Photo: Hairy woodpecker by Lia Bocchario
Hello everyone,
Eight hardy birders braved the elements and were rewarded for their efforts. Bad weather does mean good birding!
The Cedar Waxwing was no longer on the nest so the chicks must have fledged in the last week. We saw a Chipping Sparrow and a House Finch feeding their young. A few Spotted Sandpipers took to the air and entertained us with our own personal Air and Water Show – much nicer than the Blue Angels.
We could tell that fall has arrived because the confusing fall warblers are arriving too. And, there were no Barn Swallows flying around the north bridge. The Chimney Swifts and Purple Martins are still here but we know they’ll also be leaving soon.
BIRDERS: Lucy, Cheryl, Mike, Marian, Jennie, Lee, Mark, Steve
TIME: 8:00am to 11:0am
WEATHER: light rain, then clear, then light rain again.
Compiler: Cheryl
Canada Goose Number observed: 80
Wood Duck Number observed: 11
Mallard Number observed: 4
Chimney Swift Number observed: 16
Ruby-throated Hummingbird Number observed: 8
Spotted Sandpiper Number observed: 2
Ring-billed Gull Number observed: 3
Herring Gull Number observed: 1
Double-crested Cormorant Number observed: 1
Great Blue Heron Number observed: 6
Green Heron Number observed: 5
Black-crowned Night-Heron Number observed: 5
Downy Woodpecker Number observed: 1
Northern Flicker Number observed: 1
Eastern Phoebe Number observed: 1
Eastern Kingbird Number observed: 6
Warbling Vireo Number observed: 1
American Crow Number observed: 3
Black-capped Chickadee Number observed: 2
Purple Martin Number observed: 17
Blue-gray Gnatcatcher Number observed: 6
House Wren Number observed: 3
Gray Catbird Number observed: 4
American Robin Number observed: 17
Cedar Waxwing Number observed: 1
House Finch Number observed: 2
American Goldfinch Number observed: 21
Chipping Sparrow Number observed: 3
Song Sparrow Number observed: 2
Baltimore Oriole Number observed: 4
Nashville Warbler Number observed: 1
American Redstart Number observed: 1
Magnolia Warbler Number observed: 1
Northern Cardinal Number observed: 2
Indigo Bunting Number observed: 2
If you’d like more information about a bird, check out the All About Birds ID guide:
https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/
Corrections, additions and comments are welcome.
Recordings are not used to attract birds.
The Walks are free and open to one and all. They are held year-round. Newcomers are warmly welcomed.
Saturday morning walks: Start at 8:00 a.m. and cover a distance of two miles. Birders walk from the meeting spot counterclockwise onto Wooded Island. Exiting Wooded Island at the south end, the birders walk along the soccer field and enter the south end of Bobolink Meadow. The Meadow’s path leads to the Music Bridge. After crossing the Music Bridge birders walk through the parking lot and around the Columbia Basin (North Lagoon) and return to our meeting spot. In late fall, winter and early spring, the birders check for birds on the lakefront at the Outer Harbor near LaRabida Hospital and the Inner Harbor after the Wooded Island walk.
Meeting Spot: Birders meet on the west shore of the Columbia Basin (North Lagoon). Park on Stony Island Avenue near 59th Street, walk east across the parkland area, then cross Cornell Drive to reach the spot.
Good birding everyone,
Jennie