The Stroud Preserve, 30 November 2012

Yesterday the skies were filled with so many vultures it was difficult to count them. To day, I didn’t see a vulture until I was almost done with my walk and was heading back to the car! Where did they all go? I checked the deer carcass on the way out and there were only 5 birds feeding on it where as yesterday there were over 30.

Actually, I am always quite surprised at the day to day variation in the number of species I see at the preserve. For example, in the month of November I saw 54 species on seven visits to the preserve. The species totals for each visit were 24, 32, 40, 24, 31, 33, and 37. October was even more pronounced. I recorded a total of 97 species on 19 visits to the preserve and my range of daily tallies was a low of 34 and a high of 54.

Today I flushed up a Wilson’s Snipe from the old farm pond. This was only my second observation of this species from the preserve, however, it is probably here more often but overlooked as I don’t scan the aquatic vegetation in the middle of the old pond bed very often. Here is the run down for the day.

Stat time: 8:45
End time: 12:00
Temp: 63-68
Wind: None
Skies: high clouds
Species Total: 37
 
Great Blue Heron – 3
Black Vulture – 10, where did they all go?
Turkey Vulture – approx. 20
Canada Goose – 800
Sharp-shinned Hawk – 3, immatures
Red-tailed Hawk – 6, 5 adults and one immature
Wilson's Snipe – 1, Bird of the Day! Only my second observation at the preserve
Rock Dove – 2
Mourning Dove – approx. 150
Belted Kingfisher – 2, heard only
Red-bellied Woodpecker – approx. 5
Yellow-bellied Sapsucker – 1, heard only
Downy Woodpecker – approx. 15
Hairy Woodpecker – 1
Northern Flicker – 2
Blue Jay – approx. 15
American Crow – approx. 300
Carolina Chickadee – approx. 30
Tufted Titmouse – approx. 30
Red-breasted Nuthatch – 1
White-breasted Nuthatch – approx. 20
Carolina Wren – approx. 15
Eastern Bluebird – approx. 25
American Robin – 5
European Starling – 5
Eastern Towhee – 1, heard only
Chipping Sparrow – 11
Field Sparrow – 2
Song Sparrow – approx. 20
Swamp Sparrow – 3
White-throated Sparrow – approx. 50
Dark-eyed Junco – approx. 40
Northern Cardinal – approx. 20
Red-winged Blackbird – approx. 10
House Finch – approx. 25
American Goldfinch – approx. 25

The Stroud Preserve, 29 November 2012

On my last visit to the preserve I thought about Winter Wrens as I started and sure enough I saw my first Winter Wrens for the preserve. Today, I thought about American Pipits and sure enough, I saw a flock of about 30 in the Bobolink fields! 145 for me, and 163 for the preserve. On my next visit I’m going to think about Ivory-billed Woodpeckers.

To be honest, I think about American Pipits nearly every time I visit the preserve. I am really quite surprised that I haven’t seen one before now. I find this to be a little odd as more than half the preserve is prime pipit habitat of open or plowed fields. Actually, pipits are not the only open country bird that I miss. I’ve seen Horned Larks only once, Eastern Meadowlarks only 6 times as spring migrants, and Killdeer only four times (three times as a distant vocalization and once as a flyover. I would think all of these birds would be more common here.

It’s only been a little over one year since I’ve been back on the east coast and it could just be that my perception as to what birds should and should not be around has changed over the past twenty years or, perhaps my perception of their status from twenty years ago is correct but their status has changed. Either way, one of the rewards of picking a local place to bird and visiting it often is think about and figure out small mysteries such as this.

Of course, I’ll keep you posted as I figure things out. Here is the rest of the bird list for today. As you can see from the frost on the grass, it was a little chilly!

Stat time: 9:35
End time: 12:30
Temp: 32-39
Wind: slight from the west.
Skies: clear
Species Total: 33
 
Great Blue Heron – 1
Black Vulture – approx. 100! There is a dead deer carcass down by the Brandywine. About 30 were on the ground feeding on it.
Turkey Vulture – approx. 20
Canada Goose – approx. 400
Mallard – 4
Sharp-shinned Hawk – 1 immature
Red-tailed Hawk – 7 adults
Herring Gull – 2, only my third observation
Rock Dove – 4
Mourning Dove – approx. 100, mostly in two large flocks
Red-bellied Woodpecker – 2
Downy Woodpecker – 2
Hairy Woodpecker – 1
Northern Flicker – 1
Blue Jay – approx. 10
American Crow – approx. 500
Fish Crow – 2, heard only amongst the crowd
Carolina Chickadee – approx. 10
Tufted Titmouse – approx. 20
White-breasted Nuthatch – approx. 5
Carolina Wren – approx. 10
Ruby-crowned Kinglet – 1, heard only
Eastern Bluebird – approx. 15
Northern Mockingbird – 2
European Starling – approx. 30

American Pipit – approx. 30, Bird of the Day!

Song Sparrow – approx. 10
Swamp Sparrow – 2, heard only
White-throated Sparrow – approx. 20
Dark-eyed Junco – approx. 10
Northern Cardinal – approx. 10
Red-winged Blackbird – 3
House Finch – approx. 30
American Goldfinch – approx. 10
 

The Stroud Preserve, 26 November 2012

When I headed out for today’s walk I had in the back of my mind that it was high time that a Winter Wren showed up. Approximately 10 minutes into the walk, a tiny fluff ball flew across a brush patch. Well that was easy, number 144 for me, and 162 for the Preserve. It took me about five minutes of spishing, but I finally managed to coax it out of the brush into full view. I even got it to sing! This was a the first east coast Winter Wren that I have seen in over twenty years, it was also the first one that I seen since the “Winter Wren” complex was split into three species; the Eurasian Wren, the Pacific Wren and the Winter Wren.

