Seventeen participants joined Rutland County Audubon for our monthly walk around West Rutland Marsh, a glorious morning on June 22. While the weather, sunny with a light breeze, couldn’t have been to blame, we had one of our lowest number of species for June - 52. This compares to 61 species one year ago and our June average of 60.
However, there was still plenty to see with nesting season in full swing. A downy woodpecker was feeding a youngster. Two eastern kingbirds were bringing food to a nest. And a pair of yellow-bellied sapsuckers took turns bringing bugs to a nest hole in a poplar where a noisy brood could be heard.
Eastern Kingbird with nest on leftWe observed 18 veeries, most of them singing, and saw one carrying food for young. Also carrying food were common yellowthroat and yellow warbler.
The swamp sparrows and marsh wrens were still pretty vocal while some of the flycatchers have gone silent. Fortunately, some sang so we could identify both alder and willow flycatchers. The quiet ones, however, went on our list as alder/willow flycatcher (or Traill’s flycatcher as these two were once considered one species).
Yellow-bellied SapsuckerNumerous black-and-white warblers were heard singing along the route, mostly along Whipple Hollow Road and lots of American redstarts were observed here and there. Overall, warbler activities, except for the expected ones in the marsh, were down. However, a Canada warbler was heard in its usual spot along Whipple Hollow Road.
The morning ended with a belted kingfisher carrying a fish across the marsh and into the woods, possibly to a nest hole in a bank nearby.
Our next walk is scheduled for Thursday, July 18, 7 a.m.