Kinglet)
Following is a list of all of the birds that I was able to identify during this year's count: Cormorant, Turkey Vulture, Red-tailed Hawk, small to medium hawk - probably Cooper's, sharp-shinned or red-shouldered, gull, American Crow, Northern Mockingbird, Northern Cardinal, Blue Jay, European Starling, Great-tailed Grackle, Red-winged Blackbird, Yellow-rumped Warbler, White-throated Sparrow, House Finch, Mourning Dove, White-winged Dove, Eurasian Collared Dove, Carolina Wren, Ruby-crowned Kinglet, Downy Woodpecker and Eastern Phoebe.
If you participated this year, I hope you had fun. If not I hope this post is inspiration for you to do so next year. If you have been hesitant to count because you are unsure you can identify enough species of birds, try out the free app for you from Cornell Labs, Merlin. It is different than flipping through pages and pages of a field guide and I find it to be very easy to use.
Only managed one count this year, but I plan to post on eBird more often this year anyway so not a big deal. My first two birds were Hermit Thrushes. Very exciting. I hadn't seen one yet this winter and never two in such quick succession. The first one popped up from under a bridge. We were both startled. It quickly ran off into the brush. The second one flew from tree to tree across the path and stayed in view and I was able to get an ID worthy shot of it. Other birds seen: Carolina Chickadees, Tufted Titmouses, Yellow-Rumped Warblers, Northern Cardinals, Great Blue Heron, Ruby-crowned Kinglets, Yellow-bellied Sapsucker, Turkey Vultures, Ring-necked Ducks, and Downy Woodpecker. Also counted these heard-only species: Blue Jays, Northern Flicker, Pine Warblers, Gray Catbird, Red-bellied Woodpeckers, Carolina Wrens, Eastern Phoebe, American Crow, Killdeer, and Mourning Dove.
ReplyDeleteI wish I was better at IDing by sound. I know some calls but nowhere near as many as you do. Happy birding.
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