In Washington State, we had the Pacific Wren. Visually it is quite different being a warmer rusty color compared to the Winter Wren. After hearing the Winter Wren today, I’d say the song is of greater difference. You can’t miss the Pacific Wren’s song. It is extremely loud and carries for a great distance. The Winter Wren song I heard today was very muted in comparison.

There were few people at the preserve today as well. The only ones I saw were up in trees with guns waiting for deer to stroll past. I did see three deer, which were nowhere near the people with guns.

Stat time: 10:00
End time: 12:30
Temp: 39-45
Wind: slight from the north.
Skies: clear
Species Total: 31
 
Great Blue Heron – 1
Black Vulture – approx. 70!
Turkey Vulture – approx. 25
Canada Goose – approx. 350
Cackling Goose – 1
Mallard – 3
Red-tailed Hawk – 2 adults
Mourning Dove – approx. 10
Red-bellied Woodpecker – 2
Downy Woodpecker – 2
Northern Flicker – 2
Blue Jay – approx. 10
American Crow – approx. 500!
Fish Crow – 2, heard only
Carolina Chickadee – approx. 10
Tufted Titmouse – 4
White-breasted Nuthatch – 2
Carolina Wren – approx. 6
Winter Wren – 1, Bird of the Day! New to the Preserve list.
Golden-crowned Kinglet – 2
Eastern Bluebird – 5
Northern Mockingbird – 7
European Starling – approx. 10
Eastern Towhee – approx. 5
Song Sparrow – approx. 25
Swamp Sparrow – 2
White-throated Sparrow – approx. 50
Dark-eyed Junco – 1
Northern Cardinal – approx. 20
House Finch – approx. 10
American Goldfinch – approx. 15

The Stroud Preserve, 23 November 2012

I got another late start today, but being the day after Thanksgiving, a late start seemed appropriate. My major accomplishment for the day was a tie for the lowest species count for a visit. I was not the only person that thought that a warm walk through the country side would be a nice thing. While my bird species count was low, I don’t think I’ve ever seen more humans walking around the preserve! When I arrived there was only one parking spot left. When I returned to the car, there were about a dozen cars parked out on Creek Road. Something that I have never seen before.  

Stat time: 11:00
End time: 1:30
Temp: 49-56
Wind: none.
Skies: mostly clear.
Species Total: 24
 
Black Vulture – approx. 20
Turkey Vulture – approx. 20
Sharp-shinned Hawk – 1 adult
Red-tailed Hawk – 4 adults
Rock Dove – approx. 15
Mourning Dove – approx. 40
Red-bellied Woodpecker – 1
Downy Woodpecker – 3
Hairy Woodpecker – 1
Northern Flicker – 1
Blue Jay – heard only
American Crow – approx. 100
Carolina Chickadee – approx.10
Tufted Titmouse – 2
White-breasted Nuthatch – approx. 10
Carolina Wren – 6
Eastern Bluebird – approx. 15
European Starling – approx. 30
Chipping Sparrow – 1, Bird of the Day! I don’t know why these are so few and far between in the fall, but this was only my 4^th observation since the first of September.
Song Sparrow – approx. 25
White-throated Sparrow – approx. 50
Dark-eyed Junco – 1
Northern Cardinal – approx. 5
House Finch – approx. 10

The Stroud Preserve, 16 November 2012

I was able to get out a little earlier today than yesterday and the day before and took a longer walk around the preserve. Birdlife in general was up today as well. The Pine Siskins, Gold Finches and Purple Finches have for the most part disappeared. I have been hopping to see some of the other winters finches that have been reported widely throughout the region, such as Red Crossbill, White-winged Crossbill and Evening Grosbeak. I made a point to walk past all the pine trees on the preserve but no signs of them here.

Stat time: 9:25

End time: 12:40

Temp: 41-45

Wind: light wind from the northeast.

Skies: mostly overcast, high clouds

Species Total: 40

Great Blue Heron – 1

Black Vulture – approx. 30

Turkey Vulture – approx. 50

Snow Goose – 12, Bird of the Day! Mixed in with Canada Geese. My only other observation of these was of very high-flying flocks over the preserve last March. Nice to see these on the ground!

Canada Goose – approx. 300

Wood Duck – 2, male and female

Red-shouldered Hawk – 1, I’m still surprised as how often I don’t see these around here.

Red-tailed Hawk – 5, 4 adults and 1 imm.

Rock Dove – 6

Mourning Dove – approx. 25

Belted Kingfisher – 2, heard only

Red-bellied Woodpecker – 5

Yellow-bellied Sapsucker – 1, heard only

Downy Woodpecker – approx. 15

Hairy Woodpecker – 2

Blue Jay – approx. 10

American Crow – approx. 300

Carolina Chickadee – approx. 30

Tufted Titmouse – approx. 25

Red-breasted Nuthatch – 1

White-breasted Nuthatch – approx. 15

Brown Creeper – 1

Carolina Wren – approx. 10

Golden-crowned Kinglet – 4

Eastern Bluebird – approx. 100! These popped up over night.

American Robin – approx. 30

Northern Mockingbird – 2

European Starling – approx. 20

Cedar Waxwing – approx. 15

Eastern Towhee – approx. 5

Fox Sparrow – 2, Runner up bird of the day. First of the season!

