Every so often, a new site for birding comes to our attention. This week, we are visiting family in Eastchester. I got on the web and found a site nearby called the Marshlands Conservancy. Of all the locations in Westchester, this is truly a gem. The reserve has plenty of habitat to explore.....Forest, meadow, marshland and beaches are all present and all present their own assemblage of species. As we entered the forest, we immediately bumped into (almost literally) a fawn which was vocalizing a call I've never heard before in all my years in the woods. The young deer was calling to its mother for a feeding, according to the local naturalist. We later saw an adult (the mother?) skulking though the trees. Shortly afterwords, we heard a rustling high in the canopy and looked up to see a young racoon keeping watch over us. A small stream further along the trail was providing a number of goldfinches with bathing opportunities, and a molting Common yellowthroat was joining in. Even though we were here on one of the hottest days in summer and at the peak of the day, the birds were all around us....downies, flickers, Carolina wrens, robins, jays, cardinals, and on and on. We plan to return shortly to take advantage of the meadows and the marshes. This is a site which we will add to our favorites without question....a Westchester gem.
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