The Stroud Preserve, 1 March 2013

The weather today started out great! A completely spring like day, then it began to get cloudy and breezy and colder. In fact, about 10 minutes after I left the preserve driving towards Exton, I ran into a brief snow squall! Not what I was expecting!

Despite the downturn in the weather, I did manage to 39 species for the day. The best among these was a flock of about 30 Northern Pintail flying north over the preserve. Fish Crows put in a good appearance (sorry Patty!). There were at least 15 and maybe as many as 30 or more. They were calling from all corners of the preserve today. One very vocal flock of 21 crows flew overhead with at least 5 calling fish crows at once and no calling American Crows. I suspect that they were all Fish Crows but there is no way to tell for sure. I ran into one sizable mixed flock of sparrows mostly consisting of Dark-eyed Juncos. Other than this flock, I saw no other juncos, and only a handful of White-throated Sparrows.

The Great Horned Owl was once again sitting high up on the nest. There was one bump on the nest that I haven’t noticed before, which could have been a chick. I normally don’t carry my scope with me on my daily walks, but I think I’ll bring it on my next visit to see if I can see any chicks.

Snowdrops (Galanthus nivalis)

I also came across my first flowering plant of the year. Galanthus nivalis, commonly called snowdrops. There is a large group of many hundreds of these blooming on the south side of the preserve along Lucky Hill Road. It is a member of the Onion Family (Alliaceae) and is native to Europe. It is also a new plant for my plant list for the preserve.

Start time: 8:45

End time: 12:00

Temp: 37-32°! Holy cow, it got more colder!

Wind: none to start becoming brisk from the NNE

Skies: partly cloudy to start, becoming overcast by noon

Species Total: 39

• Great Blue Heron – 1
• Black Vulture – approximately 10
• Turkey Vulture – approximately 25
• Canada Goose – approximately 150
• Mallard – 5
• Northern Pintail – approximately 30, bird of the day!
• Common Merganser – 3
• Bald Eagle – 1, adult
• Red-tailed Hawk – 7, 6 adults, 1 immature
• Killdeer – 1, heard only
• Ring-billed Gull – 3
• Mourning Dove – 3
• Great Horned Owl – 1, same bird, same place
• Belted Kingfisher – 1, heard only
• Red-bellied Woodpecker – approximately 10
• Downy Woodpecker – approximately 10
• Hairy Woodpecker – 8!
• Northern Flicker – 3
• Blue Jay – approximately 10
• American Crow – approximately 100
• Fish Crow – at least 15, as many as 30!
• Carolina Chickadee – approximately 10
• Tufted Titmouse – approximately 10
• Red-breasted Nuthatch – 1
• White-breasted Nuthatch – approximately 8
• Carolina Wren – approximately 10
• Golden-crowned Kinglet – 1, heard only
• Eastern Bluebird – approximately 25
• American Robin – 1
• Northern Mockingbird – 3
• European Starling – approximately 75
• Eastern Towhee – 1, heard only
• Savannah Sparrow – 4
• Song Sparrow – approximately 100
• White-throated Sparrow – approximately 25
• Dark-eyed Junco – approximately 75
• Northern Cardinal – approximately 12
• Red-winged Blackbird – approximately 50
• House Finch – 1, heard only

The Stroud Preserve, 28 February 2013

The winter doldrums continue. But as with every passing day slight changes are abound. Today I observed Black Vultures exhibiting pair bonding activities over head. It does appear as if the winter residents are clearing out. I saw no Dark-eyed Juncos at all today and very few White-throated Sparrows. The only Canada Geese that I saw were a large flock high above the preserve heading north.

Eastern Towhee numbers are starting to climb. I’ve been surprised at how difficult towhees have been to detect over the winter. There have been many days where I didn’t see them at all. I’ve mostly only seen them in one spot all winter, which is in the brush below the high tension power lines. They have been largely absent from the rest of the preserve. Today I saw or heard them in many different areas.

The Great Horned Owl made a subtle change today. Up till now, I have only seen the head and a small portion of her back as she sat on the nest. Today she was sitting a lot higher. I could see perhaps 75% of her body. My guess is that the chicks are hatched and starting to move around a little. I’m looking forward to seeing the first little fluffy head pop up!

Start time: 10:15

End time: 12:00

Temp: 37-40°

Wind: slight from the west

Skies: overcast

Species Total: 32

• Black Vulture – 4
• Turkey Vulture – approximately 12
• Canada Goose – approximately 250
• Red-tailed Hawk – 5, 4 adults and 1 immature
• Ring-billed Gull – 1
• Mourning Dove – 2
• Great Horned Owl – 1, same bird, same place
• Belted Kingfisher – 1
• Red-bellied Woodpecker – approximately 10
• Downy Woodpecker – approximately 5
• Hairy Woodpecker – 1
• Blue Jay – approximately 12
• American Crow – approximately 50
• Fish Crow – 8
• Carolina Chickadee – 4
• Tufted Titmouse – approximately 10
• White-breasted Nuthatch – 5
• Carolina Wren – approximately 10
• Golden-crowned Kinglet – 1, heard only
• Eastern Bluebird – approximately 25
• American Robin – 2
• Northern Mockingbird – 4
• European Starling – approximately 30
• American Pipit – 2
• Eastern Towhee – approximately 12
• Savannah Sparrow – 1
• Song Sparrow – approximately 30
• Swamp Sparrow – 1
• White-throated Sparrow – approximately 20
• Northern Cardinal – approximately 12
• Red-winged Blackbird – approximately 100
• House Finch – 4

The Stroud Preserve, 27 February 2013

I thought about not heading out today because there was light rain at my house and it just seemed like a rotten day for birds. But then I thought about all those times when I felt this way, then forced myself to go out in the field and found something truly amazing. As it turned out, this wasn’t one of those days. It was rainy and the birding was slow. It might have had something to do with the diminished efforts of the observer having to constantly wipe off his glasses and binoculars combined with the fact that the observer had to leave early to take his child to the doctor, still I managed to eek out 35 species.

I did observe a pair of Red-tailed Hawks copulating. I haven’t seen any nest building activities yet but that is certainly forthcoming. The large number of Red-winged Blackbirds was mostly due to several larger flocks passing by overhead. I also saw a single Common Grackle perched in the top of a tree making the strangest assortment of sounds imaginable. While it was sitting there a Red-tailed Hawk landed in a nearby tree. Most of the birds nearby fled immediately. The Grackle however, dropped down the next branch, then the next and the next like a pachinko ball bouncing down the board. I made it to the last branch and then dropped to the ground and disappeared in the brush. I think they are still one of my favorite birds! Notable absentees were Black Vulture and Fish Crow.

