I experienced a mini fall-out this morning at my place near Hanshaw
and Freese Roads.
I do a 30-minute point count in the middle of the woods beside my
house and was out in the cold windy conditions at 7:30am thinking the weather
(and shift in winds overnight) might have grounded some birds. Most of the
count period was relatively quiet although I got to watch a female
Yellow-bellied Sapsucker come out of the nest cavity she and her mate had taken
turns excavating, and watched two Blue Jays exchange incubation duties on a
nest they have in a White Pine.
Bird activity seemed to pick up a little by the end of the 30
minutes, and I was noticing small passerines passing in singles against the
wind right at tree top level. Not many, buy maybe 7-8 in the last 10 minutes
of my count. At 8am, I ended my count, and walked back toward my house. My
path takes me through a very small patch of brushy habitat between the woods
and my yard. As I entered that patch at 8:05, I heard a Common Yellowthroat
sing and stopped to try to find it. It was then that I noticed a wave of small
birds passing from the woods across Hanshaw to this little patch. I stood in
one place and recorded this list of migrant birds…
Common Yellowthroat, 1 male
Black-and-white Warbler, 1 male
Chestnut-sided Warbler, 3
Blue-headed Vireo, 1
Yellow-rumped Warbler, 2 males
Eastern Kingbird, 3
Black-throated Green Warbler, 1 female, 2 males
Black-throated Blue Warbler, 1 female
Rose-breasted Grosbeak, 2 males, 2 females
Gray Catbird
Nashville Warbler, 3 chasing each other
Then at 8:22, the spigot turned off, and it was over. The birds had moved
on and all was quiet. Goes to show how things can change in a matter of
minutes. Still, what joy to see and hear (some were singing and/or calling)
this burst of bird activity. Added fun was seeing the local female Pileated
Woodpecker at my suet feeder in the backyard.
Good birding
Jody Enck
President, Cayuga Bird Club
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