The Boreal Pewee

Both yesterday and today I saw a medium-large rather dishevelled flycatcher with a big dark head, few field marks (the barest traces of wing bars), a good-sized beak and a rather short tail (occasionally pumped). Yesterday's bird was hunting close to the ground at the edge of the woods; today's bird was moving from tree-top perch to tree-top perch. Even though it is not supposed to hunt near the ground or, for that matter, wag its tail, I think both birds were Olive-sided Flycatchers, a species that is not so easy to ID in the fall when it is silent. The 'boreal pewee' (a good alternate name for this bird), breeds to the north and comes by twice a year in migration. I only have a few records but I'm sure it's overlooked.

There was a very large collection of birds near the head of the swamp in an area that was badly hit by Sandy. Someone has been cutting into this area from a neighboring property making it more accessible than previously and a major selection of our local birds were either feeding or roosting in the dense thickets that have sprung up in the wake of the hurricane destruction. Among them were all the warblers of recent sightings: Yellow, Yellowthroat, Black-and-White, American Redstart and Northern Waterthrush.

I found a burst of Honey Mushrooms (Armillaria mellea) this morning on one of the trails. Also a few Meadow Mushrooms (Agaricus campestris) as well a few Chanterelles. The Chanterelles are the last of the summer fungi; the others represent a late summer, early fall crop. They'll all go into the dinner pot.

This has not been a particularly good summer for mushrooms, probably due to a relative lack of rain (in spite of the regular passing thunderstorms and many overcast days). However some of the wild flowers have done well. Earlier this year, I noticed a large number of Evening Primrose plants coming up and, when we cut the grass, made sure to avoid cutting them down. These stalks grew up to five and six feet in height before most of them toppled over in a rainstorm; they were top heavy with flower buds but even as the stalks hit the ground, they continued to flower. The result is an amazing burst of these buttery yellow flowers (see picture).

I am currently wrestling with the ID of a pretty blue flowering plant with a cluster of blue stamens jutting out from each flower head. It might be Hyssop otherwise known as Hyssopus officianalis. It's odd that I never noticed it before. Other curious flowering plants are probably garden escapes. A large lily-like yellow flower in an area off one of our right-of-ways (where locals dump garden refuse) is probably a curcubit of some kind (a squash, pumpkin or cucumber type). A ragged composite with large somewhat-sunflower-like flowers and huge pie-shaped leaves is blooming near the blue flower in an area that might once have been gardened; there's nothing like it in the wildflower books.

Eric Salzman

puzzlers

Warm, sunny, humid, dewy, cloudless, windless morning that was spectacularly quiet. The Swallows, Purple Martins and Red-winged Blackbirds that livened up the summer marsh are gone with only Crows and Song Sparrows holding the fort. The few birds seen were puzzlers. A medium-sized accipter was either a female Sharp-shinned or a male Cooper's. An Empidonax flycatcher working the storm-damaged canopy near the head of the marsh was remarkably high in the trees for an empid (perhaps there were more insects to catch up there as the sun hit the treetops). This was a well-marked bird with wing-bars, a twitching tail and a lozenge or tear-shaped eye-ring. If we rule out the possibility of a stray Western-type, this would have to have been either a Least or a Yellow-bellied Flycatcher which, at a distance, can look quite similar (the yellow belly being often hard to see and not particularly yellow on some birds). Finally, there was a big sparrowy bird in the dense shrubbery at the bend of the old right-of-way, a bird that showed something of a crest, a streaked breast and pinkish legs. This was a real show stopper; my best guess would be a young Eastern Towhee.

I got a surprising number of responses to my Beach Plum blog including several recipes -- all variations on a theme. Gigi Spates actually found a Cherry Bounce recipe in Martha Washington's diary that used 'cognac' (whatever that was) instead of rum or vodka and added cinnamon and nutmeg (not my choice). Another recipe (sent in by two different readers!) called for vodka and rock candy (instead of rum and sugar) with Beach Plums in a quart jar but was essentially the same concoction. All the recipes call for shaking things up regularly (this being the source of another folk etymology for the name 'bounce') with the resulting liquor deemed ready at Thanksgiving or (our preference) Christmas. We filled up a gallon jug with Beach Plums, dark rum and some sugar so we should have a very merry Christmas indeed!

