Chirps and Cheeps

A Photo Journal of My Birding Adventures & Observations

My birding blog site


  Season Firsts at Birdsong

Published: March 30, 2013
Tags: Parks and Preserves, Golden-crowned Kinglet, Pileated Woodpecker, Tree Swallow, Northern Cardinal, Mallard, Song Sparrow

After spending several, long hours in the kitchen preparing some of our favorite Easter dishes, I headed over to Birdsong for a quick hike and some fresh air. The late afternoon sun was still warm and this hike was much more pleasant than last weekend's hike when I found the Hermit Thrush.

There were no lifers for me today, but I DID see a couple of firsts of the season: a Golden-crowned Kinglet and 2 Tree Swallows.  The Tree Swallows were very high in the air - and it took a couple of fly-overs and sightings for me to finally identify them.  I guess it's been too long - and how soon I forget!

I stopped and enjoyed a Song Sparrow and soon tuned-in to the drumming of a woodpecker. It seemed deeper than usual and I wondered if it could be a Pileated. Sure enough, as I was leaving the park, I saw a female Pileated working hard up in a tree. The photo below shows all the excavation she's doing. Maybe she'll nest there this spring. I'll be sure to check back for babies in a few weeks!

A nesting Pileated, Tree Swallows, and a Golden-crowned Kinglet: spring must be on its way!

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Pileated Woodpecker (female)

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Pileated Woodpecker (female)

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Pileated Woodpecker (female)

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Check out all the work she's been doing at the top right of the photo.

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This guy, along with 3 other males, were singing their hearts out!

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American Robin - because they're so common, sometimes I overlook these guys, but they really are beautiful singers.

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A Tree Swallow - my first of the year

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Red-winged Blackbird

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Downy Woodpecker (male)

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Two male Mallards



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