At Sky Meadows today:
Very birdy for a windy day in early December. I
birded from the Visitor Center area to the AT by way
of the South Ridge Trail.
Probable PINE SISKIN flying over heading SE above the
South Ridge Trail. Heard not seen. I say probable
because I am not good with winter finch calls. But
this bird sounded like one.
LOGGERHEAD SHRIKE continues at the fishing pond. It
was behind the house. While I was there it perched on
an old Martin house, a fence and a deciduous tree. It
foraged in the usual manner of this species by flying
to the ground to catch an insect and then returning to
a perch. A mockingbird, hanging out in the area, flew
aggressively toward the Shrike at one point.
The PURPLE FINCHES were all flyovers - 6 of them.
The word of the day is big - as in big flocks.
STARLINGS were abundant. WAXWINGS, ROBINS and
BLUEBIRDS were also very common. I surprised a large
flock of MOURNING DOVES at sunrise at the Visitor
Center. The Robins were the most widespread species
in the park today.
7 sparrow species - TOWHEE, FIELD, SAVANNAH, FOX,
SONG, WHITE-THROATED and JUNCO.
4 COWBIRDS were mixed in with a big starling flock. A
few dozen female R.W. BLACKBIRDS were present - some
feeding on the ground and some flying through.
Blackbirds are normally scarce at SMSP in the winter.
I had all 7 woodpeckers including a few RED-HEADED.
It's very interesting to see the difference in plumage
between the Shrike and Mockingbird - two superficially
similar looking species. The gray coloration of the
Shrike is almost a blue-gray to my eyes, while the
Mocker is more of a dirty gray. And the white
underparts appear dirty looking on the Mocker whereas
the Shrike is not. Not to mention the proportions,
etc. It's easier to appreciate when you see them side
by side at close range as I did today.
Scott Baron
Fairfax, Va.
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