Start time: 8:50

End time: 10:30

Temp: 32-40°

Wind: none

Skies: overcast with occasional drizzle

Species Total: 35

• Great Blue Heron – 1
• Turkey Vulture – 1
• Canada Goose – approximately 60
• Mallard – approximately 80
• Red-tailed Hawk – 4, 3 adults 1 immature
• Ring-billed Gull – 5
• Mourning Dove – 3
• Great Horned Owl – 1, still on the nest
• Belted Kingfisher – 1
• Red-bellied Woodpecker – approximately 8
• Yellow-bellied Sapsucker – 1
• Downy Woodpecker – 3
• Hairy Woodpecker – 1
• Blue Jay – approximately 10
• American Crow – approximately 15
• Carolina Chickadee – 6
• Tufted Titmouse – 3
• White-breasted Nuthatch – approximately 5
• Carolina Wren – approximately 8
• Winter Wren – 1, heard only
• Golden-crowned Kinglet – 2
• Eastern Bluebird – approximately 10
• Northern Mockingbird – 4
• European Starling – approximately 50
• Eastern Towhee – 5
• Savannah Sparrow – 5
• Fox Sparrow – 3
• Song Sparrow – approximately 30
• Swamp Sparrow – 1, heard only
• White-throated Sparrow – approximately 40
• Dark-eyed Junco – approximately 10
• Northern Cardinal – approximately 15
• Red-winged Blackbird – approximately 400
• Common Grackle – 3, Bird of the day!
• House Finch – 2

The Stroud Preserve, 25 February 2013

With each passing day, the present one few minutes longer than the last, more and more signs of spring steadily appear, at least with the avifauna. Today there was a change in the sparrow population. Song sparrows were more distributed across the preserve all the while constantly singing. White-throated Sparrows and Dark-eyed Junco’s were nearly absent. Other birds (Carolina Wren, Blue Jay, Eastern Bluebird, and Eastern Towhee) were much more vocal than they have been. I am expecting the first swallows any day now.

The Great Horned Owls was still on her nest. I have seen no signs of nestlings yet, however, it shouldn’t be too much longer before they pop up. The crows are still harassing her endlessly. There were at least 10 Fish Crows in the mix today. It will be interesting to see if they stay in the area for nesting.

Start time: 9:00

End time: 11:30

Temp: 32-40°

Wind: slight from the east

Skies: Clear

Species Total: 35

• Black Vulture – approximately 40
• Turkey Vulture – approximately 30
• Canada Goose – approximately 300
• Mallard – approximately 15
• Northern Harrier – 2, immature or female
• Sharp-shinned Hawk – 1 adult, probably a female
• Red-tailed Hawk – approximately 10, 3 immature, the rest adults
• Mourning Dove – 1, first one in several weeks
• Great Horned Owl – 1, same bird, same spot
• Red-bellied Woodpecker – approximately 10
• Downy Woodpecker – approximately 5, heard only
• Hairy Woodpecker – 2
• Northern Flicker – 1
• Blue Jay – approximately 12
• American Crow – approximately 50
• Fish Crow – approximately 10
• Carolina Chickadee – approximately 10
• Tufted Titmouse – approximately 10
• White-breasted Nuthatch – approximately 5
• Carolina Wren – approximately 12
• Golden-crowned Kinglet – 2
• Eastern Bluebird – approximately 25
• Northern Mockingbird – 5
• European Starling – approximately 20
• American Pipit – approximately 20, I saw one group of 5 birds, there were three other groups that I heard only and couldn’t be picked out the great expanse of blue overhead.
• Eastern Towhee – 5
• Savannah Sparrow – 3
• Song Sparrow – approximately 50
• Swamp Sparrow – 1, first one in several weeks
• White-throated Sparrow – approximately 20!
• Dark-eyed Junco – 1!
• Northern Cardinal – approximately 12
• Red-winged Blackbird – approximately 70
• Common Grackle – 3
• House Finch – 2

The Stroud Preserve, 22 February 2013

With little to no wind, the day ranked as stellar in my book. I noticed today that Turkey Vultures were doing pair bonding rituals. There were several pairs that were flying in unison in tight circles and diving back and forth at each other. I enjoyed watching them interacting so much that I hear by declare them bird of the day! Black Vultures, in contrast, were almost absent as I saw only one. A nice runner up to bird of the day were several singing Fox Sparrows.

The staff at the preserve mowed some of the areas around the former farm pond. My first thought upon seeing it was that the birds would be elsewhere. But I would be wrong as most of the song birds that I observed today were in the mowed areas!

Some of the winter regulars are dwindling down to next to nothing or completely absent. House Sparrow and Gold Finch are becoming difficult to find on my daily walks and Swamp Sparrows and Morning Doves haven’t been seen in the past week at all.

Start time: 8:45

End time: 11:35

Temp: 27-32°

Wind: none to slight from the south

Skies: mostly overcast

Species Total: 36

• Great Blue Heron – 1
• Black Vulture – 1
• Turkey Vulture – approximately 20, Bird of the Day!
• Canada Goose – approximately 450
• Mallard – 5
• Northern Harrier – 1, immature or female
• Sharp-shinned Hawk – 1
• Red-tailed Hawk – approximately 6, 5 adults and 1 immature
• Great Horned Owl – 1, same bird, same place.
• Belted Kingfisher – 1
• Red-bellied Woodpecker – approximately 10
• Downy Woodpecker – approximately 5
• Hairy Woodpecker – 1
• Blue Jay – approximately 20
• American Crow – approximately 30
• Fish Crow – 5
• Carolina Chickadee – approximately 10
• Tufted Titmouse – approximately 10
• White-breasted Nuthatch – approximately 10
• Brown Creeper – 1
• Carolina Wren – approximately 10
• Winter Wren – 1
• Golden-crowned Kinglet – 1
• Eastern Bluebird – approximately 50
• American Robin – 11
• Northern Mockingbird – 2
• European Starling – approximately 100
• American Tree Sparrow – 1
• Savannah Sparrow – 6, new high count
• Fox Sparrow – 5, at lest 2 were singing
• Song Sparrow – approximately 50
• White-throated Sparrow – approximately 50
• Dark-eyed Junco – approximately 12
• Northern Cardinal – approximately 10
• Red-winged Blackbird – approximately 50
• Common Grackle – 1
• House Finch – at least 2, heard only
• American Goldfinch – 2

The Stroud Preserve, 20 February 2013

There may have been a lot of birds out today but if there were I couldn’t see them because my head was buried down in my coat trying to keep warm. The wind was challenging today. I’m sure I missed some species that I might have otherwise heard but were drowned out by the wind. Still, I managed to eek out a 35 species including 6 species of sparrows. The best of which was Field Sparrow (I last saw one on 14 January). As best as I can tell, the owl is still incubating her eggs. She does switch positions every once in a while and face the other way. 

