birdsoup

For four consecutive days the temperature and humidity reached the mid 90s and the forecast for today promised to make the previous days seem almost cool.  Naturally, today was the scheduled day for my July BirdWalk.  This would be a test.  I sincerely doubted that anyone would show up for the BirdWalk.  But they did.

Actually five eager birders (Avril, Bernie, Elizabeth, Rosemary, Tom) appeared plus Doug and myself – a very respectable turnout on a less than stellar day.  Our location, Pepsico Sculpture Gardens, is never very “birdy” but makes for a pleasant morning in a very attractive landscape. 

Today the birds may have had more sense than the birders and they stayed hidden in dense, cool shady area.   We did spot 21 species but nothing more exotic than the bird you might see at your backyard bird feeder.  The most unusual sighting was watching Barn Swallows attempt to perch on horizontal roping that was swaying in the wind.  They spent more energy trying to maintain their balance than the energy they saving perching.

I did add a new bird for my 2012 list – a Chipping Sparrow.   Not a rate or unusual species, but one I had not seen before this year