The Season of Song!

After the extreme quiet that pervades the forest in the winter, the sound and song in the woods is fantastic on this Summer Solstice Day! This morning up at Hawk Ridge (2 miles from my house) this Song Sparrow demanded I take its photograph, and not an image of the Chestnut Sided Warbler which was also sharing the pine. I agreed!

Upon getting home, I birded my own forest using my ears once again. A squawking easily caught my attention and I was rewarded with watching two Yellow-Shafted Flickers attack a crow. Given the intensity of the attack, I knew their nest hole had to be nearby. Thus, I quietly waited and watched. Ten minutes later I was rewarded and discovered their home. The chicks have obviously hatched, but are not yet big enough to look out the hole and demand food. That day will come. This nest hole means I am now monitoring two woodpecker holes (also a Red-Bellied Woodpecker pair) within 150 yards of my front door. Now if I could find the Pileated Woodpecker hole!

Are enjoying the Season of Sound? The best birding right now involves hiking to new locations and then stopping to listen for extended periods of time. The birds will tell you where they are if you are willing to listen!

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