I have noticed that White-tailed Deer are getting easier to see. Back during most of January there was hunting going on. I would only catch a glimpse of one or two, which were usually were the hunters were not. My last couple of visits I have seen groups of 6 or 7 deer.

Start time: 9:05

End time: 11:15

Temp: 28-30°

Wind: Very strong from the northwest

Skies: mostly clear

Species Total: 35

• Great Blue Heron – 1
• Black Vulture – approximately 20
• Turkey Vulture – approximately 20
• Canada Goose – approximately 150
• Mallard – 12
• Common Merganser – 2
• Bald Eagle – 1 juv
• Red-tailed Hawk – 8, 5 adults, 3 immature
• Great Horned Owl – 1, usual bird in the usual spot
• Red-bellied Woodpecker – approximately 12
• Downy Woodpecker – approximately 8
• Blue Jay – approximately 5
• American Crow – approximately 10
• Fish Crow – 1
• Carolina Chickadee – approximately 10
• Tufted Titmouse – approximately 10
• White-breasted Nuthatch – approximately 10
• Carolina Wren – 3
• Golden-crowned Kinglet – 2
• Eastern Bluebird – approximately 30
• American Robin – 5
• Northern Mockingbird – 3
• European Starling – approximately 50
• Eastern Towhee – 4
• Chipping Sparrow – 2
• Field Sparrow – 3
• Savannah Sparrow – 5
• Fox Sparrow – 1
• Song Sparrow – approximately 30
• White-throated Sparrow – approximately 50
• Dark-eyed Junco – approximately 25
• Northern Cardinal – approximately 10
• Red-winged Blackbird – approximately 100
• Common Grackle – 1
• American Goldfinch – 1

The Stroud Preserve, 17 February 2013

Today’s walk was crispy as winter as reappeared. Despite the temperature drop, the Red-winged Blackbirds were dispersed and sing as they were on my last visit. Some folks have asked me if this seemed early and might be a sign of global warming. My answer to this is I don’t think so. My impression is that this behavior is right on time as it is usually brought about by the photoperiod and not by temperature.

Many people might not be aware of just how sensitive birds in the temperate regions are to photoperiod. Laboratory experiments have shown that you can induce molt by changing the length of a birds day by as little as fifteen minutes. I also find it interesting that the photoreceptor for birds is in an unexpected place. Unlike mammals, where the photoreceptor can be found where you might expect it, in our eyes, in birds the photoreceptor is buried in their brain near the top of their head. Apparently, enough light penetrates through the feathers, through the skull (which is translucent) and through the brain tissue.

Like so many of my walks on crispy days, it was fairly birdless. I was quite surprised when I sat down to tally the day’s list that I had 35 species, as I would have bet that I had less than thirty. I took an extra walk along Creek Road to see if I could get a few extra species like Great Blue Heron and Savannah Sparrow, which I did. I also got the bird of the day on this last ditch effort which was a female/juv Northern Harrier working the “no hang gliding” hillside. I am still surprised as to just how uncommon this species is in our area. To me it seems like a perfect area for harriers. But then again, what do I know? I’m just a mammal with photoreceptors looking right at you.

Start time: 8:05

End time: 11:00

Temp: 27-28°

Wind: brisk from the north

Skies: clear

Species Total: 35

• Great Blue Heron – 1
• Black Vulture – approximately 10
• Turkey Vulture – approximately 25
• Canada Goose – approximately 200
• American Black Duck – 3
• Mallard – 8
• Northern Harrier – 1, Bird of the day!
• Red-tailed Hawk – 8, 6 adults and 2 juv
• Great Horned Owl – 1, the usual owl in the usual place
• Red-bellied Woodpecker – approximately 6
• Yellow-bellied Sapsucker – 1
• Downy Woodpecker – approximately 12
• Northern Flicker – 1, heard only
• Blue Jay – approximately 10
• American Crow – approximately 100
• Fish Crow – 1
• Carolina Chickadee – approximately 10
• Tufted Titmouse – approximately 10
• White-breasted Nuthatch – approximately 6
• Carolina Wren – approximately 10, heard only
• Golden-crowned Kinglet – 2
• Eastern Bluebird – approximately 30
• American Robin – 1
• Northern Mockingbird – 3
• European Starling – approximately 25
• Eastern Towhee – 2
• Savannah Sparrow – 3
• Song Sparrow – approximately 50
• White-throated Sparrow – approximately 25
• Dark-eyed Junco – approximately 10
• Northern Cardinal – approximately 15
• Red-winged Blackbird – approximately 40
• Common Grackle – approximately 10
• House Finch – 14
• American Goldfinch – 2

The Stroud Preserve, 14 February 2013

The Stroud Preserve, from the parking area looking north at 8:55 AM.

The Stroud Preserve, from the parking area looking north at 11:25 AM. 

As you can see from the photos above, my day started wintery and ended springy. Contrary to conventional wisdom, the bird activity was highest in the first 45 minutes of my walk when it was cold and snowy and quickly trailed off to pretty darn slow with small intervals of birds here and there by the end.

The bird of the day was an immature White-crowned Sparrow (#63 for 2013) that was seen near the Great Horned Owl’s nest. It was in the same field of view as the day’s only Fox Sparrow. The two Chipping Sparrows were seen at the western entrance to the preserve on Lucky Hill Road. Swamp Sparrow was a difficult to find today for some reason. I saw only one in the wet area west of the bridge over Brandywine. I checked all the regular spots for Tree and Savannah Sparrow but none were to be found.

