Day 275: October 1st – It takes a village

Sunny, windy (north), and a chilly 65

       With apologies to the former first lady, the title of today’s blog refers to the group consciousness that led to the identification of a mystery bird at today’s hawk watch atop Bear Mountain.  The actual identity should have been a no-brainer, but several elements came into play that caused the confusion.

       As we scanned the horizon for the object of our hunt, migrating hawks, I heard a bird calling from a nearby tree.  I could not place the call and was not so proud as to admit my shortcomings.  I asked one of our knowledgeable birders to help me out with the song and I was surprised (and somewhat relieved) to find that she could not put her finger on the source of the mellow notes being broadcast to our small band of birders either.

       We left our posts and began to scour the treetops for the individual responsible for the sweet refrain.  Finally, we saw movement and then flight.  Fortunately, the flight was short and we quickly found the bird perched high in a maple just above our heads.  When we finally got a look, the sun was illuminating the bird in such a way as to make it appear somewhat brown on the flanks and bluish on the head.  Quickly I snapped off three shots before the bird fled the scene. 

       Our first thought was Bluebird, but several of us had gotten the impression that the bird was too chunky or blocky for said bird.  “Not elegant enough” said Doris.  When I got the bird in the screen on the back of the Nikon, the colors looked a bit different and bluebird was starting to make more sense.  Still, that song bothered us.  I grabbed the BirdJam and played the songs associated with the bird.  One refrain did sound very much but not exactly like the bird in question.  We finally came up with the consensus that the bird was a juvenile Eastern bluebird.

       Shortly after, we spotted more movement in the brush just below our vantage point on the mountain.  Sure enough, a group of bluebirds, one looking quite familiar and not exactly like the more typical adults was flitting from branch to branch in plain view.  Suspicions confirmed…..Easter bluebird it was.  All that brain power, photographs, recorded songs and further observations all to confirm what is a common and easy to identify bird……except when it isn’t.  Never say “always”.