Eric Salzman

Bobwhites, Blue-grays and Beach Plum Bounce

Peter Quenell writes me that he saw an adult Northern Bobwhite at the entrance to the Quogue boardwalk reserve. Eileen Schwinn and myself heard a Bobwhite calling persistently in the Tiana Beach area earlier this summer. The possibility that this once-common species may survive on the barrier beach is cheering indeed.

There were at least half a dozen Blue-gray Gnatcatchers working the shrubs and bushes at the edge of the marsh this morning but there were few other migrants. A Belted Kingfisher on the creek and a male Baltimore Oriole -- still in breeding plumage -- were other notable appearances. At this time of year, it is impossible to tell if these birds are locals or migrants.

I spent most of the morning picking Beach Plums for jam, pies and (our specialty) Beach Plum Bounce. There was a fairly good fruiting this year but the plums have ripened a full two weeks early. A sign of climate change or just within the normal range of variability for the species?

But what is Beach Plum Bounce? It is a fruit liquor, originally made with cherries and therefore known as Cherry Bounce; under this name, it goes back to 18th century New England at least and was perhaps known on Eastern Long Island as well (we originally got the recipe from a local). We have made it with Black Cherries and with Blackberries but it works very well with Beach Plums. We thought this was our invention but I have subsequently run across others who have used Beach Plums in similar fashion. The real mystery is the origins of the word 'bounce' as the name of a fruit liguor. It was a common expression two or three centuries ago but has barely survived. This usage does not appear in the Oxford English Dictionary (OED) and I have never been able to track down an authoritative etymology. The only explanation that I have ever heard is that if you drink too much of it, it makes you bounce up and down; this is an example of etymology at its worst. My personal theory is that it derives from the French pronunciation (via Quebec into New England) of 'punch', an old word for a fruit liquor commonly used in French as well as old English.

Eric Salzman

Cuckoo sat on the old gum tree

Cuckoo sat on the old gum tree!

A YELLOW-BILLED CUCKOO came flying in from somewhere and landed on a branch of one of the Tupelo trees (a.k.a. Pepperidge, a.k.a. Black Gum) at the head of the marsh. Cuckoos have not been common around here since the days of the Gypsy Moth infestations (cuckoos are among the few birds that eat the caterpillars). The bird, after posing for a bit, eventually flew but just moved down a notch onto an open low branch right in front of me; I could see the curved bill with its yellow lower mandible, dark eye with yellow orbital ring, trace of a white eyebrow, snow white breast, brown back, rufous wings and white tips on the edges of the tail. Best view I ever had of this charismatic species.

I did not see the Hooded Warbler again but all the other warblers of the past two days were present and in some numbers: Northern Waterthrushes all along the marsh edge, Yellow and Yellowthroats scattered around, a pair of Prairie Warblers and Black-and-White Warblers all around. Oh yes, a single American Redstart. Many Catbirds, some of them almost surely migrants. Ditto American Robins. All four woodpeckers again plus White-breasted Nuthatch and Blue-gray Gnatcatcher.

Eric Salzman

a warbler wave

The first real warbler wave of the year passed through East Quogue this morning with a bright breeding-plumaged male HOODED WARBLER as the star attraction and six other species not far behind: Yellow, Common Yellowthroat (many), Prairie Warblers (at least a couple), Black-and-white (many), Northern Waterthrush and American Redstart (at least several). There may well have been other warblers as well but many of the birds flitting high in the canopy were difficult to pin down. I have had just a handful of Hooded Warbler records over the years; the last one was on September 8 last year.

The warblers were accompanied by Eastern Phoebes (several), at least one Eastern Wood-pewee, surprising numbers of Downy and Hairy Woodpeckers plus the ususal Black-capped Chickadees and Tufted Titmice that typically lead these feeding flocks.

