A fine autumn day,
sunny, breezy and cool (67)
On such a beautiful day, we
decided to ride the length of Mt. Airy Road in New Windsor, NY. A two lane country road, this byway
winds through farmland, pleasant residential areas, and lakes. We figured we might get a nice
diversity of birds given the varied habitat.
We first checked out the
lakes and found that there was little going on. Later in the fall and winter, these lakes will be dotted
with waterfowl right up until the water freezes over. Today, however, we were limited to Canada geese, a lone
Great egret on the far side of the shore, a Double-crested cormorant fishing
the shallows, and a pair of adult mute swans gliding over the smooth surface.
 |
| Mute swan |
We sampled one of the meadows
next hoping for some “LBJ’s” (little brown jobs) such as sparrows and
finches. The default sparrow of the
day was the Chipping sparrow.
Dozens of them flitted over the fields and into the tall isolated pines. It was interesting to note the varied
stages of plumage with some of the birds still sporting their deep rusty caps
while other had the streaking more commonly found in winter. By mid-winter, many of the birds will
have caps that are barely discernable.
There were also plenty of American
goldfinches, most of whom had begun to lose that lemon yellow hue from which
they take their name. Now, they
would be more appropriately named “green finches”. Regardless, they are here in good numbers and the
interactions are a joy to watch.
This afternoon, when you saw one, there were generally several more
chasing each other all over the fields.
They often included an Eastern bluebird or two into the game of cat and
mouse, adding to the excitement.
Bird-watching is so much more than simply going out and identifying a
bird, checking it off you list and then moving on. The activity of the birds is what makes it so enjoyable and
so enriching. Thank God no matter
where you go, the actors are on stage, ready to entertain.
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