{"id":3349,"date":"2025-10-23T12:11:33","date_gmt":"2025-10-23T19:11:33","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.mynerdyfriend.com\/?p=3349"},"modified":"2025-10-23T12:11:34","modified_gmt":"2025-10-23T19:11:34","slug":"birding-bonanza-part-ii","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.mynerdyfriend.com\/?p=3349","title":{"rendered":"Birding Bonanza Part II"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
The plan: A 2-hour birding tour* with Chris, this time to Beaver Meadow Conservation Area, a local wetland habitat. Beaver Meadow is not a hiking adventure. Instead you walk a trail for about 1\/2 km to a viewing platform that looks out over a large marshy area. Then you settle in with your binoculars and just wait for the birds.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The goal: I wanted to see a Bittern (a type of heron). There are 2 species of Bittern found in NA, the Least and the American and I would be happy with either. Turns out we would encounter both (!!) – three American Bitterns flying overhead and one Least Bittern that we both heard calling but never managed to see. I recorded the American in my life list, but will wait until I *see* the Least to do the same.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Species Prediction: My guess going in was that we’d see the typical birds you find at a marsh or a small lake. A few kinds of ducks (that Chris would be able to tell apart for me), swans, geese, maybe terns. Call it around 20 species if we were lucky. Achievement: 50 species! To be fair, I wasn’t far off as far as water-located birds are concerned. What I didn’t expect was to find 30 or so species of songbirds, which I can once again attributed to Chris’s bird finding superpowers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Nature Walk Bonus: In addition to being an amazing birder, Chris is an expert naturalist, and along our very short walk he pointed out a myriad of fauna specimens. I only remember one, because I learned about it in school but have never actually seen it – a Jack-in-the-pulpit!<\/p>\n\n\n\n<\/figure>\n\n\n\n
Here, for record keeping, is the complete list of bird species.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\n
Canada Goose<\/li>\n\n\n\n
Mute Swan<\/li>\n\n\n\n
Wood Duck<\/li>\n\n\n\n
Mallard<\/li>\n\n\n\n
Common Gallinule<\/li>\n\n\n\n
Virginia Rail<\/li>\n\n\n\n
Sandhill Crane<\/li>\n\n\n\n
Killdeer<\/li>\n\n\n\n
Ring-billed Gull<\/li>\n\n\n\n
Caspian Tern<\/li>\n\n\n\n
Black Tern<\/li>\n\n\n\n
American Bittern <– LIFER<\/li>\n\n\n\n
Least Bittern <– A would-be lifer, but we only heard it, I wasn’t lucky enough to see it<\/li>\n\n\n\n
Green Heron<\/li>\n\n\n\n
Great Blue Heron<\/li>\n\n\n\n
Turkey Vulture<\/li>\n\n\n\n
Sharp-shinned Hawk<\/li>\n\n\n\n
Belted Kingfisher<\/li>\n\n\n\n
Red-bellied Woodpecker<\/li>\n\n\n\n
Downy Woodpecker<\/li>\n\n\n\n
Pileated Woodpecker<\/li>\n\n\n\n
Eastern Wood-Pewee<\/li>\n\n\n\n
Great Crested Flycatcher<\/li>\n\n\n\n
Eastern Kingbird<\/li>\n\n\n\n
Warbling Vireo<\/li>\n\n\n\n
Red-eyed Vireo<\/li>\n\n\n\n
Blue Jay<\/li>\n\n\n\n
American Crow<\/li>\n\n\n\n
Bank Swallow<\/li>\n\n\n\n
Tree Swallow<\/li>\n\n\n\n
Barn Swallow<\/li>\n\n\n\n
White-breasted Nuthatch<\/li>\n\n\n\n
Marsh Wren<\/li>\n\n\n\n
Gray Catbird<\/li>\n\n\n\n
Wood Thrush<\/li>\n\n\n\n
American Robin<\/li>\n\n\n\n
Cedar Waxwing<\/li>\n\n\n\n
American Goldfinch<\/li>\n\n\n\n
Swamp Sparrow<\/li>\n\n\n\n
Baltimore Oriole<\/li>\n\n\n\n
Red-winged Blackbird<\/li>\n\n\n\n
Common Grackle<\/li>\n\n\n\n
Common Yellowthroat<\/li>\n\n\n\n
American Redstart<\/li>\n\n\n\n
Yellow Warbler (Northern)<\/li>\n\n\n\n
Pine Warbler<\/li>\n\n\n\n
Black-throated Green Warbler<\/li>\n\n\n\n
Northern Cardinal<\/li>\n\n\n\n
Rose-breasted Grosbeak<\/li>\n\n\n\n
Mourning Dove <\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n
*Date of tour: May 28, 2025. Seems important for context.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
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