“Spring has sprung, tra-la-la-la-la / Spring has sprung!” — the Swing Peepers
Look at these lists! Spring is amazing. All of these in the first list were seen April 1st (and generally also later in the month). Bold ones are those we didn’t see last month!
- Red-winged Blackbird
- Black-capped Chickadee
- Dark-eyed Junco
- Red-breasted Nuthatch
- Hairy Woodpecker
- Downy Woodpecker
- Common Grackle
- Blue Jay
- Fox Sparrow (four on 4/9, 4/20)
- Tufted Titmouse
- American Crow
- Northern Cardinal
- White-breasted Nuthatch
Then we saw…
- Common Redpoll (4/6, 4/24)
- American Robin
- Tree Sparrow
- Mourning Dove
- Cooper’s Hawk (4/3, 4/15)
- Song Sparrow
- Yellow-bellied Sapsucker (First of Year 4/9)
- Northern Goshawk (4/13)
- Evening Grosbeak (the female with the healed-but-dropping wing, and returnees)
- Brown-headed Cowbird (4/18 and later)
- White-throated Sparrow
- American Goldfinch
- Wild Turkey
- Eastern Phoebe
- Northern Flicker (4/23)
In the Little Pond (we have this as bird bath/water source, among other reasons):
- Wood Frogs (20 frogs all at once on 4/15! then tadpoles 4/30)
- Spotted Salamander egg masses (~4/17)
Mammals included the mink, a cottontail rabbit, red and gray squirrels, and the eastern chipmunk.
At the Big Pond (across the road and up through the meadow, then into the forest):
- A pair of mallard ducks (4/15)
- Wood ducks (~4/20)
If you want to get involved with NestWatch, let us know how we can help you!
The “Through the Window” series is an informal record of observations made by staff, volunteers, and visitors. Anyone at the Museum may add to this list. Observations are usually through our viewing window: a large window with a film to make it more difficult for birds to see the watchers. We have chairs and binoculars to try there, a white board, and many identification guides. Outdoors, several feeders are attached on a single, bear-resistant pole. A small pond, flowers and water plants, shrubs and trees add cover and other food choices. You can sometimes see what we see via our webcam.