Eric Salzman

late summer/early fall

Our late summer collection of birds includes the woodpecker quadrifecta -- Hairy, Downy, Flicker and Red-bellied; the Hairy and the Downy travel together as if they were a pair (but when they are side-by-side, the size difference stands out). In the warbler category, Northern Waterthrush, American Redstart, Yellow and Common Yellow-throat all showed nicely; missed the Black-and-white. A flock of old and young Cedar Waxwings, perhaps a family, was working its way through the trees at the edge of the marsh and then took over over the creek. Like the American Goldfinches (also seen and heard) these are late nesters. Belted Kingfisher on the creek and Chimney Swift overhead; in the swallow category were Barn and Tree plus Purple Martin. A good-sized accipiter zipping through the trees was probably a Cooper's Hawk; with the exception of the Osprey, this is now the most common raptor in the vicinity. We're now also getting regular nocturnal visits from a Screech Owl which pauses outside our bedroom window and makes sure to alert us to its presence with its ghostly whinnies.

Some of the early fall flowers are beginning to appear: (Perennial?) Salt-marsh Aster, Sea Lavender and Bouncing Bet. And the Evening Primrose in our yard are finally beginning to put on a show.

Eric Salzman

five-warbler morning

Five warblers this morning: Yellow, Yellowthroat, Black-and-white, Northern Waterthrush and American Redstart -- the last-named, the first one I've seen this season (there were actually at least two birds). Also an active empid flycatcher that I could not pin down as to species before it disappeared.

At the same time as our SOFO group was working west from Shinnecock Inlet yesterday, Eileen Schwinn had an ELIAS (Eastern LI Audubon Society) group at Cupsogue (Moriches Inlet). They not only located two Marbled Godwits but also found an unlikely Upland Sandpiper -- 'unlikely' since this odd shorebird usually lives up to its name and hangs out in upland grasslands rather than down at the shore.

The Long Island Native Plant Initiative is holding a Native Plant Symposium at Brookhaven Lab on September 27th and 28th. The notion of gardening with native plants instead of exotic cultivars is an idea whose time has come. The problem has always been getting a hold of native plant stock ("ecotypic native plants") which are, by definition, adapted to local conditions. This, along with other issues of diversity, ecological importance and propagation will be addressed at this symposium. 
More information at or .

Eric Salzman

SOFO on Dune Road

This morning's SOFO walk on Dune Road started at Shinnecock Inlet where there was a handsome male Surf Scoter -- "Skunk Coot" in the old bayman's lingo (because of the black-and-white plumage) -- sitting in the ocean just inside the near jetty. It was, as it turned out, the best bird of the trip.

The rest of the morning was spent moving west on Dune Road with stops at Road L, the old Ponquogue Bridge road (under the new bridge), Road K, Tiana Beach and the Quogue Boardwalk Refuge, all on the bay side. There was a fair movement of swallows dominated by Barn Swallows but also including numbers of Tree Swallows and a few Banks; there will be tens of thousands more a-comin' in the next few weeks. On the shorebird scene, the Short-billed Dowitcher movement finally petered out but there were increasing numbers of Black-bellied and Semipalmated Plovers, one or two Piping Plovers, Sanderlings, small numbers of Willets and American Oystercatchers, both Greater and Lesser Yellowlegs, and many Ruddy Turnstones. Least Terns, old and young, were at Tiana Beach along with the Common Terns, old and young, and there was a fly-by of Royal Terns (but none perched on the sand). Great Blue Herons are increasing in numbers and joining the Great and Snowy Egrets; there was just a single Glossy Ibis in a mud flat south of the road. In addition to the swallows, other passerines included a flock of Boat-tailed Grackles of different ages and sizes at Ponquogue and a few land birds at the Quogue Boardwalk (Black-and-white Warbler, Common Yellowthroat, Eastern Towhee and House Wren).

Eric Salzman

sunny with warblers

A short visit to the grasslands at EPCAL (ex-Grumman) yesterday morning (not too early) produced only a few grassland birds: Eastern Meadowlark, Grasshopper and Field Sparrows, Eastern Kingbird. Lots of unidentified dragonflies. The area turned out to be quite easily accessible and I'm only sorry I didn't get to visit earlier in the day and earlier in the season.