Start time: 8:50

End time: 11:30

Temp: 38-42°

Wind: none

Skies: mostly clear

Species Total: 38

• Great Blue Heron – 1
• Black Vulture – 5, all on the ground in the field along Creek Road.
• Turkey Vulture – approximately 20
• Canada Goose – approximately 200
• American Black Duck – 4
• Mallard – approximately 50
• Red-tailed Hawk – 4, 3 adults, 1 immature
• Mourning Dove – 2
• Great Horned Owl – 1
• Belted Kingfisher – 1
• Red-bellied Woodpecker – approximately 10
• Downy Woodpecker – approximately 6
• Hairy Woodpecker – 2
• Northern Flicker – 1
• Blue Jay – approximately 12
• American Crow – approximately 200
• Fish Crow – 1
• Carolina Chickadee – approximately 10
• Tufted Titmouse – approximately 15
• White-breasted Nuthatch – approximately 10
• Carolina Wren – approximately 10
• Golden-crowned Kinglet – 4
• Eastern Bluebird – approximately 25
• American Robin – 3
• Northern Mockingbird – 3
• European Starling – approximately 100
• Chipping Sparrow – 2
• Fox Sparrow – 1
• Song Sparrow – approximately 50
• Swamp Sparrow – 1
• White-throated Sparrow – approximately 75
• White-crowned Sparrow – 1 immature, Bird of the day!
• Dark-eyed Junco – approximately 25
• Northern Cardinal – approximately 20
• Red-winged Blackbird – approximately 50
• Common Grackle – 1
• House Finch – 4
• American Goldfinch – 3

The Stroud Preserve, 13 February 2013

It is always good to start off the day with a new bird for the preserve. Within a few minutes of heading out this morning a line of duck flew over with long pointy tails! Pintails! Actually it was a good day for waterfowl with 6 species in all. Not bad for an area that doesn’t have a lot of waterfowl habitat. This brings the preserve list up to 166 and my list up to 150. Not bad for my little chunk of Chester County. 

A sign of spring appeared today in that Red-winged Blackbirds have suddenly changed their behavior. In 2013, I have made 20 visits to the Stroud Preserve. I have seen Red-winged Blackbirds on only 7 of those visit, and always in pretty low numbers. I’m sure they were bunched together in a flock somewhere else. Today, however, they were everywhere. It seemed as if every high perch had a male Red-winged Blackbird on it singing (as blackbirds do). The males seemed to be pretty evenly spaced across the landscape at about 50 meters apart. Besides the blackbirds many birds seemed to be quite vociferous today.

The female Great Horned Owl was on her nest as expected. If I had any concerns that the presence of humans would negatively affect the nest I think I need not worry so much about that now. When I arrived at the nest site today I saw that she was being mobbed by about 100 American Crows. They were making and incredible amount of noise. A few of the crows came within a few feet of her. She just sat there looking around as if she were saying “Really? Why do I have to put up with this?”

I had to cut my walk short today as my own brood had a half day of school and were coming home early. But despite my hurried pace and limited amount of time, I tallied 44 species, the most thus far in 2013!

Start time: 8:55

End time: 10:30

Temp: 32-38°

Wind: slight from the north

Skies: overcast

Species Total: 44

• Great Blue Heron – 2
• Black Vulture – 5
• Turkey Vulture – approximately 20
• Snow Goose – 33
• Canada Goose – approximately 150
• American Black Duck – 5
• Mallard – approximately 50
• Northern Pintail – 27, Bird of the day!
• Common Merganser – 2
• Red-tailed Hawk – 4, 2 adults, 2 immature
• Killdeer – 1, heard only
• Ring-billed Gull – 2
• Herring Gull – 1
• Rock Dove – approximately 12
• Mourning Dove – 2
• Great Horned Owl – 1
• Belted Kingfisher – 1
• Red-bellied Woodpecker – approximately 5
• Downy Woodpecker – 2
• Hairy Woodpecker – 1
• Northern Flicker – 1
• Pileated Woodpecker – 1
• Blue Jay – approximately 10
• American Crow – approximately 150
• Fish Crow – 1
• Carolina Chickadee – approximately 5
• Tufted Titmouse – approximately 5
• White-breasted Nuthatch – approximately 5
• Carolina Wren – approximately 10
• Eastern Bluebird – approximately 20
• American Robin – 3
• Northern Mockingbird – 2
• European Starling – approximately 60
• Eastern Towhee – 2, heard only
• American Tree Sparrow – 3
• Song Sparrow – approximately 30
• Swamp Sparrow – 1
• White-throated Sparrow – approximately 15
• Dark-eyed Junco – 2
• Northern Cardinal – approximately 10
• Red-winged Blackbird – approximately 100
• Common Grackle – 3
• House Finch – 6
• American Goldfinch – approximately 10

The Stroud Preserve, 12 February 2013

The down side to a sunny warm (in relative terms) day following a cold snap is really muddy shoes. It was much more difficult to walk around today with slippery mud than in the ice and snow. The photo above is prime habitat for Bluebirds on days like today. They were everywhere. 

The most exciting bird today was Killdeer, a choice that probably leave many folks scratching their heads. Here is why. In all of my visits to the preserve, I have never seen a Killdeer. I have heard them only 5 times prior to today. A few minutes after starting my walk I heard a Killdeer calling. Great! A good day bird. About an hour later, I saw a small bird flying just ahead of a flock of Canada Geese. Much to my surprise it was Killdeer! Still I’ve never seen a Killdeer on the ground in the preserve. Then as I was just getting to my car to leave, I heard Killdeer again. I look up and three are flying overhead. They look as though they are going to fly off and away, then they turn back and land in a wet puddle across Creek Road. Finally, I can now say that I have seen Killdeer in the preserve!

Start time: 9:05

End time: 12:00

Temp: 38-44°

Wind: Gusty from the north

Skies: Clear!

