Winter has not quite closed in at West Rutland Marsh. The leaves are gone and there are hints of ice on the water, but there is no snow on the ground yet.
With one pair of eyes and only a chip note here and there as a clue, perhaps more observers would have detected more birds. Nineteen species were noted by one observer in this pandemic world. This compares with 15 species in December 2019. Our December average is 19.
Two of our winter visitors were observed: a flock of common redpolls flying over and three American tree sparrows lurking in the shrubs.
Four woodpecker species were seen including two red-bellied woodpeckers. Four red-breasted nuthatches, a species being seen in Vermont in higher numbers for the past few months, were heard along Whipple Hollow Road.
Black-capped chickadee numbers were high (36) while tufted titmouse numbers were low (1).
Several ravens were heard during the walk and blue jays were everywhere.