Fox Sparrows!
Millions of songbirds...
There was moderate migration through the Midwest showing up on NexRad last night, and then this morning – a tremendous increase in Dark-eyed Juncos and Fox Sparrows. They're on their way back to their summer home. There must have been close to a hundred juncos singing and chattering and several Fox Sparrows kick-scratching beneath our spruce trees, along with a Song Sparrow and lingering American Tree Sparrows.
Fox Sparrow
Backyard birds 03/25/07:
Cooper's Hawk
American Woodcock
Mourning Dove
Blue Jay
American Crow
Downy Woodpecker
Hairy Woodpecker
Red-bellied Woodpecker
Black-capped Chickadee
White-breasted Nuthatch
American Robin
Eastern Bluebird
American Tree Sparrow
Song Sparrow
Fox Sparrow
Dark-eyed Junco
Northern Cardinal
Red-winged Blackbird
Common Grackle
House Finch
American Goldfinch
House Sparrow
While photographing sparrows in our backyard in the afternoon, a Cooper's Hawk zipped into one of the spruce trees and scattered all the songbirds to cover. I waited...and waited for the Cooper's Hawk to do something. After about 15 minutes I wasn't even sure it was still there, so I walked over to the spruce and got within 20 feet and saw the Cooper's perched. All of a sudden another bird flushed from beneath the tree - it was an American Woodcock (new yard bird) and flew underneath the trees in our neighbor's yard. I ran inside, got Becky and we scanned for it with our binoculars beneath our neighbor's trees. Somehow the bird got behind us and flew to our other neighbor's yard...unless there's more than one. I guess we'll find out this evening!
The Cooper's Hawk returned later in the day.
Earlier in the morning before the wind picked up, Becky and I went for a bike ride on country roads north of Waunakee and observed nearly 40 bird species, including:
Great Blue Heron
Northern Harrier
Great Horned Owl (on nest)
Yellow-bellied Sapsucker
Eastern Phoebe
Horned Lark
Tufted Titmouse
Brown Creeper
Eastern Bluebird
American Tree Sparrow (large flocks)
Savannah Sparrow
Fox Sparrow
Fox Sparrow and Cooper's Hawk images © 2007 Mike McDowell
posted by Mike McDowell @ 4:03 PM
5 comments
5 Comments:
Southeast Michigan didn't share this love, as is evident by your map. We've got thunderstorms and record-breaking temps forecast today...we'll see what shows up!
I was wondering what kind of sparrow that was. We have one that keeps visiting under our tree. He's really fat.
And as much as I love the Cooper's Hawks, I was traumatized by one eating one of my little junco friends right outside my back door.
Holy mackerel! You see more species in a day than I've seen in a month!
I've only seen one fox sparrow so far, a couple of weeks ago, but I'll keep watching!
Hi, I'm writing from Cushing, Wi.
This morning I awoke to a curious little sparrow (fox sparrow) all over under our pines & birdfeeders.
There must have been 75 of them!
It sounded like a bird sancuary!
Wow, what a treat, this is the first year I've seen them.
I live in Berlin,NH. Between my mother and I we have 4 bird feeders one of the feeders has suet holders on the ends, 2 finch socks and 2 hummingbird feeders and 1 Oriole feeder. No Orioles yet but, Ruby throated hummingbirds appreciate all 3 necter feeders also 2 suet cakes. Our woodpecker love the suet. We get birds like.Mourning Doves, Hairy & Downy Woodpecker, Blue Jays, Brown Heade cowbird, Rusty Blackbird, European Starling,White-Breasted Nuthatcher, Black-capped Chickadee, Tufted Titmouse, Dark-eyed Junco,Northern Cardinal, House Sparrow, Song sparrow,White-throated sparrow, American tree sparrow, Rose breasted Grosbeak, American Goldfinch, Pine Grosbeak, Evening Grosbeak,Purple Finch, House Finch. Last but not least the Indigo Bunting which is gorgeous. We are up in the mountains. Every year it seems we get different species. So you can say I have lots of pictures of our beautiful friends.
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