Species Total: 37

• Black Vulture – approximately 25
• Turkey Vulture – approximately 45
• Canada Goose – approximately 150
• Mallard – approximately 85
• Common Merganser – 7
• Sharp-shinned Hawk – 1 adult
• Red-tailed Hawk – approximately 10! 2 immature, 8 adults (5 seen at one time)
• Killdeer – 5! Bird of the day!
• Ring-billed Gull – 3
• Great Horned Owl – 1, on the nest.
• Belted Kingfisher – 1
• Red-bellied Woodpecker – approximately 5
• Yellow-bellied Sapsucker – 1
• Downy Woodpecker – 3
• Northern Flicker – approximately 5
• Blue Jay – approximately 10
• American Crow – approximately 300
• Fish Crow – approximately 15!
• Carolina Chickadee – approximately 10
• Tufted Titmouse – approximately10
• White-breasted Nuthatch – approximately 10
• Carolina Wren – approximately 8
• Eastern Bluebird – approximately 50! Out in force today
• American Robin – 3
• Northern Mockingbird – 3
• European Starling – approximately 50
• American Pipit – approximately 40
• Eastern Towhee – 5, heard only
• Song Sparrow – approximately 10
• Swamp Sparrow – 1
• White-throated Sparrow – approximately 30
• Dark-eyed Junco – approximately 10
• Northern Cardinal – approximately 10
• Red-winged Blackbird – 5
• Common Grackle – 3
• House Finch – 8
• American Goldfinch – 2

The Stroud Preserve, 7 February 2013

It was an average day on the preserve. The bird of the day was a Brown Creeper that I got to watch at pretty close range. It worked the side of a walnut tree probing the cracks and crevices for little bugs. I was close enough to see fairly clearly that it was good at what it does! I saw it turn its head and take a close look at the barks surface, then probe it’s bill into a crack and pull out an insect. A nice skill to have with the temperature is a few degrees below freezing when no insects would be active. 

Brown Creepers have always been a favorite bird of mine and sadly it is not a bird I see around here very often. Back in Washington State it was a common resident on many of my study sites. While it was never one of the species that I studied specifically, I would occasionally catch one in my mist nest. If you have never seen one of these little guys up close you are missing something! Check out photos of one that I caught back in 2003 here.

Start time: 9:30

End time: 12:30

Temp: 27-32°

Wind: none to slight from the east

Skies: overcast

Species Total: 36

• Great Blue Heron – 1
• Black Vulture – approximately 10
• Turkey Vulture – approximately 25
• Canada Goose – approximately 40
• Mallard – 13
• Common Merganser – 3
• Bald Eagle – 3, 2 adults, 1 unknown (brief look in silhouette)
• Sharp-shinned Hawk – 2
• Red-tailed Hawk – 7, 5 adults, 2 immatures
• Great Horned Owl – 1, on the nest as usual
• Belted Kingfisher – 1
• Red-bellied Woodpecker – approximately 8
• Downy Woodpecker – approximately 10
• Hairy Woodpecker – 2
• Northern Flicker – 1, heard only
• Blue Jay – approximately 10
• American Crow – approximately 50
• Fish Crow – 1
• Carolina Chickadee – approximately 15
• Tufted Titmouse – approximately 10
• White-breasted Nuthatch – approximately 10
• Brown Creeper – 1, Bird of the day!
• Carolina Wren – approximately 10
• Eastern Bluebird – approximately 15
• Northern Mockingbird – 3
• European Starling – approximately 25
• Eastern Towhee – 2
• Fox Sparrow – 2
• Song Sparrow – approximately 20
• White-throated Sparrow – approximately 140
• Dark-eyed Junco – approximately 20
• Northern Cardinal – approximately 15
• Common Grackle – 2
• House Finch – 1, heard only
• American Goldfinch – 1, heard only

The Stroud Preserve, 6 February 2013

It was another slow and quiet day at the preserve. Despite the slowness of the dead of winter I do enjoy the quite stillness. I think of this time of year as the pause one takes between a deep breath and a long exhale. I also find the colors of the vegetation to hold an unsurpassed beauty during this pause in the seasons. It is all one subtle shade of gray after the other. As a painter I have always thought it is the grays that you should give your attention to. Without a gray, a vibrant red is just a red. Likewise, the seasons without this pause would be one long pant that would leave you dizzy and light headed.

In contrast to yesterday, total numbers of individuals and species were down. The only bird that I saw today that I didn’t see yesterday was Common Grackle. I also had the place to myself as I saw no one there other than the preserve manager, Fred, who I always enjoy stopping to talk shop with.

Start time: 9:30

End time: 12:30

Temp: 30-34°

Wind: none

Skies: overcast

Species Total: 32

• Great Blue Heron – 5, high count
• Black Vulture – 6
• Turkey Vulture – approximately 20
• Canada Goose – approximately
• American Black Duck – 5, another high count. Bird of the day! While this might be a common place species for most Pennsylvanian birders, I greatly enjoy seeing them after 20 years of their absence living in the Pacific Northwest. 
• Mallard – 37
• Sharp-shinned Hawk – 1 adult
• Red-tailed Hawk – 7, 6 adults and 1 imm
• Great Horned Owl – 1, female on the nest
• Red-bellied Woodpecker – approximately 5
• Downy Woodpecker – approximately 5
• Hairy Woodpecker – approximately 10! Where did all these come from?
• Northern Flicker – 4
• Blue Jay – approximately 10
• American Crow – approximately 125
• Fish Crow – 1
• Carolina Chickadee – approximately 10
• Tufted Titmouse – approximately 10
• White-breasted Nuthatch – approximately 8
• Carolina Wren – 7
• Golden-crowned Kinglet – 3
• Eastern Bluebird – approximately 5, heard only
• Northern Mockingbird – 3
• European Starling – approximately 75
• Eastern Towhee – 2, heard only
• Fox Sparrow – 2, heard only
• Song Sparrow – approximately 20
• White-throated Sparrow – approximately 60
• Dark-eyed Junco – approximately 30
• Northern Cardinal – approximately 15
• Common Grackle – 2
• House Finch – 2

The Stroud Preserve, 5 February 2013

I had another somewhat late start today. Nonetheless, it wasn’t quiet as birdless at it was yesterday. I did end up with a fairly high species count for this time of year with 40 total. The highlight for me today was watching an endless stream of juncos spill out of a tree and onto the ground to feed. What was particularly interesting about this feeding flock, was immediately adjacent to it (about 30 feet away) was a feeding flock of White-throated Sparrows with about the same number of individuals. The juncos feed further out in the open than the white-throats, which stayed closer to the brush. There was very little intermingling going on between the two. The ground was just alive with small critters.

With no wind at all, the preserve was very quiet. I listened hard for distant chipping of winter finches such as crossbills and redpolls, but to no avail. I’ll keep looking!

