Field Journal 4
3/10/2023
Start: 2:43 PM
End: 4:02 PM
Location: Wheeler Nature Park Shelburne, Vermont
Temperature: 34 degrees
Weather: Party cloudy, windy
Habitat: Open field, covered in snow, patches of trees and brush running between road and trail. Farmlands on either side of property. Dog park located nearby, lots of dog activity
For this weeks assignment, I went to the Wheeler Nature Park on Dorset Street. I work further down on Dorset street and had seen this park on the map, as well as the dog park situated at the start of the trail heads, but never explored it. I arrived at 2:40 PM and could hear bird calls and dogs barking right off the bat. I started on the trail and immediately spotted 2 American Crows soaring around some tall trees. A 3rd crow was perched in the trees, calling to the others it seemed. I followed the trail as it veered to the right and away from the trees. I was slightly disappointed as I wanted to get closer to all the bird song I was hearing! But as I continued to walk into the open field I started to hear some other birds in the distance, seemingly coming from the right of the open field, where there was another chunk of forest.
I continued along the trail for a bit longer and decided to turn left and cut through the field a bit to get to the corridor of trees I had seen the crows in before. Around 3pm I made it to the path along the trees, and was so surprised to see so much activity! I heard lots of mixed bird song and calls, mainly that of the American Robin. The right of the path was lined by a wall of dense brush and trees. There was little foliage left on the live trees and dead trees and fallen logs littered the ground. As I walked, I counted 5 American Robins in the trees, hopping from branch to branch, chirping, and 4 American Robins foraging on the ground where the snow had melted. I was able to get a good look using my binoculars and noticed that their chests were much more yellow than I thought they would be! Compared to the coppery-brown feathers I’m used to seeing, their plumage was definitely more yellow-orange than red-orange, perhaps these robins were immature males or females. I continued along the path and as I moved further down, I counted 14 American Robins all on the ground foraging! As I moved closer they flew away/ moved down, but didn’t seem too disturbed by my presence.
Around 3:30 PM, I noticed a smaller bird with much quicker dips in flight fly across the path. Shortly after, I began hearing different bird chatter than that of the Robins. I observed the brush that the little bird flew to and saw 3 Black-capped Chickadees perched together. As I approached, their chatter got much louder and they began flying around more actively. Definitely Black-capped Chickadees! Around 3:45PM I headed back as I had to go to work. I followed the path beside the trees the entire way back and I continued to see Robins in the brush, and lots of squirrels too! At one point, I began to hear pecking on a tree above me, and sure enough in a taller tree I saw a black and white striped bird. As it hopped around the diameter of the main tree trunk, I saw a splotch of bright red by the bird's eyebrow. I identified this bird as a Hairy Woodpecker, its eye catching plumage and its mainly its Robin-like size led me to this. As I approached the beginning of the trail, I saw 2 crows in the sky, I wondered if they were the same ones I had seen before! I was so pleasantly surprised by the level of bird activity I had observed here! And dog activity as well! I noticed as I returned to the trailhead that I was walking along the Goldenrod trail. I definitely plan on returning to this location and hopefully as the weather gets warmer I can see some Goldenrods!
Comentarios
Añade un comentario