from the creek and marsh

Even with the shift in weather from rain and overcast to clear and sunny, there was very little activity over the marsh this morning -- only a couple of Purple Martins and a Barn Swallow or two which, frankly, has me worried. If the Martins were feeding young, they should be all over the place.

Mother Mallard appeared on the creek with four half-grown ducklings in tow which surprised me as I had previously seen no evidence of waterfowl nesting this year; the swan pair that 'owns' the creek seems to have abandoned its attempts for the season and if there were some Mallard chicks around they must have been very well hidden (four is not a big brood). The Osprey are still feeding young in their nest and both Common and Least Terns come up the creek fishing (these birds nest on the other side of the bay). Black-crowned Night-Heron in breeding plumage -- with two long white streamers coming out of the back of the head -- comes up the creek every day but, when the tide is high in the morning, he or she passes up our marsh and pond (the muddy edges are covered) for some better spot further upstream. Willets are still active on the creek but, by and large, they stick to the other side these days; perhaps they have decided to nest in the Pine Neck marsh.

A Common Yellowthroat singing on the edge of the marsh this morning but no Yellow Warbler; the two warbler species seem to alternate days. There are a handful of Song Sparrow territories all along the edge of the marsh and one of these sparrows has a very distinctive tune. All Song Sparrows have several different songs, each of which they repeat a few times before moving on to another. But most Song Sparrow songs begin with a few whistled or slurred notes in a high register. In contrast, this song begins with seven or eight perfect flutey notes on the same pitch and in a medium register, a very striking effect. The first time I heard it, I thought it was a new species just arrived on the scene. But no, the singer is a perfectly ordinary Melospiza melodia, undistinguished except for his piping signature flourish (the second half of the tune is an ordinary Song Sparrow jumble).

Eric Salzman