Start time: 9:45

End time: 12:30

Temp: 27-30°

Wind: none

Skies: overcast

Species Total: 40

• Great Blue Heron – 2
• Black Vulture – 7
• Turkey Vulture – 3
• Canada Goose – approximately 500
• American Black Duck – 2
• Mallard – 2
• Common Merganser – 2
• Bald Eagle – 2 adults
• Sharp-shinned Hawk – 2 immature
• Red-tailed Hawk – 4 adults
• Great Horned Owl – 1, the female on the nest still
• Belted Kingfisher – 1, heard only
• Red-bellied Woodpecker – approximately 10
• Downy Woodpecker – approximately 20
• Hairy Woodpecker – 2
• Northern Flicker – 1, heard only
• Blue Jay – approximately 15
• American Crow – approximately 50
• Fish Crow – 1
• Carolina Chickadee – approximately 20
• Tufted Titmouse – approximately 20
• Red-breasted Nuthatch – 1
• White-breasted Nuthatch – approximately 25, they seemed to be everywhere today.
• Carolina Wren – approximately 10
• Golden-crowned Kinglet – 2
• Eastern Bluebird – approximately 20
• American Robin – 1
• Northern Mockingbird – 1
• European Starling – approximately 50
• Eastern Towhee – 2, heard only
• American Tree Sparrow – 1
• Savannah Sparrow – 2
• Fox Sparrow – 1
• Song Sparrow – approximately 100
• Swamp Sparrow – 2
• White-throated Sparrow – approximately 300
• Dark-eyed Junco – approximately 300. Bird of the day! I watched about 250 spill out of one group of trees in the large field on the northwest side of the preserve. The feed on the ground until a Sharp-shinned Hawk buzzed through. The sharpie came up empty handed. You would think with that many targets it would have ended up with something!
• Northern Cardinal – approximately 20
• House Finch – 2
• American Goldfinch – 2

The Owl

A few birders have asked about the Great Horned Owl at the Stroud Preserve and if the nest site was at a location that could accommodate visitors without disturbing the owl and the nest site. 

The answer is yes, the nest is in an old Red-tailed's nest  high in a group of trees. To actually see the owl you must stand about 250 meters away. You can easily see the owl with you binoculars, but a scope offers some outstanding views. 

The trails around the preserve are heavily utilized by dog walkers and joggers. Or, as is often the case, dog joggers. Birders are one of the smallest user groups for the preserve. I took my family and neighbors out to see the nest this past weekend. It was not the first owl that my kids have seen. Back in Washington State, I took them to see a group of 4 Snowy Owls or "Hedwigs" (Harry Potters mail owl for those of you who have been living in a cave the past 15 years) that were out on Ediz Hook in Port Angeles WA. They were ultimately disappointed because the Snowy Owls were not carrying any mail! Some kids are just hard to impress. 

To get to the nest, park in the parking lot off Creek Road. Walk in on the road that crosses the bridge over the Brandywine River. When the road forks, go to the right towards the barn, following the "Red Trail." Go past the bed for the old farm pond and keep walking (towards the high tension power lines). as you pass the farm pond and look towards the bank of trees just beyond the power lines, you will see the nest (photo above). It stands out like a sore thumb. Walk up to where the "Yellow Trail" goes to the left. Find a good view point on the trail there. 

If you go, enjoy your walk and let me know if you see anything good!

The Stroud Preserve, 4 February 2013

Today was what I am now starting to consider midwinter average. That is to say it was cold and slow. While I my total species count was just about average at 34, the numbers of individuals was very low. It probably didn’t help that I started todays walk when I am usually finishing it up. Even then many species that have been fairly numerous recently, like crows, bluebirds, doves, were absent or nearly so.

Start time: 10:45

End time: 12:30

Temp: 27-28°

Wind: brisk from the west

Skies: partly cloudy

Species Total: 34

• Black Vulture – approximately 15
• Turkey Vulture – approximately 10
• Canada Goose – approximately 300
• Mallard – 1
• Common Merganser – 3
• Sharp-shinned Hawk – 1
• Red-tailed Hawk – 5, 4 adults, 1 immature
• Mourning Dove – 1
• Great Horned Owl – 1
• Red-bellied Woodpecker – approximately 6
• Yellow-bellied Sapsucker – 1, heard only
• Downy Woodpecker – approximately 10
• Hairy Woodpecker – 1
• Northern Flicker – 1
• Blue Jay – approximately 10
• American Crow – approximately 20! Where have they all gone!
• Fish Crow – 1
• Carolina Chickadee – approximately 10
• Tufted Titmouse – approximately 10
• Red-breasted Nuthatch – 1, Bird of the Day! This bird has been a regular all winter at the patch of conifers on the south end of the preserve.
• White-breasted Nuthatch – approximately 8
• Carolina Wren – approximately 10
• American Robin – 1
• Northern Mockingbird – 4
• European Starling – approximately 12
• Eastern Towhee – 1, heard only
• Savannah Sparrow – 2, at the entrance of the parking lot.
• Song Sparrow – approximately 25
• Swamp Sparrow – 2
• White-throated Sparrow – approximately 100
• Dark-eyed Junco – approximately 20
• Northern Cardinal – approximately 10
• House Finch – 2
• American Goldfinch – 2

The Stroud Preserve, 1 February 2013

Today the Stroud Preserve was best described as pretty much an avian desert. It was cold, windy and quiet. Very little was moving about at all. My walk today functioned more as a cardio exercise for me than a bird walk. However, there were a couple of patches of sparrow feeding guilds at kept the walk from being a total bird bust. These are usually dominated by White-throated Sparrows and will have other birds mixed in, including tree birds like , bluebirds, nuthatches, chickadees, and woodpeckers. One of these mixed flocks had about 80% of all the individual birds I saw today. It also had a “herd” of cardinals, 38 to be exact. They were all feeding on the open ground with other sparrows and juncos. It was about evenly split between males and females. In my experience, I rare see that many cardinals in one group.

Start time: 9:15

End time: 11:20

Temp: 28°

Wind: brisk to strong from the northwest

Skies: overcast to start becoming clear by midday

Species Total: 28

• Black Vulture – 4
• Turkey Vulture – approximately 20
• Canada Goose – approximately 250
• Red-tailed Hawk – 1, adult
• Ring-billed Gull – 1
• Great Horned Owl – 1, the now regular female on her nest
• Red-bellied Woodpecker – approximately 5
• Downy Woodpecker – approximately 10
• Northern Flicker – 2
• Blue Jay – approximately 15
• American Crow – approximately 150
• Fish Crow – 3
• Carolina Chickadee – approximately 10
• Tufted Titmouse – approximately 10
• White-breasted Nuthatch – approximately 5
• Carolina Wren – approximately 10
• Eastern Bluebird – approximately 25
• American Robin – 3
• Northern Mockingbird – 2
• European Starling – approximately 30
• Eastern Towhee – 5
• American Tree Sparrow – 3
• Song Sparrow – approximately 35
• White-throated Sparrow – approximately 125
• Dark-eyed Junco – approximately 20
• Northern Cardinal – approximately 50, including 38 in one flock. Bird of the Day!
• House Finch – 4
• American Goldfinch – approximately 10

The Stroud Preserve, 30 January 2013

I had company on my walk today. I met Kelly Nunn in the parking lot. She was visiting from the Kennett Square area. Now that I think about it, this was the first time that anyone has joined me for a full stroll around the place. I had also planned to met another other birder, Larry Lewis, this morning as well. But I didn’t see his group around at the parking lot, so Kelly and I took off instead.