Following the rains: mild sunny weather with warblers -- Prairie, Black-and-white, Yellow Common Yellowthrat, Northern Waterthrush -- plus a pair of Blue-gray Gnatcatchers. Greater Yellowlegs and what looked like Black Duck (a pair) on the neck of the pond. Great Crested Flycatchers working the Sandy-blasted bushes behind the bank and a male Baltimore Oriole in full breeding plumage in the tree canopy in front of the house.. Flocks of chickadees and titmice accompanied by White-breasted Nuthatch and Downy Woodpeckers. Young Cedar Waxwings suggest that this enigmatic species -- not much seen this summer -- may have in fact bred in the area. A large movement of Am Robins yesterday morning was the first robin flock that I've seen this season. Although they were moving north, the flocking up of robins is one of the better signs that fall migration is really here.

Eric Salzman

yellow flowers and a black-and-yellow turtle

We have a mini-grove of Evening Primrose with a couple of dozen plants coming up. Instead of cutting them back with the grass, I let them grow, expecting a bonanza in the form of primrose flower garden but these plants sprouted up to five and six feet in height without producing a single flower -- at least until last night when two or three flowers appeared. Now, hopefully, they are starting to bloom.

Also starting to bloom are the local goldenrod -- Rough-stemmped Goldenrod or Solidago rugosa. The Pokeweed at the trailhead for the Sam and Frances Salzman Preserve (the far half of our property) has now formed a huge thicket of flowering and purple-berried plants, some of the well over six feet tall. It's quite an experience to push through this thicket which, along with the surrounding Pileweed, creates an exotic look to the landscape.

A giant Common Mullein, also rather odd-looking, has a bent main stalk and several new stalks coming out of the curve -- all with flowers. Yellow is the color of the season.

A young Yellowthroat (perhaps the same one as the other day) was trying to sing the Yellowthroat song and not quite getting it right. Northern Waterthrushes are still in residence and a small flycatcher was almost certainly a Willow (perhaps the same one seen the other day).

This morning's rain cut short my walk but brought out a very handsome black-and-yellow Box Turtle of considerable size. I also found another young specimen -- not quite as small as the one seen a week or so ago but just a couple of inches across.

Eric Salzman

a new bird and a few missing birds

One new bird this morning: a Blue-Gray Gnatcatcher working the dead and dying oaks at the edge of the marsh. Greater Yellowlegs on the pond.

There were a few birds missing from yesterday's account of the Linnaean trip from Moriches to Shinnecock: Spotted Sandpiper, American Goldfinch and House Finch. The latter has gone from being widespread and very common to something better described as uncommon -- mostly due to an epidemic that decimated its ranks -- so it is worth mentioning.

Eric Salzman

Moriches to Shinnecock

This morning's Linnaean Society trip started at Cupsogue County Park at the west end of Dune Road and ended up at Shinnecock Inlet all the way to the east, a distance of c. 15 miles east along the barrier beach

The outstanding bird was seen near the beginning of the day on the bay shore facing the inlet between the Cupsogue marshes and the largest bay island. This was a handsome MARBLED GODWIT; a couple of shots by Eileen Schwinn of this bird are attached

Other birds of note included some fair numbers of Red Knots at both Pike's and Tiana Beach, several dozen Royal Terns at the same two locations and a few Forster's Terns including both adults and begging young at Pike's. There are still good numbers of dowitchers (Short-billed Dowitchers being the default dowitcher), Semipalmated Sandpipers (very few Least), Semipalmated Plovers (only one Black-bellied Plover), a few Piping Plover (probably local breeders), many Sanderlings and continuing numbers of Ruddy Turnstones. Common Terns are everywhere with many young but only a handful of Least Terns which seem to have crashed in our area. There were Oystercatchers here and there, many Willets (including at least one possible Western Willet), a few Black Skimmers at Tiana, one Glossy Ibis and one hummingbird (presumably Ruby-throated) flying over Cupsogue. Also, both white egrets (Great and Snowy), a single Green Heron, all four local gulls, a few Osprey and a pair of Black Terns, flying offshore near the Shinnecock Inlet jetties.

