There was a considerable amount of flycatching going on in our Wetlands on Wednesday. Besides the local Eastern Phoebes and winter resident Yellow-rumped Warblers (butter butts) sallying forth from their willow branch perches to capture winged insects over the Wetlands’ water, two Northern Rough-winged Swallows showed up. They are aerial specialist, only perching to rest on occasion. Of the six swallow species you’re likely to see in our area, the Northern Rough-winged Swallow is the one that I’ve most oftenRead more
Posts tagged: #Barn Swallow
Two Swallows
Over the past few weeks we’ve had two bird species show up that I was happy to see, both swallows. The first, a family of Northern Rough-winged Swallows spent a little over a week practicing the art of catching flying insects over our Wetlands. There were 6 – 7 birds in the group, two adults and five or six juveniles. I’ve seen family groups here in previous summers, but typically only one or two juvenile birds. It was nice toRead more
Mergs depart, Early Arrivals, and the Dreaded Cowbirds
I hadn’t seen a Hooded Merganser in the Wetlands since March. On the clear, cool morning of the 10th, there was a lone female swimming circles in the open water of the Wetlands. By mid-morning the bird took flight, circled the Wetlands once and headed off in a northwesterly direction. Will the mergansers return? My records suggest not. The third week in April (now) is four weeks later than these birds were observed last year. A buteo soaring across theRead more