Today, all day, every bird that comes within view or earshot of the balcony will be counted for a cause. As ‘The Velociraptors,’ we are an entry (perhaps the only entry), in the stationary-count ‘Wild Turkey’ category of the Earth Week Birding Classic competition. While other teams throughout the multi-county region centered on Blair will be gallivanting across the countryside, ferreting species out of every barberry hedgerow, we’re stuck here on a tiny patch of real estate, letting the birds do all the work. (In actuality, most teams will probably wait to pick their 24-hour birding periods until closer to the culmination on Earth Day, the 22nd. More migrants have returned by then, thus boosting species numbers.)
The goal today is 50 species (or more) and the idea is to raise $500 for charity. Funds teams raise go to Juniata Valley Audubon Society for use in small, local environmental projects.
First, the Fog
Of all the taxing weather conditions for birding, fog is one of the most stressful, at least for sitting birders. Today, for the first time in 2023, is that day. At 5:08 AM, a hushed, Sunday Tyrone is wrapped up in cloud particles. It’s 49 degrees, with 96% humidity. American Robins, Song Sparrows, and a vociferous Eastern Phoebe seem unperturbed, but it’s not the perching birds we’re worried about, it’s the silhouettes. Until the fog dissipates, birding will be strictly by ear.
5:28. House Finch. Some early songs.
5:43. Mourning Dove. Cooing from a tree by the river.
5:44. Northern Cardinal. Calling and singing.
5:58. Wood Duck. Squeals in flight from the river somewhere.
Happily, no train has passed yet, the laundromat is mute and odorless, and the only continuous non-bird sound is the Little Juniata River. Very few cars are passing by on I-99. Then at 5:50, a particularly ambitious neighbor slouches to his beater and starts it up, then goes back into his apartment. The old pile wheezes and coughs loudly, with intermittent grinding noises; after around five minutes, the neighbor re-emerges, gets in, and after some hesitation, car and driver wander off into the fog.
By 6 AM: 7 species.
6:05. Carolina Wren. Singing.
6:08. Tufted Titmouse. Singing.
6:10. Black-capped Chickadee. Singing.
6:14. Chipping Sparrow. Calling and singing.
6:15. House Sparrow and White-throated Sparrow. The latter sings repeatedly, the most active it has been this year.
6:17. Common Grackle. Clucking and creaking out of sight.
6:21. Brown-headed Cowbird. Dawn song.
6:25. Common Raven. Calls.
6:26. Blue Jay. Calls.
6:29. Downy Woodpecker. Two are calling actively and cavorting around on a nearby tree at the creek. One flies by the balcony and alights in a fruit tree on 10th Street.
6:31. Swamp Sparrow. Calls.
6:33. Canada Goose. Invisible overhead. Species # 20.
6:36. Northern Flicker. Calling. (Later, it flies repeatedly low over the balcony.)
6:38. Killdeer. Calling from the grass beyond the interstate.
6:45. Common Merganser. A male appears from below the confluence and flies upriver into the fog. It’s one of the trio that hangs out in a newly-emerged rocky section of the river out of sight of the highway, between here and the Plummer’s Hollow Bridge. A photo taken from the bridge:
6:56. Rock Pigeon. One emerges briefly from the fog.
6:59. Ring-billed Gull. Hearing its cry from above.
By 7 AM: 25 species. This is some 10 species behind a normal day, where the distant ridges would be visible.
7:13. Northern Rough-winged Swallow heard and then seen. Two explore the wires around the parking lot, then chase each other up and down Bald Eagle Creek.
7:20. Tree Swallow. Heard.
7:26. Two Purple Finches heard, and one sings. Mom emails the news a bit later: 11 Purple Finches showed up at her feeder up on the mountain.
The first train of the day. At 7:30, it’s still quite foggy, and we’re missing many key species. These should all show up at some point during the day: Fish Crow, American Crow, Turkey Vulture, White-breasted Nuthatch, and so forth.
7:43. American Goldfinches. A pair alights in the nearest sycamore, calling and singing.
7:45. Belted Kingfisher. Rattling heard, and then it flashes briefly by the field of vision at the confluence, heading upstream. That field is narrowing rapidly as leaf-out proceeds apace.
Clammy
The temperature has dropped two degrees to 49, and the fog shows no sign of abating. By eight, the list is stuck at 30 species. At 8:11 AM, the towers on Bald Eagle Mountain become visible. Brush Mountain, meanwhile, is still out of sight, but by 8:15, a little sun starts to burn through. Train #2 comes from the west at 8:20.
8:25. Yellow-rumped Warbler singing! Along with the Wood Duck and Ring-billed Gull, this species was certainly not a given today. It is moving sluggishly from tree to tree, first down the creek then up the river, allowing fine views.
8:43. Pileated Woodpecker. Heard from out toward Sapsucker Ridge.
