Early yesterday afternoon, I visited Monticello Park in Alexandria to see
what migrants were passing through. When I stepped into the park, there was
a lot of bird noise moving through the trees and I went to the bridge to see
if anything was bathing in the stream. After about ten minutes of just
hearing birds, I turned around and found juvenile Cooper's Hawk sitting on
the log across the stream looking at me.Since I didn't have my camera, I
looked back. He was obviously hunting, at one point a Carolina Wren, but was
unsuccessful. At one point he spent some time in a squirrel's (?) nest, even
lying down in it. Eventually, he flew and landed on a leaning, bare tree
about ten feet from me at eye-level.
I returned about the same time this afternoon but had to settle for a female
Ruby-throated Hummingbird, the first that I have seen there. Not great
pictures, but she looked like she was going to use a diving board (first two
pictures at)
http://www.pbase.com/bb_etc/monticello<http://www.pbase.com/bb_etc/benbrenman82506>
For fans of butter-/damsel-/dragonflies, I've added a few pictures to my Ben
Brenman OFT gallery, including some very-close-ups taken with a macro lens.
http://www.pbase.com/bb_etc/benbrenman82506
Oh, I did see a Northern Waterthrush at Monticello today. There was a lot of
bird activity, especially Tufted Titmice.
Cliff Otto
Alexandria
