Haynes' Fall Bird Walk sponsored by the Newton Conservators and the Friends of Nahanton Park

At 7:30 a.m., it was cloudy and 51 degrees - a good temperature to explore the park.

In the lower gardens, a few members of the group saw a blue-headed vireo which is always exciting. Unfortunately, I missed it. As we walked down the rows between the gardens, which are more floriferous than vegetable oriented at this point in the season, we saw some cowbirds, a savannah sparrow, swamp sparrows and chippers. Finally, I saw my first clay-colored sparrow which was absolutely beautiful! We saw a few yellow-rumps flitting here and there amongst the grasses and a ruby-crowned kinglet in the large, overgrown crabapple to the left of most of the plots. A red-tailed hawk was seen as well as some cedar waxwings. White-throated sparrows were present as well as some catbirds, song sparrows, chippers, blue jays, catbirds and goldfinches. A small flock of Canada geese flew overhead.

In the upper gardens. Hayes told us of a Saffron finch he had seen the previous weekend. It's not a bird anyone would ordinarily see here, as it is native to South America. What a spectacular bird! I hope it finds its way somewhere safe.

So, we didn't see the Saffron, but we did see some nuthatches, a phoebe, cardinals, chickadees, song sparrows, goodies, downies, jays and a flicker  - our normal fare - especially for this time of year.