Time to Chat

The highlight this beautiful morning was a Yellow-breasted Chat, in the tree screen between the soccer field and the pond. There was also a Common Yellowthroat, a Black-and-white Warbler, and (along Florrie's Path) a Veerie.

Fall warblers in August

I guess fall is here. This afternoon I found this Blackburnian Warbler to go along with Suzette's Canada Warbler from a few days ago. It was high in the trees near the JCC, along with some Chickadees. Hummers are still around, but the Catbird activity seems down. Also of interest was a rare sighting of a Horned House Finch, at right.

Mystery Bird?

Goldfinch

Back from vacation and anxious to get to the park before it got too hot. It was 67 degrees and sunny.

As I drove in to the park at the Winchester St. entrance, I was greeted by 3 turkeys on parade, aiming to cross the street to get to the other side! The fire house is empty and all equipment and personnel have been moved to the new building.

Common Yellow-throat Female

In the lower gardens were tons of robins, many of them enjoying the puddles created by last nights rain. A family of goldfinches was having a great time foraging for seeds in the bright magenta cosmos. There were hummers, a family of flickers, mourning doves, catbirds and house wrens. A downy woodpecker was hard at work removing seeds from a sunflower head. Song sparrow families were flitting about with their little tail-less young. A bright red cardinal perched on a garden fence and posed.

Mystery bird?? Had white eye ring.

As I headed up the path to the upper gardens a couple of common yellowthroats feeding in the meadow flew to the mulberry tree and were willing to be photographed which was quite surprising. I also encountered what I thought was a common yellow-throat at first, but it's belly was a brilliant yellow and the gray on it's back darker. It also had an eye ring, but couldn't get a good look at it. I have a rather poor picture below but if anyone can help me identify it, that would be much appreciated.

Blue-gray Gnatcatcher

Chimney swifts flew high in the sky. Jays called from the woods. A family of chipping sparrows foraged on the ground near the dumping area where it now says "No Dumping"! There were more robins, hummers, downies, chickadees and catbirds. I heard a warbling vireo singing, but couldn't find it. Heard a funny little noise and caught this blue-gray gnatcatcher in the little willow tree near the beehives. It was solo which surprised me. The Concord grapes at the back of the gardens are turning their luscious deep blue/purple.

A nuthatch was making a racket as I cut through the woods to the soccer field area. The pond is all mud and grass and didn't see anything interesting there save for a bright male oriole and a couple of grackles.

Lots of people getting ready to canoe or kayak today. With such a hot forecast, being on the water is one of the best places to be!

Hummer fever and a Blue Winged Warbler

Hummingbird

I wanted to get to the park before I went on vacation. It's been a while. Not sure where the time has gone...

It was sunny and clear and pretty quiet. The tree swallows are done breeding and most have left which is also true of the yellow warblers, although a few remain. The meadow has some coneflowers and Queen Anne's lace in bloom. Very pretty.

The gardeners won't be happy, but several bunnies lined the path to the lower gardens and they hurried away as I approached. There were blue jays, robins, goldfinches and song sparrows. Then I was greeted by approximately three hummingbirds - a male, female and young one. I watched them for ages feeding on the sweet pea nectar shown in the photo above. I will never get over the magic of seeing hummingbirds, even though I see them almost everyday at my feeder for the summer. They are the most amazing creatures.

Common Yellow-throat Male

In the upper garden I saw another favorite (oh, who am I kidding, they're all my favorites) - a
common yellowthroat male. There's something about his black superhero mask and coloring that I find beautiful, but sort of comical at the same time. There were more hummers, robins, a family of house finches and a family of house wrens begging mom and dad for food.

Down by the soccer field were baby catbirds and parents eating bright red berries, robins, downies, 2 tree swallows, goldfinches, a pee wee and a few yellow warblers singing. The highlight was a brief sighting of a blue winged warbler. It's been quite a while since I have seen one.