While it was nice to have an increase in birders around the preserve, it would have been nice if more birds showed up. With the unseasonably warm weather that we had today I had high hopes for lots of bird activity. Even though the final species count was on the high end for this time of year, the total number of birds was fairly low.

Still of interest for me is the influx of Fish Crows. Today we counted at least ten in the scattered flock of American Crows. This is strange as I went most of the year prior to this with on a few Fish Crows at all. The Great Horned Owl was still tending to her nest. I am tempted to bring my spotting scope with me on the next visit so I can get a close up and personal look at it.

I did get an email from Larry later in the day. He said that they got to the preserve a little late but did have a nice walk. Their highlight was a Brown Thrasher. They also saw two Wilson’s Snipe and 5 Swamp Sparrows, which we did not see.

Other birds of interest were 2 Mute Swans, 8 Ring-necked Ducks, and 2 Black Ducks in a farm pond on a property adjacent to the preserve along Strasburg Road. The Swans have been there for about a week but the other ducks showed up today.

Start time: 9:00

End time: 11:00

Temp: 47-55°

Wind: slight to brisk from the south

Skies: overcast with fairly low clouds

Species Total: 38

• Great Blue Heron – 2
• Black Vulture – approximately 10
• Turkey Vulture – approximately 35
• Canada Goose – approximately 500
• American Black Duck – 2
• Mallard – approximately 50
• Common Merganser – 9
• Cooper's Hawk – 1 adult
• Red-tailed Hawk – 5, 4 adults and 1 immature
• Ring-billed Gull – approximately 12
• Mourning Dove – 2
• Great Horned Owl – 1, female continues on the nest
• Belted Kingfisher – 2
• Red-bellied Woodpecker – approximately 5
• Downy Woodpecker – approximately 4
• Hairy Woodpecker – 3
• Northern Flicker – 3
• Blue Jay – approximately 20
• American Crow – approximately 250
• Fish Crow – approximately 10! Bird of the day, again. These continue to increase.
• Carolina Chickadee – approximately 10
• Tufted Titmouse – approximately 10
• White-breasted Nuthatch – approximately 8
• Carolina Wren – approximately 12
• Golden-crowned Kinglet – 2
• Eastern Bluebird – approximately 25
• American Robin – approximately 12
• Northern Mockingbird – 2
• European Starling – approximately 50
• Eastern Towhee – 2, heard only
• Song Sparrow – approximately 25
• White-throated Sparrow – approximately 25
• Dark-eyed Junco – approximately 10
• Northern Cardinal – approximately 15
• Red-winged Blackbird – approximately 10
• Common Grackle – 3
• House Finch – approximately 10
• American Goldfinch – approximately 10

The Stroud Preserve, 29 January 2013

What a difference a few days makes. Today it was 43° Less than a week ago it was 12°. The birdlife was more lively as Carolina Wrens, Blue Jays and the likes were more vocal. Bluebirds were back in force. Actually, I don’t think that they ever left. I imagine if I were to check the Bluebird Boxes or other cavities around the preserve during the cold snap I imagine I would have found masses of them huddled up in a blue bunch of fluffy feathers. I do remember seeing a female Bluebird going in and out of a natural cavity in a tree a few weeks ago and wondered it that was an overnight roost for them.

I had a number of highlights on my walk today (in bold on the species list), but for me the best was having a Fish Crow and American Crow sitting near each other in profile where I could (finally) get a good look at the two. I have heard many Fish Crow calls from the preserve but being away from the area for nearly 20 years and knowing how variable crow calls can be I’ve been wondering if I am getting these calls correct. Also, I never hear of any other birders from the area mention that they see Fish Crows.

I heard what I would call a classic Fish Crow call from a small mass of crows in a tree near the Brandywine. I carefully watched until I found the crow that was making the Fish Crow call. I found it sitting just underneath a calling American Crow. The size difference was easy with the Fish Crow noticeably smaller and slimmer than the American Crow.

I’ve always been fond of Fish Crows as it was one of the few nesting birds in my old neighborhood at 5th and Cecil B. Moore in North Philly. We were some distance away form the Delaware River but they certainly liked the urban wasteland there. The only other native nesting bird that I can recall from there was American Kestrel. The photo on the left is a rotten shot using my iPhone. Both crows were in profile and facing the same direction. You can (maybe) make out that the bottom one is smaller. If not, you will have to take my word for it! I think the first thing I will do when I get gainful employment again is get a decent camera for things like this. Nonetheless, it will have to do for now.

Start time: 9:00

End time: 11:45

Temp: 43-45°

Wind: None

Skies: Overcast, light fog

Species Total: 39

• Great Blue Heron – 3
• Black Vulture – 2
• Turkey Vulture – approximately 10
• Canada Goose – approximately 1000. About 750 were in the fields on the northwest side of the preserve.
• American Black Duck – 2, in the old farm pond.
• Mallard – 75, in the old farm pond.
• Bald Eagle – 1 adult
• Sharp-shinned Hawk – 1 adult
• Red-tailed Hawk – 3, 2 adults and 1 immature.
• Wilson's Snipe – 2 just past the bridge over the Brandywine.
• Ring-billed Gull – 6, low enough to provide a certain ID!
• Mourning Dove – 5
• Great Horned Owl – 1, female on the nest.
• Red-bellied Woodpecker – 3
• Downy Woodpecker – 2
• Hairy Woodpecker – 1
• Northern Flicker – 1
• Blue Jay – approximately 20
• American Crow – approximately 250
• Fish Crow – 3, Bird of the Day!
• Carolina Chickadee – 2, low number
• Tufted Titmouse – 2, low number
• White-breasted Nuthatch – 3
• Carolina Wren – approximately 12
• Winter Wren – 1
• Eastern Bluebird – approximately 25
• American Robin – 7
• Northern Mockingbird – 3
• European Starling – approximately 100
• American Tree Sparrow – 1
• Song Sparrow – approximately 20
• Swamp Sparrow – 4
• White-throated Sparrow – approximately 20
• Dark-eyed Junco – 1
• Northern Cardinal – 6
• Red-winged Blackbird – 1
• Common Grackle – 1
• House Finch – 2
• American Goldfinch – approximately 12

The Stroud Preserve, 27 January 2013

I had a pretty late start today and things seemed slow that I thought perhaps I didn’t need to bother with any field notes for the blog, however, there were a couple of interesting things to talk about. Also, as you can see from the photo above, it's just nice to see the place in a different light some times. 