Song Sparrow – approx. 50

Swamp Sparrow – 1

White-throated Sparrow – approx. 250

Dark-eyed Junco – approx. 50

Northern Cardinal – 6

Red-winged Blackbird – approx. 600

Common Grackle – 6

House Finch – approx. 75

American Goldfinch – 5

The Stroud Preserve, 15 November 2012

I did slightly better with bird observations today than I did yesterday. I did have one odd observation. I was looking at some juncos and kinglets when I heard someone behind me calling my name and turned around to find our neighbor Barb on a large white horse named Toby! I don’t see that everyday! We both agreed that it was a nice day to be out of the house!

Stat time: 11:25
End time: 1:40
Temp: 43-46
Wind: none
Skies: high clouds
Species Total: 32
 
Great Blue Heron – 1
Black Vulture – approx. 15
Turkey Vulture – approx. 25
Mallard – 2
Bald Eagle – 1 adult
Red-tailed Hawk – 5
Golden Eagle –
Rock Dove – approx. 10
Mourning Dove – approx. 20
Red-bellied Woodpecker – 4
Yellow-bellied Sapsucker – 1
Downy Woodpecker – 1
Hairy Woodpecker – 1
Northern Flicker – 2
Blue Jay – approx. 5
American Crow – approx. 500
Carolina Chickadee – approx. 15
Tufted Titmouse – approx. 15
White-breasted Nuthatch – 3
Brown Creeper – 2, Bird of the day! My first observation for the preserve.
Carolina Wren – approx. 5
Golden-crowned Kinglet – approx. 20
Eastern Bluebird – approx. 20
American Robin – 2
Northern Mockingbird – 1
European Starling – approx. 15
Eastern Towhee – 2
Field Sparrow – 2
Song Sparrow – approx. 10
White-throated Sparrow – approx. 50
Dark-eyed Junco – approx. 15
Northern Cardinal – 4
American Goldfinch – 4

The Stroud Preserve, 14 November 2012

The last visit to the Stroud Preserve was way back on October 26^th just before Hurricane Sandy came to town. In the nineteen days between visits I can safely say that fall departed and winter arrived; all the leaves on the trees have fallen, all the weed that the Purple Finches and Goldfinches were feeding on were now lying prone on the ground; the land, for the most part, had that quiet packed away feel to it. Most of the birdlife has moved on to some other place. In fact, this was the lowest species count that I have recorded on all of my visits to the preserve, a whopping 24 species!

Stat time: 11:45
End time: 1:10
Temp: 43-45
Wind: none
Skies: clear
Species Total: 24 

Great Blue Heron – 1
Turkey Vulture – approx. 25
Bald Eagle – 2 adults
Sharp-shinned Hawk – 1 adult
Cooper's Hawk – 1 adult
Red-tailed Hawk – 3 adults
Mourning Dove – approx. 15
Red-bellied Woodpecker – 3
Yellow-bellied Sapsucker – 2
Downy Woodpecker – 1
Hairy Woodpecker – 1
Blue Jay – 5
American Crow – approx. 500. Bird of the day due to their overwhelming numbers!
Carolina Chickadee – approx. 10
Tufted Titmouse – 4
White-breasted Nuthatch – 2
Carolina Wren – 2
Eastern Bluebird – approx. 10
Northern Mockingbird – 3
European Starling – 1
Eastern Towhee – 2
Song Sparrow – approx.10
White-throated Sparrow – heard only
Dark-eyed Junco – heard only
American Goldfinch – heard only

Sandy Jarred Something Loose

As I mentioned in my blog post from 31 October big storms like Sandy are usually followed by a short period of extreme birding excitement. In fact, many unusual and out of place birds showed up all cross the northeast part of North America in the week following the storm. Perhaps the most unusual of these was a Pterodroma petrel found under a mailbox in the middle of Pennsylvania. It was taken to a animal rehab center but died shortly there after. Pterodroma petrels are notoriously difficult to identify in the field and apparently they are difficult to identify in the hand as there is still some question as to which species of petrel this is.

Unfortunately I was unable to get out and see any of the storm related rarities. Instead, I lived vicariously through the email posting of others. One strange thing that I noticed after Sandy was concerning, not a seabird, but Golden Eagles. Most of the hawk migration monitoring sites post their daily totals to the local list servers. After the storm most all of them experienced daily and seasonal all time record high numbers of Golden Eagles.

Below are the numbers from the monitoring sites in the mountains. The coastal and piedmont sites didn’t see an unusual change in Golden Eagle numbers. I have often wondered about the winter distribution of Golden Eagles on the east coast. We have a fair number of them pass through in migration, as shown below. However south of here, observations are few and far between. My guess is that they stay in the mountains spread out over a large geographic area where there are fewer birders in winter. Whatever they do in winter the numbers below are exciting to see!

Post Sandy, Doing Dandy

This is just a quick update to let everyone know that everyone at 302 N Franklin St in West Chester PA is doing just fine. We were very lucky in that it seems that we missed the worst parts of Sandy. The places here that took the brunt of the strom were low lying  and coastal areas. We hardly had a flicker with our electricity nor did we get any basement leaks. 

This was a good test for the basement. When I arrived here last summer the basment walls only seemed to slow down the water. I spent the first couple of months here doing a lot of work trying to find the leaks an dry out the area. I am happy to say that I could not find a single drop of water down there at all. 

Now, don't get me wrong, Sandy was not a good thing for many reasons which I need not go into now. But I can tell you that as a birder and ornithologist, events like this are very exciting. Why? Well, birds have wings and storms like Sandy will send animals with wings to far off places that you would never see them otherwise. 

