Saturday Morning Briding

Yesterday was one of those steps back to early spring and maybe winter. It only reached 42 degrees beneath cloudy and occasionally spitting skies. (We actually had some hail late in the afternoon.) I was forced to go around and turn the heat back on although I'm not sure it ever did actually kick on overnight. It did get down to 38 degrees at 6 AM when I got out of bed.

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Terry went to New Jersey again this weekend. This time it was for a sewing thing being held south of Trenton. She reports it was pretty nice there and the trees were all in leaf.

Here, the maples and poplars are in bloom and, down in the valley anyway, the shad bush (also know as service berry) have opened their white flowers.

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I went out on a bird walk over at Hills Creek State Park this morning. We had 11 people show up and, even it started overcast and chilly, things warmed up and cleared up nicely. The adverse weather may have actually helped us out a bit. There are still numerous water fowl on the lake and an abundance of yellow-rumped warblers flitted about in the trees. Over all, I counted 36 species on our three-plus hour walk around the lake. Here's my list:

Location: Hills Creek SP
Observation date: 4/30/11
Notes: The day started chilly (40 degrees) with misting rain and overcast skies. Cleared and warmed to 52 degrees and bright sunshine by 10 AM.
Tons of yellow-rumped warblers in the newly flowering trees. Dozens of buffleheads on lake.
Number of species: 36

Canada Goose X
Mallard X
Ring-necked Duck X
Bufflehead X
Common Merganser X
Ruddy Duck X
Double-crested Cormorant X
Great Blue Heron X
Osprey X
Bald Eagle X
American Coot X
Mourning Dove X
Belted Kingfisher X
Northern Flicker (Yellow-shafted) X
Eastern Phoebe X
Blue Jay X
American Crow X
Tree Swallow X
Cliff Swallow X
Black-capped Chickadee X
Tufted Titmouse X
Red-breasted Nuthatch X
Brown Creeper X
Eastern Bluebird X
American Robin X
European Starling X
Yellow Warbler X
Yellow-rumped Warbler X
Common Yellowthroat X
Eastern Towhee X
Chipping Sparrow X
Song Sparrow X
Dark-eyed Junco X
Northern Cardinal X
Red-winged Blackbird X
Common Grackle X

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

Gary tries to get an actual count of each species while I tend to merely run a check-list of species. I think Gary got a bit overwhelmed by the number of buffleheads on the lake and especially the number of yellow-rumps in the trees.

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I actually saw a few other species on my way to and from Hills Creek SP. There was a ruffed grouse along the side of the road. A brown thrasher dove across the road in front of me. The ubiquitous rock pigeons circled the barn yards at several farms along the way. A pair of wood duck on a small beaver pond.

And then there was the turkey one successful hunter had slung over his shoulder as he walked into the sporting goods store in Mansfield. (Today was opening day. I saw several vehicles parked along the side of the road, but only that one guy with a nice big tom.)

On my way down to Route 6 from the Aerie, I had to stop for a red fox in the road. And then, coming home, I spotted five deer in the hay field of one farm and, closer to home, a white squirrel ran into the woods from the road's edge.