Some flying sparrows in the marshes appeared to be Saltmarsh and an odd flycatcher call sounded like a young Willow trying to get it right. Around the edges of the parking lot were three warblers (Yellow, Common Yellowthroat and Pine) and, at a dumpster (presumably replete with insects), Boat-tailed Grackles, American Robins and a pair of Brown Thrashers with an adult and a begging youngster (see the photo; the youngster is the one on the right with the dark eye). Swallows continued on the move -- mostly Barn Swallows with a Purple Martin or two and a few Tree Swallows in the mix.

Eric Salzman

. Cupsogue is Ground Zero for godwits on Eastern Long Island and has once again lived up to its reputation in this respect.

a Willlow Flycatcher and a mystery solved

An unquestionable Willow Flycatcher appeared at the head of the marsh on this overcast, drizzly morning and it perched in the open just above eye level long enough to show itself off: a peaked crown, virtually no eye-ring, white throat, dirty olive breast, shortish primary projection, striking buffy wing bars, broad, straight-sided tail. Willow is the most common breeding empidonax out here but I have only one previous record (in late August 2011) that seemed to me to be unequivocally this species; most of the birds of this type that appear here are Alder Flycatchers passing through to or from the north. This bird, with its buffy wing bars, is a bird of the year and possibly even a local product.

Also seen: Black-and-white Warbler (first of the season), Northern Waterthrush and American Goldfinch (a handsome male singing away as though it were the height of spring). The local crows detected a big raptor of some sort but they were unable to identify it as to species and everytime I tried to get a look (from the ground under the canopy) it flew off with the mob of crows (or, more correctly Murder of Crows) in hot pursuit.

And now the answer to yesterday mystery call. On my suggestion, Peter Beston submitted the recording to Xeno-canto, an excellent web site for bird songs. After a bit of discussion on its Forum page, a match was found in the form of a recording of Wild Turkey hen! It might seem counter-intuitive that a female Turkey would advertise itself so loudly and persistently but I know of at least one other example from another species. The female Clapper Rail has a distinctive and persistent call that seems to advertise its availability. Once, while birding in the Shinnecock marshes, a male Clapper Rail called from cover. A short playback of that female call brought the male right out of hiding and dashing at top speed -- right towards us!

Eric Salzman

a sad story and some mysteries

Alas, the Great Egret that we 'rescued' a couple of days ago did not survive. It was picked up by a Wildlife Rescue volunteer and taken to the Riverhead Center and later to Hampton Bays. In spite of efforts to keep it warm and give in nourishment, it did not make it.

Mystery No. 1: Mike Bottini writes to tell me that the native cottontail rabbit on Eastern Long Island is the New England Cottontail which is a federally endangered species! But Eastern Cottontail has also been introduced here and nobody seems to know the exact status of the two cottontails (Eastern and New England) on Long Island!

This morning's roundup (after the rain): two or three Northern Waterthrushes along the marsh edge, a Ruby-throated Hummingbird (possibly more than one) at the head of the marsh, an active White-breasted Nuthatch (possibly more than one), various terns on the creek. 

Mystery No. 2: Peter Beston sent me the attached recoding of a mysterious call from the pine woods near his house. I could not identify it so I suggested that he go to Xeno-canto, an excellent web site devoted to recordings of bird songs. And, amazingly enough, he was actually able to ID it. Solution tomorrow.

[couldn't transfer audio; write to es@ericsalzman.com if you want a copy of audio]


Eric Salzman

more on Tiana Beach

Tiana Beach has become the best accessible shore birding spot on Shinnecock Bay, rivaling Pike's Beach and even Cupsogue on the Westhampton (or Westhampton Dunes) stretch of Moriches Bay. Tiana and Pike's have similar origins in hurricane overwash which created sand flats where the birds like to gather. An additional reason for the popularity of both of these spots is that they are traditional Horseshoe Crab nesting spots and the shorebirds (if not the gulls and terns) are avid connoisseurs of Horseshoe Crab eggs.