Over the last two days ther has been an absolutely unprecedented number of oceanic and coastal bird throughout Pennsylvania. For those of you who are unfamiliar with Pennsylvania's geography, we have neither coast nor ocean here. Large numbers of Leach's Storm-Petrels, Jeagers, Terns, Oyster-catchers and other such birds have been seen throughout the state. Unfortunately for me, I have not been able to get out and see anything myself, but it has been terribly exciting to see the reports of others. The best report that I have seen so far is of a Red-billed Tropicbird (photo above salvaged from the web) which found alive in southern New Jersey. It is only the second record for the state ever! 

Stay dry!

Russell

The Stroud Preserve, 26 October 2012

Today’s walk was by for the calmest of the season. I’m thinking it is the calm before the storm and it seemed as if the birds know what is coming our way. I did manage to see the Cackling Goose again. It (I’m assuming it was the same bird as yesterday) was in with about 300 Canada Geese that lifted up from one of the fields in the Preserve around 9:30 AM. They are very easy to pick out of a crowd being half the size of everyone else. Here is the rundown on the day.

Stat time: 8:45
End time: 10:45
Temp: 57
Wind: none
Skies: overcast
Species Total:
 
Double-crested Cormorant – 6, overhead
Great Blue Heron – 2
Turkey Vulture – 2
Canada Goose – approx. 300
Cackling Goose – 1
Wood Duck – 1
Sharp-shinned Hawk – 2
Red-tailed Hawk – 2
Herring Gull – 1, Bird of the Day! Only my second for the preserve
Rock Dove – 3
Mourning Dove – approx. 30
Belted Kingfisher – 1
Red-bellied Woodpecker – 2
Downy Woodpecker – 5
Blue Jay – approx. 40
American Crow – approx. 50
Tree Swallow – approx. 15, just when you think they are gone, they show up again
Carolina Chickadee – approx. 10
Tufted Titmouse – approx. 20
White-breasted Nuthatch – 5
Carolina Wren –  7
Golden-crowned Kinglet – 2, heard only
Ruby-crowned Kinglet – approx. 15
Eastern Bluebird – approx. 60, I really can’t figure out if these are migrating or just milling around. Either way, there are a lot of them.
American Robin – approx. 300, flying to the southwest
European Starling – approx. 20
Yellow-rumped Warbler – approx. 25
Palm Warbler – 2
Song Sparrow – approx. 50
Lincoln's Sparrow – 1
Swamp Sparrow – approx. 10
White-throated Sparrow – approx. 150
White-crowned Sparrow – 2
Dark-eyed Junco – approx. 10
Northern Cardinal – approx. 25
Red-winged Blackbird – approx. 75
Purple Finch – approx. 15
House Finch – approx. 40
American Goldfinch – approx. 40

The Stroud Preserve, 25 October 2012

Today was a good day as I added three new species to the preserve list! The Preserve list is now 161 and my personal list is 141. Green-winged Teal, Cackling Goose, and Black-capped Chickadee. The teal, eight in all, were amongst the first birds I saw when I arrived as they were sitting down stream from the bridge over the Brandywine. They were still there as I left. The chickadee was at the old farm pond. I have suspected that there were probably a few mixed in with the Carolina Chickadees, but wasn’t really sure until today when one was singing and calling. That removed all doubt. The bird of the day however was the Cackling Goose that flew in over the preserve with about 45 other Canada Geese. These are considered rare on the east coast of North America and are pretty easy to identify, especially if they are with Canada Geese as the Cacklers are about half their size.

Here is a complete rundown of the day’s observations. Notable species in bold.

Stat time: 8:45

End time: 11:15

Temp: 57

Wind: none

Skies: overcast

Species Total: 45
 
Double-crested Cormorant – A flock of about 200 flew over around 10:30. By far the largest flock I have seen here.
Great Blue Heron – 1, observed from a distance of about 25’ were it caught and consumed a shrew.
Turkey Vulture – approx. 25
Canada Goose – approx. 100
Cackling Goose – 1, Bird of the Day! New species for the preserve.
Wood Duck – 2
Green-winged Teal – 8 on the Brandywine. New species for the preserve.
Bald Eagle – 1, immature
Sharp-shinned Hawk – 1
Cooper's Hawk – 1
Red-tailed Hawk – 3
Rock Dove – 4
Mourning Dove – approx. 50
Red-bellied Woodpecker – 5
Yellow-bellied Sapsucker – 1, heard only
Downy Woodpecker – 5
Hairy Woodpecker – 2
Northern Flicker – 1
Blue-headed Vireo – 1, at bridge over stream from old farm pond. Same location as other observations.
Blue Jay – approx. 40
American Crow – approx. 30
Carolina Chickadee – approx. 15
Black-capped Chickadee – 1, new species for the preserve.
Tufted Titmouse – approx. 20
White-breasted Nuthatch – approx. 10
Carolina Wren – 7
Golden-crowned Kinglet – approx. 20
Ruby-crowned Kinglet – approx. 15
Eastern Bluebird – approx. 50
American Robin – approx. 250
Northern Mockingbird – 4
European Starling – approx. 100
Yellow-rumped Warbler – approx. 40
Palm Warbler – 1
Eastern Towhee –  approx. 10
Field Sparrow – 4
Song Sparrow – approx. 40
Swamp Sparrow – approx. 10
White-throated Sparrow – approx. 100
White-crowned Sparrow – 1
Northern Cardinal – approx. 30
Red-winged Blackbird – approx. 40
Purple Finch – approx.30
House Finch – approx. 75
American Goldfinch – approx.30

The Stroud Preserve, 23 October 2012

The morning walk today was overcast with a little rain! Not quite as was predicted. It was still unseasonably warm. Total numbers were higher, and Robins were definitely on the move.

