Deck birding at the Aerie.

I did a stationary bird count off the deck of the Aerie this morning. Starting at 7 AM and listing all the species I could see or identify by ear until 10 AM, I came up with 24 different species. I did not count individual birds since there’s a good probability that I would see the same bird more than once as it came to the feeders.

I will say there were many, many blue jays and rose-breasted grosbeaks hanging around. Between 8 and 12 blue jays swept in like Viking raiders, terrorizing all the other birds, pillaging the feeders for what they wanted and then disappearing into the woods again. They did this over and over.

While the rose-breasted grosbeaks were a little more dignified in behavior, they too swept in as a bunch. There were 6 or 7 males in their jaunty black and white with red triangle around their neck like a bandana or like a flashy ascot. The females looked very much more subdued in their camouflaged coat of streaked browns and tan. To look at them, you’d hardly think them related if not for the overall similarity in body shape. While most activity was at the sunflower dispensers or on the ground beneath the feeders, I watched one female rose-breasted grosbeak simply dig into the suet feeder and truly pig out on the greasy goodness. She held several downy woodpeckers at bay for a good 10-15 minutes until she had her fill and flew off.

Here's the full list of bird species seen/heard this morning:

Location: Aerie
Observation date: 5/10/08
Notes: Cold, damp, overcast morning following a light rain. Temperatures in the low to mid 40s.
Number of species: 24

Canada Goose X
Mourning Dove X
Ruby-throated Hummingbird X
Downy Woodpecker X
Hairy Woodpecker X
Blue Jay X
American Crow X
Black-capped Chickadee X
Tufted Titmouse X
White-breasted Nuthatch X
Wood Thrush X
American Robin X
Black-throated Green Warbler X
Eastern Towhee X
Chipping Sparrow X
Dark-eyed Junco (Slate-colored) X
Northern Cardinal X
Rose-breasted Grosbeak X
Red-winged Blackbird X
Common Grackle X
Brown-headed Cowbird X
Purple Finch X
American Goldfinch X
Evening Grosbeak X

This report was generated automatically by eBird v2(http://ebird.org)