The Spartina alterniflora is now quite high making visibility difficult in the marshes but there are a few other spots south of the road along the Ponquogue-to-Quogue stretch where they are swales, pools and mud flats with visible birds.

The Tiana sand flats attract a large number of terns with Commons, old and young, living up to their name -- dozens, perhaps hundreds of birds, all in a state of noisy excitement and often taking to the air in those appropriately named tern 'dreads'. Everything takes to the air -- not only the Common Terns but also numbers of Royal Terns, a few Black Skimmers and most of the gathered shorebirds: Short-billed Dowitchers, Willets, Sanderings, Semipalmated Sandpipers (and a few Least), Ruddy Turnstones Semipalmated Plovers, an American Oystercatcher or two and various gulls (including numbers of Laughing Gulls).

Elsewhere on the Dune Road strip, Semipalmated Plovers are present in numbers in all the muddy spots. Also both yellowlegs (Greater and Lesser), various peeps (mostly Sanderlings and Semipalmated Sandpipers) and a few Glossy Ibis.

On Saturday, I'm leading a walk for the Linnaean Society (the second oldest natural history organization in the U.S. at the American Museum of Natural History)
which will start at Cupsogue and is scheduled to make stops at the Pike's Beach overlook and the bay side of Pike's Beach itself. I have now decided that, based on the great activity at Tiana Beach, we'll conclude the day over there.

Eric Salzman

Rescue!

My daughter Stephanie took a break from working on her newest musical project and took a stroll down to the pond to cool out. Spotting a large white plastic bag sitting on the shore, she was about to pick it up when suddenly a large head with a big beak popped up. It turned out to be a Great Egret that was curled up on the bank in seemingly bad shape. Great Egret is a bird with a dagger-like beak; you don't want to mess with it -- even with a sick bird. A call went out to Animal Rescue in Hampton Bays and a young housewife in a jeep eventually showed up with a net, a blanket and a good-sized bin (covered with a perforated top). All efficiency, she tromped down to the pond with the idea of netting the bird. But the net was much too small for this big, gangly bird which promptly tried to escape by flopping into the pond. Ms Animal Rescue unhesitatingly wropped her arms around the creature and scooped it up; fortunately the bird and its dangerous bill were facing away. I ran up with the bin and she was able to tuck the bird inside and get the lid on. The bird spent the night in the Riverhead center and arrived at the Hampton Bays facility this morning. It is being kept calm and fed an easily digested diet. I'm hoping that it is not emaciated for lack of prey; a depleted food supply would be a serious problem far beyond the woes of one particular bird.

Strange to say, our dog Rimsky seemed to know that the bird was there. Although it did not appear to be visible from the house, he was barking, whimpering and straining to go down to the pond as if he knew something was not right; he suddenly stopped when it was taken away. Did he smell it or hear it?

More mammal notes: Saw my first bunny rabbit (is it an Eastern or New England Cottontail Rabbit?) of the year. I think our rabbits were hard hit by Sandy. Muskrats fared even more poorly; Sandy collapsed all of their burrows on the banks of the pond and I haven't seen a single one this year. Watched a young Raccoon hitching up a Tupelo at the head of the marsh; Raccoons seem to have survived just fine and I've seen several, somewhat untypically active in daylight.

I've been taking my granddaughter Juliette to swimming and volleyball at Tiana Beach and then lingering to look at the birds that hang out there. Hurricane Sandy overwashed just to the east of Tiana Beach and created some first-class waterbird habitat. This morning there were hundreds of terns -- mostly Commons with some Royals mixed -- plus many shorebirds. More on this shortly!

Eric Salzman

young birds, a switch singer and a cricket ID

The head of the marsh is filled with flocks of young Red-winged Blackbirds and, just a little bit further inland, flocks of old and young Common Grackles and Gray Catbird families bouncing around along with a brood --third of the season? -- of young Cardinals.

