5/5/2020: Birdday or Birthday? Birdday.

     Today was my due date. I took the day off because I could and it was sunny and beautiful and it was a gamble of a day anyway. So I planned to either bird or birth. Looked like it leaned in favor of the birds. Plus walking is good, gravity is your friend, some say in these final moments.

     I racked up 62 species in a very peaceful morning in Green-Wood Cemetery. While I didn't see a prothonotary or Kentucky warbler, I was satisfied with the 15 species I did see. Again, I was simply grateful to be outside! Thank you, Green-wood Cemetery!

There is this ornamental, droopy tree on teh Sylvan water and it is always a hawking perch for Eastern Kingbirds.... and alas, an Eastern Kingbird! A chatty one, at that!

The slope of the Sylvan water was moving with birds, like this very sweet and soft looking warbling vireo.

It even warbled it vireo song!

Saw a few of these swet faces, field sparrows in a few different locations of the cemetery too.

Also saw, and photo'd a lot of these. Blurbs.
This one is a yellow-rumped warbler, of which there were a lot of.

Black-and-white warblers crept around a number of trees and bushes, searching for some bites to eat.

A common yellowthroat! Wearing masks before it was cool.

When you can see their pupils they seem... so... judgmental.

One thing about Northern rough-winged swallows is that they do perch quite a bit. So you can get a photo of them. I don't know why but I really like this one in the foreground adjusting itself as it perches on a fresh bud.

They are quite soft and cute in appearance, and those tiny little feets, they seen to not do much more than perch. These birds are built for life on the wing, for sure!

What a perfect little insect nabber! 

At the Dell Water this Solitary sandpiper (photo'd here) and a Northern Waterthrush were a nice surprise!

Practicing self-isolation so well, it's in its name!

One of my favorite warbler songs, the black-throated-green warbler was singing its cheery little tune in this tree above the Crescent water.

Bonus of seeing them in a small tree is that they were neck-breaking high up in a normal sized tree.

Another common warbler photo... the runner.
This American Redtsrat was sitting still and in the open and then dashed as soon as my finger hit the button.

I got a second, backlit, chance though.

A not rare bird, but rare moment. I looked at the belted kingfisher and it didn't fly off right away. For whatever reason, belted kingfisher do not like you to look at them. 

Very thrushy today and for whatever reason hermit thrush came up as rare which made me second guess a lot.

Black-throated-blue warbler lured me over with his song... oh, how I yearn for a "beer-beer-beer!"

Lovely to see them again! We'll have a beer together some other time.

Also saw a number of Veery today. But in order to feel good about my ID, I need to see their chest and look for the lack of spotting.

And then it turns around and covers up!
It was a veery, no spots.

Another bird that is lovely to see, even more so to hear, a wood thrush. I had one that spent a few days in an adjacent yard and it would sing its beautiful song each morning, it was a treat to wake up to.

The grey catbirds are here in full force!

Another Hermit Thursh.

Same hermit thrush, but in its own little natural spotlight.

Then I was thinking, how I haven't seen any orioles and then like nature heard me, it sent out a sweet song...

I recognized that Baltimore oriole song immediately and followed it, to this one male, singing as he fed among this flowering pin oak.

I headed over to my magic tree on the corner of Cypress and Vine. Below it were hermit thrush and oven bird, but 100 yards down from it, there is this giant bush which is a Yew. I heard a lot of birds near that Yew. And birds just came from it to fly into the oak across the path from it, one of those birds was this a blue-winged warbler!

This was a very nice surprise!

 

And then another bird I was hoping to see this spring, a rose breasted grosbeak appeared and fed on the flowers.

And then this Prairie Warbler appeared from the yew and into the oak tree.

And then a Northern Parula...

And then this Nashville warbler... and I even got looks at a Tennessee warbler as well. Black and white warblers, yellow-rumps, redstarts, all came out of this yew and flew into other trees nearby.
Every time I went to walk away a new bird flew out. Not too shabby and I was pretty impressed that I could rack up so many species on my own. Maybe I had some good baby vibes helping me out.

And that's it. The end.
So now the next question is... my next birding adventure will it still be just me, or will I be joined by a baby?