Monday
Exhausted. The balcony is gonna have to fend for itself. It’s cold out there again and blustery with thick cloud cover. Glancing up from work at one point, I glimpse an Osprey soaring over low, and head out to the balcony to see it disappearing into the Gap. Later, proving last night wasn’t a fluke, five Chimney Swifts can be seen investigating a chimney on the other side of Pennsylvania Avenue.
Tuesday
A full balcony sit (on the porch) this morning. It’s 38 and rainy, with snow showers predicted. We eventually get a wintry mix of pellet ice, flurries, and misty rain.
At 6:38 AM, the elusive American Crow reappears, cawing as it heads to Sapsucker Ridge, high over town. An Osprey soars into the Gap: one or more will be around every day during migration, working the river, and later, one or two will be regular visitors to the towers in the afternoon. I know that a pair breeds at Canoe Creek State Park, and Tyrone could be within their diurnal foraging radius, but with all the fish there, I wouldn’t think they would need to come all the way here for a meal. Therefore, I suspect the summer pair I see here nests somewhere on the Little Juniata River downstream from Tyrone. If you are a local reader and know where, please let me know; please don’t advertise the location, however.
The Downy Woodpecker is making a new ‘kweek’ call I’ve not heard from the balcony this year. I think it’s associated with breeding activity, though I rarely see more than one together.
The Fish Crows are appearing multiple times every day, and landing in the nearby trees and power poles. Some days, a third crow joins them. I’ve also seen some fly low over the field up on the mountain.
Chipping Sparrows are far more active this year than I remember from the past. Today, a pair lands on a chain link fence that divides two apartment porches next to me. They are now regularly visitors to the seeds and scraps in the parking lot, and sing and call constantly throughout the day. I think this might be a big year for them: some 90 percent of what I pick up on the NFC microphone these last nights has been Chipping Sparrows.
At 7:04 AM, a Barn Swallow comes in to investigate the parking lot.
Wednesday
Last night. Dr. Rob Fergus was our annual banquet speaker at the Juniata Valley Audubon Society, and spoke to us about how birds made us human. This morning, he joined me on the balcony, in the company of his spotting scope. Nothing like an extra pair of eyes: we bagged a Merlin, a large flock of Double-crested Cormorants, and best of all, Common Loons. As in, several small flocks. Here’s the first one:
Meanwhile, a pair of Northern Rough-winged Swallows takes time off from hunting the river to perch on the nearest wires:
NFC Update
In the early hours of April 14th, the hotspot’s very first Sora passed over the garage. This was on a productive night with multiple detections of its somewhat more vocal and common cousin, the Virginia Rail.
At dawn the next night, the hotspot’s first-ever Common Gallinule went over!
Otherwise, the spectrum is dominated by Chipping Sparrows and Hermit Thrushes with a smattering of other species, including at least one Grasshopper Sparrow. Including the first Blue-Gray Gnatcatcher I saw in the woods the other day, when these are all posted and approved on eBird, the Plummer’s Hollow 200 total for the year should be a robust 114 species. I’m feeling good about 200 these days after detecting two scarce, code-blue marsh birds, having only missed three key species so far this year (Rough-legged Hawk, Northern Saw-Whet Owl, and Snow Goose) that we’ll have a chance for again in the Fall. Also, the waterfowl performed spectacularly!