in and around the pond

An attack squadron of no less than six Willets tried to drive me away from the pond the other day but, curiously, since then only one Willet has stayed behind to defend the territory. This bird -- if indeed it is always the same bird -- jumps up on the top of the dead cedar on the other side of the pond and shows its irritation in the form of a non-stop series of clicking sounds. Just to vary the routine, it occasionally takes off, circles around, flies directly at me, veering off only at the last moment to return to its post on the dead tree where it resumes its irritated clicking.

A House Finch was singing away high in the dead trees near the pond this morning, an event worth of note mainly because this species has been so scarce in recent years, its populations diminished by disease. At least one of the Common Yellowthroats is still singing continuously from early morning well into the day, sometimes on one side of the property, sometimes on the other (maybe there are still two territories but I only hear one bird at a time) Many, if not most of the swallows over the marsh, are young Barn Swallows with short tails (which makes then difficult to identify for sure). So far this summer, I've seen Purple Martins and Barn Swallows with an occasional suspected Bank Swallow or Rough-winged Swallow.

Eric Salzman