One of our Carolina Wrens has switched from the endlessly stereotyped 'teakettle' song to a medley mode where he changes his tune almost as often as a Mockingbird. Is this a courting maneuver? This might be one of the birds that was engaged in a song competition for the past few days -- but always with the stereotypical song. Does the switch to a more elaborate musical form serve to impress a female and set the stage for what is probably at least a third brood?

All four local woodpeckers -- Downy, Hairy, Flicker and Red-bellied -- were moving around the property, almost in sync. I'm still waiting for the Pileated to show up!

Here's my latest insect song ID: Tinkling Ground Cricket. The name describes the sound very well: a series of soft high pitched tinkles coming from the low woodland edge. I heard it in the daytime and, although Himmelman doesn't mention it apparently does sing day and night.

Eric Salzman

an August notebook page

Some notes on an overcast early August morning:

There is a large burrow that has been excavated under a stump on a wooded path at the edge of the property (not deep woods but a semi-open spot). This is a good-sized hole that must have been made by a fair-sized animal (I'm thinking Red Fox although I suppose a Woodchuck/Groundhog would be a possibility).

Found a tiny Box Turtle -- with a carapace that is perhaps 1" across and just a bit longer in length -- creeping across one of our right-of-ways. I moved it to the adjacent woods. When we drive in and out, everyone knows to look for turtles but this baby is so small that it would never be seen from the inside of a car.

The numbers of Royal Terns working the creek (easily heard from the house and visible from the edge of the pond) has noticeably increased in the past few days. There are also quite a few Forster's Terns and the occasional Least and Common Terns. The Green Herons, both adults and young, are still around and calling and we have a resident Great Blue Heron; the numbers of other water birds seem to have decreased.

An odd warbler song turned out to be a young Common Yellowthroat -- its black mask just beginning to come in -- practicing its classic song and not yet getting it quite right. A few old friends are still conspicuous and active: Great Crested Flycatcher, White-breasted Nuthatch, House as well as Carolina Wren, and various woodpeckers (Downy, Red-bellied, N Flicker). The Red-bellied still occasionally drums on the gutter, a noise that gets everybody's attention.

A few more butterflies have appeared including American Lady (two eye-spots on the underwing) and Tiger Swallowtails.

Pilewort (also known as Fireweed) has joined Pokeweed and Seaside Orache to form the hurricane-induced understory. The proliferation of these plants is at least partly due to the increased amount of light that is reaching the forest floor due to the thinning of the canopy. Pilewort is an odd member of the daisy family that puts out a bud that looks like it's going to turn into a dandelion-like flower but it never actually opens; it just suddenly goes straight to a globular seed head.

Eric Salzman

birds of August (and a couple of insects)

A small flock at the head of the marsh produced the season's first Northern Waterthrush, a bird which spent most of its time loudly chipping and chasing a other warblers: a Yellow Warbler and a tail-wagging yellow-breasted warbler that, in bad light, looked like an Eastern Palm Warbler but was probably a Prairie. Also involved in the action was a female Ruby-throated Hummingbird, also trying to chase everything else in sight. I can't imagine how the Waterthrush and the Hummingbird were nvolved in the bird wave which consisted of Chickadees, Titmice, Downy Woodpeckers and warblers; perhaps they were resisting the invasion of their feeding territory.

I have an interesting note from Nick Hamblet who suggests that the late cicada that I am hearing is a Northern Dusk-singing Cicada (not a Robust Conehead which he thinks sings only from leaf litter and only at night). A common call that sounds like a ringing phone is probably a tree cricket. According to John Himmelman, the Narrow-winged Tree Cricket, which sounds like a ringing phone, sings from late afternoon into the night but I also hear this insect (whatever it is) in the early morning.

The Screech Owl was back early this morning perched right outside the bedroom window and delivering a series of a series of descending whinnys each one slightly lower than the preceding. Except for a few years when they were breeding in the area, the Screech Owls turn up here in August; along with the Northern Waterthrush and Spotted Sandpiper, their appearance marks the turn of the season towards the fall!

Eric Salzman