Stat time: 9:15
End time: 10:45
Temp: 55-58
Wind: none
Skies: overcast, light drizzle for a about 30 minutes
Species Total: 40
 
Great Blue Heron – 1
Black Vulture – 1
Turkey Vulture – approx. 25
Canada Goose – approx. 100
Wood Duck – 1
Bald Eagle – 2, adult and immature
Northern Harrier – 2, Bird of the Day! A female/immature and an adult male, a surprising scarce species at Stroud. You would think with all that open county they would be everywhere.
Sharp-shinned Hawk – 6
Red-tailed Hawk – 3, 2 adults, 1 immature
Rock Dove – 2
Mourning Dove – approx. 35
Belted Kingfisher – 1, heard only
Red-bellied Woodpecker – 3
Downy Woodpecker – 3
Northern Flicker – 2
Blue Jay – approx. 40, seemed to be moving through again
American Crow – approx. 50
Carolina Chickadee – approx. 15
Tufted Titmouse – 4
White-breasted Nuthatch – 3
Carolina Wren – 5
Golden-crowned Kinglet – Heard only
Ruby-crowned Kinglet – 5
Eastern Bluebird – approx. 45
American Robin – approx. 600, Constantly flying overhead to the southwest.
Northern Mockingbird – 3
European Starling – approx. 100
Cedar Waxwing – approx. 50
Yellow-rumped Warbler – 1
Palm Warbler – approx. 15
Field Sparrow – 2
Song Sparrow – approx. 50
Lincoln's Sparrow – 1
Swamp Sparrow – approx. 50
White-throated Sparrow – approx. 50
White-crowned Sparrow – 1
Dark-eyed Junco – 5
Northern Cardinal – approx. 15
Red-winged Blackbird – approx. 1000
House Finch – approx. 75
Purple Finch – approx. 75
American Goldfinch – approx. 100

The Stroud Preserve, 22 October 2012

Wow. So I thought last week was warm. Things are certainly seem to be going in the wrong direction. Today started out at 48 and it was 55 by the time I left. The high today is going to be around 70, which is predicted to be the lowest high for the rest of the week! As with the nice weather last week, today’s nice weather didn’t bring in a whole lot of species diversity, but it does make for a nice walk.

Stat time: 9:00
End time: 10:45
Temp: 48-55
Wind: none to slight from the southwest.
Skies: cloudless
Species Total: 40
 
Great Blue Heron – 1
Black Vulture – approx. 10
Turkey Vulture – approx. 30
Canada Goose – approx. 100 (the flocks seem to be milling around in every direction)
Mallard – 2
Osprey – 1
Bald Eagle – 2, adult and immature
Sharp-shinned Hawk – approx. 10
Red-shouldered Hawk – Bird of the Day! 2 birds over head. For some reason, I don’t see very many of these at the preserve. This is only my third observation, and first time for more than one individual.
Red-tailed Hawk – 1
Rock Dove – 2
Mourning Dove – approx. 10
Red-bellied Woodpecker – 2
Downy Woodpecker – 2
Northern Flicker – 2
Blue Jay – approx. 20
American Crow – approx. 50
Fish Crow – 2, Heard only, only my 2nd observation for the preserve
Tree Swallow – approx. 30
Carolina Chickadee – approx. 10
Tufted Titmouse – 6
White-breasted Nuthatch – 2
Carolina Wren – 3
Ruby-crowned Kinglet – 1
Eastern Bluebird – approx. 15
American Robin – approx. 30
Northern Mockingbird – 2
European Starling – approx. 35
Cedar Waxwing –  approx.10
Palm Warbler – 6
Field Sparrow – 1
Song Sparrow – approx. 40
Lincoln's Sparrow – 2
Swamp Sparrow – 1
White-throated Sparrow – approx. 15
Northern Cardinal – approx. 10
Red-winged Blackbird – approx. 100
House Finch – approx. 15
Purple Finch – approx. 25
American Goldfinch – approx. 50
 

The Stroud Preserve, 18 October 2012

What beautiful day to be outside! And what a slow day for birds! Even though I saw a the average number of species, 43, it seemed as though I only saw 44 individual birds (actually since 9 September my daily average is 44 species). Still getting out for a couple of hours on such a nice day does the sprit good, and today, I needed it. Here is a rundown of what was out there.

Stat time: 8:45
End time: 10:45
Temp: 50-62
Wind: none
Skies: high clouds
Species Total: 43
 
Great Blue Heron – 1
Black Vulture – 1, where have they all gone!
Turkey Vulture – approx. 25
Canada Goose – approx. 50
Mallard – 2
Osprey – 1
Bald Eagle – 1
Sharp-shinned Hawk – 6, 5 adults and 1 immature.
Cooper's Hawk – 2, adults
Red-tailed Hawk – 3 adults
American Kestrel – 1 male
Rock Dove – approx. 10
Mourning Dove – approx. 25
Belted Kingfisher – 1
Red-bellied Woodpecker – 3
Downy Woodpecker – 2
Northern Flicker – 1
Eastern Phoebe – 1
Blue-headed Vireo – 1, Bird of the day again! In the exact same spot as yesterday no less.
Blue Jay – approx. 30
American Crow – approx. 75
Tree Swallow – approx. 80
Carolina Chickadee – approx. 10
Tufted Titmouse – approx. 10
White-breasted Nuthatch – 3
Carolina Wren – approx. 5
Golden-crowned Kinglet – approx. 10
Ruby-crowned Kinglet – approx. 10
Eastern Bluebird – approx. 30
American Robin – approx. 25
Northern Mockingbird – 3
European Starling – approx. 50
Yellow-rumped Warbler – 5
Palm Warbler – 6
Common Yellowthroat – 1
Field Sparrow – 1
Song Sparrow – approx. 50
Swamp Sparrow – approx. 10
White-throated Sparrow – approx. 25
White-crowned Sparrow – 4
Dark-eyed Junco – 5
Northern Cardinal – approx. 10
Red-winged Blackbird – approx. 100
House Finch – approx. 50
Purple Finch – approx. 40
American Goldfinch – approx. 100

