EcoStrides

Erica Marshall of muddyboots.org

I spotted my first Cedar Waxwing—ever. A year ago I had never heard of this bird, and now I can say I’ve seen dozens of them. Yesterday there was a flock of them on my neighbor’s silver maple. Today there was another flock of them on my other neighbor’s green ash tree. The distinctive markings of the Cedar Waxwing include exquisite taupe plumage, light yellow belly, black mask, pointed crest, bright yellow tip on the tail, and red tips on the wings. I plan to add a serviceberry bush to my yard to attract this lovely bird.

I’ve started to become interested in birdwatching—learning the species, being observant enough to find the birds and identifying them by their markings and songs. If that’s not challenging enough—try to photograph them! Spring is a great time for birding because the birds are very active and vocal, and the leaves on the trees have not appeared yet, making it much easier to spot birds.

I spent this morning counting birds for Audubon’s Christmas Bird Count. This annual event occurs throughout the Americas and its purpose is to assess the status of bird populations.

This was a new experience for me, as I haven’t done much bird watching. Four men and I drove around a specified territory and we counted all the birds we saw. We went through cemeteries, trails, wooded areas, busy streets, and residential neighborhoods. We got out and walked at times. I appreciated the opportunity to learn from long-time birders.

What I discovered:

• I can be much more observant than usual if I try.
• I can now identify the dark-eyed junco.
• There are several nearby trails that I didn’t know existed.
• When birders drive a car they don’t keep their eyes on the road!

It was a very snowy day, so the birding supposedly wasn’t very good, but I was impressed with our numbers. We saw (or heard) 17 different species and a total of 369 birds.