The pond is dried up and couldn't even find a sandpiper. The river was also very low and only saw a song sparrow and a cardinal.

"Solitary"?

Nahanton Park was very pretty this morning! It was hard to drag myself away....

This Blue-gray Gnatcatcher was working a cherry tree near the lower gardens.

There were at least four Ruby-throated Hummingbirds around the back of the upper garden, including this cooperative male.

The Nahanton pond is on of the best places in eastern Massachusetts for Solitary Sandpipers. Here's one of four that were there this morning. A couple of them made repeated graceful loops around the pond, alighting briefly and taking flight again.

This Silver-spotted Skipper was dining on a Queen Anne's Lace in the upper field.

Owls and Eclipses

I walked through Nahanton Park early this morning, for the first time since the end of May. Quite a bit of activity! I think a number of species stage here in post-breeding dispersal. There were a lot of Common Yellowthroats, Yellow-shafted Flickers, and Black-capped Chicadees. On the river there was a row of eleven Wood Ducks, in eclipse plumage.

And a hundred yards into the forest from the parking lot off Winchester St, a ruckus of Blue Jays led me to this Great Horned Owl.

Here's a complete list. (Sorry for the Latin, as usual.)

Wood Duck (Aix sponsa)  11     lined up on the far side of the river. Eclipse plumage.
Double-crested Cormorant (Phalacrocorax auritus)  1
Herring Gull (Larus argentatus)  5
Great Horned Owl (Bubo virginianus)  1     
Chimney Swift (Chaetura pelagica)  2
Red-bellied Woodpecker (Melanerpes carolinus)  1
Downy Woodpecker (Picoides pubescens)  5
Northern Flicker (Colaptes auratus)  16     
Eastern Kingbird (Tyrannus tyrannus)  1
Warbling Vireo (Vireo gilvus)  1
Red-eyed Vireo (Vireo olivaceus)  2
Blue Jay (Cyanocitta cristata)  4     incl juv
American Crow (Corvus brachyrhynchos)  2
Tree Swallow (Tachycineta bicolor)  10
Barn Swallow (Hirundo rustica)  5     breeding under the bridge
Black-capped Chickadee (Poecile atricapillus)  14
Tufted Titmouse (Baeolophus bicolor)  2
White-breasted Nuthatch (Sitta carolinensis)  6     incl juv
House Wren (Troglodytes aedon)  4
American Robin (Turdus migratorius)  35
Gray Catbird (Dumetella carolinensis)  16
Cedar Waxwing (Bombycilla cedrorum)  1
Common Yellowthroat (Geothlypis trichas)  5
Yellow Warbler (Setophaga petechia)  6
Song Sparrow (Melospiza melodia)  12
Northern Cardinal (Cardinalis cardinalis)  5
Common Grackle (Quiscalus quiscula)  1
Brown-headed Cowbird (Molothrus ater)  1
House Finch (Haemorhous mexicanus)  4
American Goldfinch (Spinus tristis)  8

Rose-breasted Grosbeak

Rose-breasted Grosbeak

It was 65 degrees at 7:14 a.m. and partly cloudy.

Blooming in the meadow were yellow coreposis, white oxeye daisies, penstemon, fleabane, red clover and yarrow.

As I entered the lower gardens via the path from the parking lot, I got dive-bombed by a tree swallow who felt like I was a little too close to her nest box! There were lots of robins, a couple of male downy woodpeckers, yellow warbler, catbirds, red-winged blackbirds, orioles, cardinals, flickers and song sparrows. A seagull flew overhead.

On the way to the upper gardens, the white mulberry tree was fruiting. There were many of the same birds as the lower, but also included a family of house wrens, an Eastern phoebe and this beautiful fellow that I finally saw after listening to his song for quite a while. There he was in all his glorious splendor!

The soccer field/river area had a warbling vireo (found the nest), yellow warblers, a pee wee calling from the woods and cowbirds.