The Stroud Preserve, 17 October 2012

Today’s walk around the Stroud Preserve was very calm, but full of birds. The first four birds of the day were an adult Cooper’s Hawk, adult Bald Eagle, male Kestrel, and adult Red-tailed Hawk. Not a bad start. The parking lot was completely empty when I arrived and I saw almost no people despite the nice weather. For the past couple of weeks I’ve been reading about an invasion of Pine Siskins to the Delaware Valley. Flocks of hundreds of them seemed to be everywhere except the Stroud Preserve. Finally today they arrived.

Stat time: 9:00
End time: 11:45
Temp: 42-58
Wind: none to start, later a light breeze from the southwest.
Skies: mostly sunny
Species Total: 48
 
Turkey Vulture – approx.25
Canada Goose – approx. 200
Wood Duck – 4, 3 females, 1 male
Bald Eagle – 2 adults
Sharp-shinned Hawk – 7 appeared to be all juveniles
Cooper's Hawk – 2, 1 adult, 1 juvenile
Red-tailed Hawk – 7, 6 adults and a juvenile
American Kestrel – 2, adult males
Rock Dove – approx. 10
Mourning Dove – approx. 50
Red-bellied Woodpecker – 5
Downy Woodpecker – 3
Northern Flicker – 1
Yellow-bellied Sapsucker – 1
Blue-headed Vireo – 2, Bird of the Day! Great prolonged views from about 8 feet!
Blue Jay – approx. 30, did not appear to be on the move as in previous weeks.
American Crow – approx. 150
Tree Swallow – approx. 50
Carolina Chickadee – approx.30
Tufted Titmouse – approx.20
White-breasted Nuthatch – 6
Carolina Wren – approx. 10
Golden-crowned Kinglet – approx. 10
Ruby-crowned Kinglet – approx.25
Eastern Bluebird – approx. 30
American Robin – approx.20
Gray Catbird – 1
Northern Mockingbird – 3
European Starling – approx. 25
Cedar Waxwing – approx. 30
Yellow-rumped Warbler – 4
Palm Warbler – 3
Common Yellowthroat – 1
Field Sparrow – 5
Savannah Sparrow – 1
Song Sparrow – approx. 150
Lincoln's Sparrow – 4
Swamp Sparrow – approx. 25
White-throated Sparrow – approx. 40
White-crowned Sparrow – approx. 20, mostly immatures
Dark-eyed Junco – 1, first of the season
Northern Cardinal – approx. 10
Red-winged Blackbird – approx. 100
Common Grackle – 5
House Finch – approx. 200
Purple Finch – approx. 200
American Goldfinch – approx. 200
Pine Siskin – approx. 50, new species (138) for the preserve list!

The Stroud Preserve, 16 October 2012

After yesterday’s visit to the preserve we had big front move through. In the afternoon it rain buckets! The effect on the bird life this morning was clear. Many of those lingering migrants seem to have packed their bags and headed to other places, hopefully further to the south! Here are the numbers

Stat time: 9:00
End time: 11:00
Temp: 52-58
Wind: slight from the southwest.
Skies: mostly clear, with a few scattered clouds
Species Total: 43
 
Black Vulture – approx. 20
Turkey Vulture – approx. 30
Canada Goose – approx. 25
Wood Duck – 2
Bald Eagle – 2 adults
Sharp-shinned Hawk – 6
Red-tailed Hawk – 2
Mourning Dove – approx. 35
Belted Kingfisher – 2
Red-bellied Woodpecker – 4
Downy Woodpecker – 3
Northern Flicker – 1
Yellow-bellied Sapsucker – 2
Blue Jay – approx. 75, again, migrating through to the southwest
American Crow – approx. 100
Tree Swallow – approx. 10
Carolina Chickadee – approx. 10
Tufted Titmouse – 5
White-breasted Nuthatch – 2
Carolina Wren – 4
Golden-crowned Kinglet – 2
Ruby-crowned Kinglet – approx. 10
Eastern Bluebird – approx. 80
American Robin –approx. 50
Northern Mockingbird – 2
European Starling – approx. 25
Cedar Waxwing – approx. 60
Yellow-rumped Warbler – approx. 10
Palm Warbler – 1
Common Yellowthroat – 1
Eastern Towhee – 2
American Tree Sparrow – 1, Bird of the day! Nice looks from about 10 feet.
Song Sparrow – approx. 50
Lincoln's Sparrow – 2
Swamp Sparrow – approx. 30
White-throated Sparrow – approx. 20
White-crowned Sparrow – 6
Northern Cardinal – approx. 10
Red-winged Blackbird – approx. 100
Brown-headed Cowbird – approx. 20
House Finch – approx. 120
Purple Finch – approx. 50
American Goldfinch – approx. 70

The Stroud Preserve, 15 October 2012

As with yesterday, it was fairly slow for birds, but very warm which made for a good walk. It was a good day for sparrows with seven species total. I saw Savannah Sparrow for the first time since the spring. Starting temperature was 63° and it was 68° by the time I got back to the car! It was overcast skies with a 70% plus chance for rain by the afternoon. In fact, by the time I got home it was raining.

