As things quiet down, many species are out with their newly fledged young. Three Downy Woodpeckers -- one adult with two young -- were poking around a dead stump covered with woodpecker holes (not necessarily made by Downies); the impression was that of a parent showing its offspring how to find food. The two other resident woodpeckers -- Northern Flicker and Red-bellied Woodpeckers -- were both heard calling but no sign of offspring yet.
Two Mute Swans continue to occupy the creek but once again without offspring -- the third or fourth year without any cygnets in this part of the creek. However the local Canada Goose pair has eleven goslings (originally twelve but one seems to have fallen by the wayside). And then there were yesterday's turkeys; as was the case last year, the flock seems to be a merging of two or more broods.
Low tide on the pond with feeding Black-crowned Night Heron and Willets. The Clapper Rail is now calling only early in the morning and at dusk. A Red Admiral butterfly was the first of the year. Haven't seen a single Monarch.
Derek Rogers of the Nature Conservancy tells me that there are up to a half a dozen Saltmarsh Sparrow nests on the De Ropp Pine Neck property and that at least one nest is or was in the strip of marsh directly opposite us (near the Osprey pole). So that's probably the source of our visiting Saltmarsh Sparrows.
Eric Salzman
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