andrewzilka1's Journal

May 28th, 2021
Start Time- 7:20
End Time- 12:00
Weather- Cloudy, 49 degrees, Winds light and Variable
Habitat- Mixed Deciduous and coniferous forest, Deciduous forest, power line with mixed forest edges

I Began birding at the end of the Notch Brook Road in Stowe Vermont. From the end of the road I took one of the cross country ski trails and began climbing through a mostly deciduous forest. Immediately I heard red-eyed Vireos, Common Yellow throat and a Red-breasted Nuthatch who must have been in a coniferous stand nearby. I also Saw American Robins and heard Blue Jays. As I ascended I came to the base area for the cross country center which provided a field habitat next to mixed deciduous and Coniferous forest. Connected the the field was a power line that ran up the gradient of the hill. It was on this edge near the power line that I was most succesful sighting and hearing many birds such as Black-and-white warbler, Ovenbirds, Chestnut-sided Warbler, Black-throated Green Warbler, Black-throated Blue Warbler and White-throated Sparrow. One of the chestnut-sided warblers that I heard I was able to spish very close to me. Its chestnut mark ran the entire length of its body and it had very vibrant colors. When I tried to spish a White-throated Sparrow I scared it off. I walked further up the power line and found an area with both Black-throated warbler species next to each other. When I returned to where the White-throated Sparrow was I again heard it sing and this time used a recording on my phone to entice it out of cover, its reaction was exciting! It charged out of the mixed forest and nearly hit me in the head. I continued to play the recording and it responded and flew very close to me investigating. Soon two more White-throated Sparrows arrived and I was able to be very close to them drawing them in with the recorded song. I repeated the same process with a Black-throated-Blue Warbler and got an extremely close encounter with that bird as well landing about five feet from me.

May 27th, 2021
Start Time: 6:55
End Time: 12:00
Weather: 50 degrees Fahrenheit, Partly cloudy, Winds 15 mph gusting to 20
Habitat: Deciduous floodplain forest, Riparian forest, Mudflats and emergent marsh vegetation, thick hemlock near the parking lot

A chilly morning for birding on the winooski and Lake Champlain, strong winds moved the trees and created difficult sound recording conditions. I began by walking down the anglers path next to the river with the floodplain forest on the other side of the path. There I flushed a Wood Duck and saw and heard a plethora of birds including Canada geese, Ring-billed gulls, American Redstarts, Red-eyed Vireos, Eastern Wood-pewees, and Hairy Woodpecker. I then walked back toward the angler only parking lot where I took the path out to the mudflats on Lake Champlain and the adjacent marsh. On the mudflats I saw a Great Egret, Caspian Tern, Spotted Sandpiper and many Canada geese. In the adjacent marsh Mallard ducks were landing, Marsh Wrens were singing along with Red-winged Blackbirds. When I walked back to the parking lot I found a small hemlock stand with thick understory that held 5 or 6 Carolina wren and a few black capped chickadees, they responded well to pshing and I was able to get a picture.

May 26th, 2021
Start time 7:15AM
End Time 12:00PM
Weather: Sunny, light breeze, 65 degrees Fahrenheit
Habitat: Deciduous floodplain forest, Deciduous forest with medium age trees and lots of understory, Riparian trees next to the large winooski river, Field edges and dense shrubbery, Coniferous stand

I walked the Long trail North from the footbridge near bolton then back south both directions traveling about a mile and a half. In the Deciduous forests with grown in understory and the floodplain forest I saw and heard Rose-breasted Grosbeak, Blue Jays, Wood Thrush, many Veerys, Tufted Titmouse, American Redstart, Baltimore Oriel, Chestnut-sided Warbler, American Robin, Yellow-rumped Warbler, many Red-eyed Vireo and others. In a near by Coniferous stand of trees I heard a Scarlet Tanager and many Ovenbirds. In the open fields to the south of the footbridge on the long trail on the edges in the bushes and deciduous trees I saw American Crows, Red-winged Blackbirds, Common Grackles, Tree Swallows swooping over the field, Indigo Bunting, Common Yellowthroat, and Gray Catbirds.

May 25th, 2021
Start Time: 7:32AM
End Time: 12:00PM
Weather: 60 Degrees Fahrenheit, Sunny, wind 15 gusting to 23 knots
Habitat: Thick Forest and shrubs at the entry of the park then open fields, hedgerows and tall grass, Fields with spaced shrubs

Large Numbers of Bobolinks were present in the fields and hedgerows. American Redstarts, Chestnut-sided warblers and Red-eyed Vireos were present in the forested areas. Sparrows were also present in large numbers in the tall grass. Strong wind made spotting and recording birds more difficult than a calm day.

Location: Hawkins Road, little otter creek then Fort Cassin
Start Time: 7:30AM
End time: 12:00PM
Weather: Sunny 55 Degrees Fahrenheit, wind light and variable
Habitat: Emergent vegetation near open water, muddy areas near open water, large riparian deciduous trees

Notable sights
I saw three Great White Egrets flying together. Spotted Sandpipers were tail bobbing and foraging on small muddy areas. Osprey were catching large fish. A Blue heron was walking in emergent vegetation. A Virginia Rail was heard by myself and another group. Many small songbirds were in the riparian trees along the creek.

12pm-3pm
Monday, May 10th
Weather- Partly cloudy, no wind, 65 degrees
Habitat- mixed deciduous and evergreen near open areas with grass

Saturday May 8th
9am-11am
No wind, partly cloudy 55 Degrees
Habitat- Deciduous trees adjacent to marsh

Saturday May 8th
9am-11am
No wind, partly cloudy 55 Degrees
Habitat- Deciduous trees adjacent to marsh

Wednesday, May 5th
11:00 am-1pm
Cloudy 58 Degrees Fahrenheit, no wind
Habitat- Deciduous trees bordering marsh that contained low grass, snags and open water in the middle

I began my birding at the entrance to the Casavant nature area entrance. From there I walked in approximately a quarter mile to a point where the trail became adjacent to the open marsh area and offered an ideal view of the area. Along the way I heard Black-capped Chickadee songs, Common Grackles, and Song sparrows. When I arrived at the open area a pair of Canada Geese were present, one of which presumably the female eyed me closely from a matted down area of the marsh. The male goose foraged near her. The cacophony of Red-winged blackbirds competing for territory in the open marsh was amusing. One bird in particular defended His territory from a lone snag in the middle of the marsh and the nearby high vegetation. He called frequently and chased other Red-winged Blackbirds away. Song sparrows worked the perimeter of the marsh and were more elusive than the blackbirds. Common Grackles traveled in small groups moving around the marshes taller peripheral deciduous trees.

The Red-winged Blackbird shown in the observation picture had clearly superior fitness to the other birds in the area. He defended a prime location, an area right next to the open water, where plenty of food was present. He consistently was able to push other birds off his territory by chasing them and repeatedly singing.

The Canada geese present at the site clearly were defending a nest. The Female watched me for the entire time I was present. She built her nest using the downed reeds present all around her. The monogamous pair were working together with the male staying nearby while she stayed in one place.

I was able to draw a small map of the area and determine directionality and volume of the many noises in the marsh. In doing this Red-winged blackbirds dominated the scene however Song Sparrows, Cardinals and soaring Herring gulls were also presenting the soundscape. On my way out I heard Robins calling most likely alarming that I was present.

Monday, April 19
Start Time- 11:00AM
End Time- 1:30PM
Burlington Waterfront area and bike path
Weather- Sunny and 55, no wind
Habitat-Open deciduous area next to the lake, fragmented forest, coves and protected areas near shore on the lake.