Stat time: 9:00
End time: 10:30
Temp: 63-68
Wind: slight from the southwest.
Skies: overcast
Species Total: 48
 
Great Blue Heron – 1
Black Vulture – 3
Turkey Vulture – approx. 30
Canada Goose – approx. 50
Wood Duck – 1
Mallard – 3
Sharp-shinned Hawk – 6
Cooper's Hawk – 1
Red-tailed Hawk – 1
Merlin – 1, Bird of the Day, flying low across a field. Great views.
Rock Dove – 5
Mourning Dove – approx. 30
Chimney Swift – 5
Belted Kingfisher – 1
Red-bellied Woodpecker – 3
Downy Woodpecker – 1
Hairy Woodpecker – 1, largely absent this fall only the third observation since September 1. They were common in the spring, with at lest one pair nesting on the preserve.
Northern Flicker – 2
Blue Jay – approx. 50, these still appear to be migrating as most birds are flying to the southwest.
American Crow – approx. 50
Tree Swallow – approx. 250!
Carolina Chickadee – 5
Tufted Titmouse – 5
White-breasted Nuthatch – 1
Carolina Wren – 3
Golden-crowned Kinglet – approx. 15
Ruby-crowned Kinglet – approx. 10
Eastern Bluebird – approx. 25
American Robin –approx. 30
Gray Catbird – 1, these appear to be thinning out a little.
Northern Mockingbird – 1
European Starling – approx. 50
Cedar Waxwing – approx. 75
Yellow-rumped Warbler – 5
Common Yellowthroat – 1
Eastern Towhee – 1
Field Sparrow – 3
Savannah Sparrow – 2
Song Sparrow – approx. 75
Lincoln's Sparrow – 2
Swamp Sparrow – approx. 10
White-throated Sparrow – approx. 25
White-crowned Sparrow – 3, 2 imm, and 1 adult.
Northern Cardinal – 5
Red-winged Blackbird – approx. 50
House Finch – approx. 50
Purple Finch – approx. 100
American Goldfinch –  approx. 75

The Stroud Preserve, 14 October 2012

Today William and I decided to take an afternoon walk down at the Preserve. It was unseasonably warm above 70! Also a bit windy. We saw many caterpillars of many varies. William picked all of them up. See photos here. All in all it was pretty slow. No warblers around at all.

Stat time: 1:00

End time: 3:00

Temp: 70

Wind: moderate to strong from the southwest.

Skies: high clouds

Species Total: 34

Black Vulture – 1

Turkey Vulture – as usual, 20-30 over head with a few roosting on the power lines

Canada Goose – approx. 200 flew up from the Bobolink fields

Osprey – 1

Sharp-shinned Hawk – 6

Red-tailed Hawk – 4

Rock Dove – 10

Morning Dove – approx. 10

Red-bellied Woodpecker – approx. 5

Downy Woodpecker – 1

Northern Flicker – 1

Eastern Phoebe – 1, they seem to be thinning out

Blue Jay – approx. 50

American Crow – approx. 50

Tree Swallow – 200, these were the only bird that seemed to be on the move

Carolina Chickadee – approx. 5

Tufted Titmouse – approx. 5

White-breasted Nuthatch – 1

Carolina Wren – 1, heard only

Ruby-crowned Kinglet – 2

Eastern Bluebird – approx. 10

American Robin - approx. 100

Gray Catbird - approx. 1

European Starling – approx. 10

Cedar Waxwings – approx. 10

Eastern Towhee – 2

Song Sparrow – approx. 10

Swamp Sparrow – 1

White-throated Sparrow – 2

Northern Cardinal – 2

Red-winged Blackbird – approx. 10

House Finch – approx. 10

Purple Finch – approx. 10

American Goldfinch – approx. 15

The Stroud Preserve, 12 October 2012

Today’s visit to the Stroud Preserve was chilly as I noted the first frost of the fall. The photo above shows frost on the railing of the parking lot. I did not see any frost on the ground. We may not see it for the next week or so either as the predicted lows for the next five days are all above 45°.

I started out an hour early at about 7:45 today as Mary was home and could take Paddy to the bus stop. I told Mary that compared to yesterday I would need to see a condor for the day to amount to anything. Nonetheless, I headed out under mostly clear skies, a bit chipper, and a light wind. I stayed out until 11:00 AM, the first two hours were slow and methodical birding, the last hour I pick up the pace to get my heart rate up. Here is what I saw. Total species: 52. Notable sightings in bold.

Stat time: 7:45

End time: 11:00

Temp: 32-40

Wind: slight from the southwest.

Skies: high counds

Species Total: 52

Black Vulture – as usual, many 10-15 over head

Turkey Vulture – as usual, 20-30 over head with a few roosting on the power lines

Canada Goose – small groups of 3-4 bird flying over head, approximately 30 total

Wood Duck – a male and two females in the Brandywine as I started out

Bald Eagle – only one adult today

Sharp-shinned Hawk – 3, one roosting in the willows on south side of old farm pond

Cooper’s Hawk – 1

Red-tailed Hawk – 10

Merlin – 1, on the west end of the preserve.

Rock Dove – 1

Morning Dove – approx. 10

Yellow-billed Cuckoo – Bird of the day! One at the bridge over the Brandywine, very late migrant

Red-bellied Woodpecker – approx. 10

Downy Woodpecker – approx. 10

Northern Flicker – 2

Eastern Phoebe – 1, they seem to be thinning out

Blue Jay – approx. 100, clearly migrating, most moving towards the southwest

American Crow – approx. 150

Tree Swallow – 10-15

Carolina Chickadee – approx. 15

Tufted Titmouse – approx. 15

White-breasted Nuthatch – 3

Red-breasted Nuthatch – 1, heard only

Carolina Wren – 4-5, heard only

House Wren – 1, heard only

Ruby-crowned Kinglet – 2

Eastern Bluebird - approx. 80, clearly migrants.