To start with, a couple of birders that I ran into as my walk began flushed up a Wilson’s Snipe, which is always a good bird to see around here. I then showed them where the Great Horned Owls nest was. The female was faithfully sitting on the nest.

Other than that most of the walk was as quite as I have ever seen it here. As I approached the Brandywine I saw a flock of 24 Common Mergansers flying south down stream. As I scanned for more birds on the wing, I noticed a flock of about 50 birds high overhead. Looked and they all appeared to be gulls. As on 18 January, when I observed other large groups of gulls streaming past, these were made up of mostly small gulls and a few larger ones. My assumption is that these are Ring-billed and Herring Gull. Today howerver, they were flying the exact opposite direction as they were a week ago and there seemed be fare fewer Herring Gulls mixed in. They kept streaming past in groups of 20 to 75 birds for the next 20 minutes or so. In all I estimate approximately 1500 gulls passed over with only about 12 or so Herring Gulls.

After it seemed that most of the gulls had flown past, I got into my car and head out of the parking lot. As I pulled up to Creek Road I saw a large raptor flying directly towards me only a few feet above the ground then right as it got the to road, it pulled up and landed on the telephone pole right in front of me! I saw a thing hanging from its feet that looked like the tail of some rodent. At last! A Peregrine Falcon!

Or not. It was without doubt a large falcon, but it was very pale, not anything like the Peregrines around here should look. I thought “is it a Gyr?” But it didn’t look right for that either. The sideburns were to distinct and it had far to slender of a build. Then I thought, perhaps the rodent tail wasn’t a tail after all but jesses instead. I looked. And indeed it was a jess. The photo on the right is poor, but you can make out the jess in it.

I looked at if for another minute or so and then it flew off across the field right to where the falconer was swinging a lure around in large circles on a tether. That was a bit of a relief because it makes my issues with identifying it a little less embarrassing. I think it was some pale race of a Peregrine or a Lanner, or some combination therein. I’ll have to wait a bit longer to get a wild Peregrine (or a Lanner) for my preserve list!

Stat time: 3:15 PM

End time: 5:30

Temp: 32°

Wind: None

Skies: Mostly clear

Species Total: 29

• Canada Goose – approximately 45
• Mallard – 13 all flyovers
• Common Merganser – 24, all flyovers
• Red-tailed Hawk – 1 immature
• Wilson's Snipe – 1
• Ring-billed Gull – approximately 1500! Bird of the day!
• Herring Gull – approximately 12
• Great Horned Owl – 1, on nest
• Red-bellied Woodpecker – 3
• Downy Woodpecker – 5
• Hairy Woodpecker – 1
• Blue Jay – 2
• American Crow – 1
• Carolina Chickadee – 1
• Tufted Titmouse – 2
• White-breasted Nuthatch – 3
• Carolina Wren – 3
• Winter Wren – 1
• Golden-crowned Kinglet – 2
• Eastern Bluebird – 5
• American Robin – approximately 10
• Northern Mockingbird – 2
• European Starling – approximately 30
• Eastern Towhee – 1, heard only
• Song Sparrow –3
• White-throated Sparrow – approximately 10
• Dark-eyed Junco – approximately 10
• Northern Cardinal – approximately 10
• Red-winged Blackbird – 6

The Stroud Preserve, 25 January 2013

Today’s walk, like every other walk this week was cold. However, the wind was not blowing at all, so it was a pretty enjoyable walk. My first impression starting out was that it was going to be a really slow day because the landscape as such a dead silence to it. Nonetheless, it wasn’t that bad. The birds mostly occurred in bunches. I would walk for 5 or 10 minutes and not see very much at all, then all of the sudden the ground would be crawling with sparrows. Most of which were White-throated. The old pond bed was pretty active with sparrows as well.

Last spring I found a pair of Red-tailed Hawks with a nest in a large tree on the north side of the preserve near the high tension power lines. I thought  to myself when I saw “that will probably be were I’ll get a Great Horned Owl. All winter when I walk past it I have checked to see if I could see a Great Horned peeking over the side. Today when I looked up I did indeed see a pair of eyes looking back at me! My guess is that this is a female on eggs. I is kind of hard to think about incubating eggs in these temperatures!

Also was interest today were 6 American Pipits that worked their way through the grass nearly at my feet. Actually, they were about 8 feet away as they were at the edge of the near focus of my binoculars. The foraged as if I were not there.

Stat time: 8:50

End time: 11:10

Temp: 16-18

Wind: none

Skies: overcast

Species Total: 32

• Great Blue Heron – 1
• Black Vulture – 6
• Turkey Vulture – approximately 20
• Canada Goose – approximately 250
• Mallard – 10
• Common Merganser – 6
• Red-tailed Hawk – 4, 3 adults, 1 immature
• Mourning Dove – approximately 12
• Great Horned Owl – 1, Bird of the Day! A new bird for the preserve for my list!
• Red-bellied Woodpecker – 5
• Downy Woodpecker – approximately 12
• Blue Jay – approximately 15
• American Crow – approximately 100
• Carolina Chickadee – 1
• Tufted Titmouse – approximately 12
• White-breasted Nuthatch – approximately 10
• Brown Creeper – 3
• Carolina Wren – 5
• Golden-crowned Kinglet – 1
• Eastern Bluebird – 4
• Northern Mockingbird – 3
• European Starling – approximately 12
• American Pipit – 6
• Eastern Towhee – 1
• American Tree Sparrow – 5
• Song Sparrow – approximately 75
• Swamp Sparrow – 3
• White-throated Sparrow – approximately 350
• Dark-eyed Junco – approximately 20
• Northern Cardinal – approximately 20
• Common Grackle – 2
• American Goldfinch – 12