Clear and cold – that is how the January marsh walk started. Eight participants, well bundled, set out on our first walk of the new year. There was no wind and it warmed, ever so slightly, as the morning progressed. Eighteen species were tallied, none a big surprise, but any bird in winter is a welcome sight or sound!
A Carolina wren, one of two for the day, greeted us at the start with its ‘teakettle teakettle’ song. Six cedar waxwings were sitting high in the trees nearby and the feeders were busy with chickadees and American tree sparrows.
Our lone raptor of the day almost wasn’t. We spotted what we thought was a red-tailed hawk sitting in a tree in the distance, but it was too far to make out any detail. Fortunately, a photo cropped and on a computer screen later proved it WAS a red-tailed hawk.
Twenty-eight blue jays were counted with large flock vocalizing flying around not too far from the hawk.
As we returned to our starting point at the boardwalk, eight white-throated sparrows flew up into the brush from the cellar hole.
Our next walk is scheduled for Saturday, February 15, at 8 a.m. The walk will be held in conjunction with the Great Backyard Bird Count which starts on Friday, February 14.