American Robin - approx. 100

Gray Catbird - approx. 10

Northern Mockingbird – 3

European Starling – approx. 100, flocking with blackbirds

Cedar Waxwings – approx. 30

Tennessee Warbler – 1

Nashville Warlber – 3

Magnolia Warlber – 1, getting late

Black-throated Blue Warbler – 1, getting late

Yellow-rumped Warbler – approx. 30

Palm Warbler – approx. 15

Common Yellowthroat – 1

Eastern Towhee – 5

Field Sparrow – 2

Song Sparrow – approx. 75

Lincoln Sparrow – 1

Swamp Sparrow – 5

White-throated Sparrow – approx. 25

Northern Cardinal – 10

Red-winged Blackbird – approx. 300

Common Grackle – 1, probably more in with the Redwings, but only one for sure

Brown-headed Cowbird – approx. 25

House Finch – approx. 75

Purple Finch – approx. 150

American Goldfinch – approx. 75

Awww, birding on the east coast ain’t so bad after all!

Back when we were living in Washington State and I would see something like Mount Rainier or a pod of orca whales, I would always say “well, you don’t see shit like that in Philadelphia!” Of course I was 100% correct, you don’t see shit like that in Philadelphia. Not by a long stretch. However, Mother Nature still has great and wonderful things to send your way here if you are looking for it.

For example, back in September 5th, after I had gotten the kids off to school and was standing at the kitchen sink washing dishes. I took a look out the back window to see a little yellow bird hopping in and amongst the leaves of a hosta below me. When it hopped out into full view, I could see that it was a Connecticut Warbler! Perhaps the most sought after fall warbler species on the east coast. It has been at least 20 years since the last time I have seen one of these little guys! And a yard bird to boot!

While that was really exciting it was no match for today’s excitement. For most of September and October I have been birding for a couple of hours a day down at the Stroud Preserve, which is just three miles away from home. Ecologically speaking, there is nothing really special about the place other than a small serpentine outcrop that has a few really rare plants. For the most part it is a fractured landscape consisting of small chunks of forest, streams, open grassy fields and row crops. It essentially resembles the rest of Chester County’s agricultural lands. I have seen many good birds there over the past year. It occasionally produces some outstanding birds, and today I had two!

I usually like to ride my bike down to the entrance, but today William missed the bus and I had to drive him to school, so, I just decided to drive on the preserve. As I got out of my car I could see two large birds to the north flying low over the east fork of the Brandywine Creek. They were just close enough for me to discern that one of them was an adult Bald Eagle because I could clearly see its big white head and big white tail. It was unmistakable and could be nothing else. The other bird looked all dark to me so I assumed it was an immature Bald Eagle. The adult was chasing and harassing it.

I stood up, stretched, and put my binocular strap over my head and took a closer look. Immediately I was reminded why you shouldn’t make assumptions as the darker bird had a bicolored tail, with the outer half being dark and the base being white. This too was unmistakable and could be nothing other than a juvenile Golden Eagle!

For those of you who are unaware, Bald Eagles here are fairly common. In fact, my records show that I have seen them on about 36% of all of my visits to the Stroud Preserve. Golden Eagles on the other hand are not so common. They are considered rare in the Delaware Valley and when you do see them around here they are usually high overhead. I have seen them in the greater Philadelphia area before. Back in my freshman year at Temple (fall of 1981) I saw one flying over downtown Philadelphia. This wasn’t even my first one for the Stroud Preserve. Back on September 16th I saw one high over the preserve flying with approximately 4000 Broad-winged Hawks. It was so high up that I could barley discern that it was a Golden Eagle.

This bird today was low and it was moving towards me. I watched as both eagles dodged and darted at each other flying in tight little circles, with each circle bringing them a little closer to me. After about ten minutes of this areal dog fight between our avian giants they were right in front of me and only about 50 feet or so above the tops of the trees with the sun over my left shoulder, making for an absolutely stunning view of the eagles. I could clearly see the eye of the bird and the golden hackles of the nape. I can honestly say this was one of the best looks at a Golden Eagle in all of my nearly 40 years as an avid birder. (The photo above is of the eagle with my iPhone, you can just barely make out the white at the base of the tail).

At this point the Bald Eagle decided it had had enough and swiftly moved on down stream. The Golden Eagle stayed for the most part in front of me a spent the next 5 minutes climbing a thermal then heading off to the west-southwest, which is the direction that all the migrating hawks have been heading.

Not a bad start for the day! The rest of my walk around the preserve was pretty slow. I saw only the usual cast of characters, which were in fairly low numbers. However, a minute or so after I turned around to head for the car, the second great bird of the day popped out of the woods hear the old barn. This bird was large, about the size of a Red-tailed Hawk, with a broad, heavy body, dark streaking down the breast, long rounded tail, short rounded wings, and the clincher, a broad white supercilium. This could only be one thing, an immature Northern Goshawk! Wow. It flew out over a grassy field where it was immediately descended upon by a hoard of crows. It quickly headed for the shelter of the trees and disappeared in the blink of an eye.

Either of these two birds would have been the highlight of a day, week or month. To have them only a few hours apart on the same day was special. To see them along the Brandywine, where George Washington’s army marched past two and a half centuries ago is not something you could see in Seattle!

Keep looking up!

Russell