8:48. Mallards. This locks up the four expected waterfowl species for the day.
At 34 on the boards by 9 AM, the only major hyper-local species missing is the White-breasted Nuthatch, which should have called by now. An Eastern Towhee would have been nice, but hopefully one will call in the evening. Red-winged Blackbird is also missing, but it should be possible to spot one at some point later in the day.
The fog is finally lifting off Sapsucker Ridge, but too late for early morning rush hour. Local raptors shouldn’t be long, though. And it’s finally warming up: 55 degrees by 9:30.
9:50. Red-tailed Hawk and two Turkey Vultures circling over Bald Eagle Mountain.
Train #5 at 10:20 is the morning Amtrak. Also, it’s now a balmy 63 degrees.
11:14. Black Vulture. One coasts over Sapsucker Ridge.
11:51. Fish Crow. A pair alights on the wires and power poles in the parking lot, calling.
By noon, the species count is 38. And then the fun begins.
Migrant Highway
Rapid warming brings updrafts, and tiny dots start popping up from behind Bald Eagle Mountain. They mostly seem to be migrating on the eastern side of Brush and Bald Eagle mountains today, but few come straight north down Sapsucker Ridge and overhead as well.
12:09. Broad-winged Hawks. The first kettle of the day, with at least three mixing in with Turkey Vultures and the local Red-tailed Hawk. FOY (First-of-Year) for the hotspot: Plummer’s Hollow 200 #107.
12:20. Red-shouldered Hawk. Only the second of 2023, and #40 for today. Migrant, or local?
12:40. Sharp-shinned Hawk. Two more are seen later on. Unclear whether any of these is a local resident.
[Meanwhile, Mom emails about a heard Black-throated Green Warbler up on the mountain, the earliest we’ve ever had this species (PH200 #108).]
Fifty species are finally in sight, if the rest of the locals can be ticked off before it’s over, and a few unexpected ones pop up as well. Red-winged Blackbird, Great Blue Heron, Bald Eagle, Eastern Towhee, American Crow, Cooper’s Hawk, and that annoying White-breasted Nuthatch shouldn’t be missed!
1:13. Northern Harrier. One speeds from the southwest, under roiling clouds, heading northeast directly over the balcony. Another migrant on an Appalachian bird highway: this one ridge, the westernmost in the Ridge-and-Valley Province, with many names along its route, stretches from Alabama to northcentral PA.
1:30. Pine Warbler can be heard trilling along the creek. This is unexpected: the first report from the balcony.
1:37. Cooper’s Hawk. The Velociraptors’ namesake glides high up in the sun, over Bald Eagle Mountain. Meanwhile, today’s Broad-winged Hawk count stands at 21.
1:48. Red-winged Blackbird flying. About friggin’ time!
2:17. Barn Swallow, FOY and PH200 #109. This first individual is high over the Gap, but one flies later up the river, close to the balcony.
2:19. Osprey. Dives into the Gap from above Bald Eagle Mountain. FOY and PH200 #110.
By 3 PM, a modest 12 trains have passed by so far, and the temperature in the shade is 77. Even the covered porch is nearly full sun.
Now for the wind-down. The species list stands at 47, so it’s going to be a stretch to reach the mid-century mark.
4:51 PM. The first of two Bald Eagles finally deigns to make its appearance, flying south from Bald Eagle Mountain into the Gap. Where in the heck have you been all day??
Two more to go. The complete absence of American Crows today is baffling!
The Wrap-Up
The best at chance at reaching the goal, with two species to go, are the last few minutes of activity before night. After seven, it’s clear and conditions are perfect, so even if the nuthatch, crow, or towhee aren’t detected, at least the Great Blue Heron is a given.
At 7:34, an unmistakable rapid chittering is heard: Chimney Swifts have returned to Tyrone! PH200 #110. This is highly unexpected and our earliest hotspot record for the species, but we’ll take it! Now for that heron…
At 7:39, three distant heron shapes emerge from behind Bald Eagle Mountain, flapping slowly northward into the dusk. Not Great Blues, though: they’re Great Egrets, for the second time this year. A quite unanticipated turn of events, and not a species we would ever have predicted.
8 PM. Sunburned and exhausted, and quite a bit stir crazy. The first drops of rain. Time to turn in: perhaps a Great Blue is on its way, but after 14 hours and 52 minutes of staring at fog and sky, we’ve had enough.
Questions, Questions…
The disappearance of the American Crow is the most baffling non-event of the day. Most other species were detected multiple times today, and it is safe to say this is the first time in the entire year that the crow is absent. No sit for Monday, so we’ll see on Tuesday whether this is actually a thing, or just a fluke.
The White-breasted Nuthatch was also a no-show, but this was somewhat expected: perhaps the local pair has moved off beyond earshot to nest.
Thanks to everyone who has donated or is still thinking about it :)