The Intervale

I began my hike at about 10:40 in the morning (after Ornithology class was finished, of course!). I went for a hike with my partner/birding partner, and the two eyes proved very useful as we saw some very interesting birds on this walk. We began at my house near the hospital, seeing only common city birds such as American Robins and European Starlings, and walked down the road to the Intervale and then along the river for about a mile. This river path is dominated by larger trees such as oaks and sycamores, and has very little in the way of undergrowth except for some brambly patches. Almost immediately after getting to the river we saw a Red-tailed Hawk up in the top of a tree, pretty still, with its feathers fluffed up against the cold. After that we didn’t see any birds for a little bit, until we walked into a clearing and saw many Mourning Doves and a few American Robins pecking around in the ground. There was also a Downy Woodpecker on a branch, moving up and down in search of food. A Yellow-rumped Warbler was sitting in a tree calling pretty consistently for about ten minutes. Further up along the river we saw four Common Goldeneyes sitting in the water, diving for their food (which helped in my identification as Goldeneyes are well known divers). On the way back we didn’t see very much—and it was getting cold so we were hurrying—just a few more Robins and Starlings.
The Yellow-rumped warbler sitting up in a tree for a long time was a perfect example of mate selection behaviors. I believe that it was a male (because of its coloration and song) who was calling for a female to mate with (although it is very possible that I am mistaken here). If it were defending a territory here rather than calling for a mate, I think the territory it was defending was very good. There was a huge variety of plant life around it, which was easy to tell because trees and shrubs are just beginning to leaf and flower. It was also near a river, which usually indicates high biodiversity. Finally, because there were so many other birds in close proximity to it (the Mourning Doves, robins, and the Downy Woodpecker) this indicates that this was a good spot for foraging and probably relatively safe from predators (except for the Red-tailed hawk seen further back the trail).

I believe that the Goldeneyes I had seen were nesting on a small island hidden behind a fallen tree in the river. I couldn’t get a very good look at the island, but this just means that it was especially well-protected making it even more likely to be a good place for nesting. I wonder what the birds do as the river rises during spring rains, and if their nesting is affected by the rise and fall of the water. Another bird I observed nesting was the Robin in my backyard as I began my bird walk. It was picking up straw and possibly tiny bits of mud with the straw (I know that robins often have mud in their nests) from the back of my yard, which likely make a very sturdy nest.
Overall, it was a very successful birdwalk and I’m glad that spring means I’m getting to see more birds!

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1Wqa0sVVtRlqBPujT9GTYoKgO7u3_2lRr_GT27s6Ovd8/edit

Posted on April 23, 2020 01:56 AM by sophieheny