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Sat, 12 Nov 2011 14:29:55 -0500 |
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This morning a group of friends and I did some easy local birding around
the Westerville-Galena area in northern Franklin and southern Delaware
Counties. Everyone wanted to see the two Eastern Screech Owls I posted recently.
So we began with the bike trail at Alum Creek Park South in Westerville.
We parked and began leisurely walking south on the trail from near the
Westerville Senior Center. Stop one, the gray morph in the tree cavity. It was
very visible as it sat in the cavity facing the trail with one eye seemingly
peeking at us. After everyone enjoyed our cooperative first on the wanted
list bird, we continued south on the trail picking up a few common species
until we reached the steel bridge over Alum Creek. There, sitting behind a
narrow cross strut was the rufous morph Eastern Screech Owl. The head and
tail were visible, but the middle was blocked, all reminding me of Congress.
Two extremes that just don’t meet. We retraced our path and made one last
visit with the gray morph owl before heading up to the Hoover Nature
Preserve.
Two members of our party had never been to Old Sunbury Road in the
preserve. I led our flock north along the old road bed. Several Bald Eagles were
active around us, soaring over us at tree top level, once or twice with
trigs in their talons. Nest Building? A thought I like and hope for. They put
on a great show for us. In and near the pine stand we found Brown Creeper,
Ruby-crowned Kinglet and a shy Barred Owl. The owl spotted us before we
spotted it and we had to watch it fly away through the pines.
We next hopped over to Hoover Meadows where we picked up several Swamp
Sparrows, White-throated Sparrows, an American Tree Sparrow, Northern
Mockingbird and a group of active Eastern Bluebirds. Although our list isn’t
extensive we were happy with our morning as along with some nice finds we got to
spend time with friends. A list of our morning follows.
Charlie Bombaci
Species observed:
Turkey Vulture
Canada Goose
Northern Pintail (flock flew over)
Bald Eagle (2 or 3)
Red-tailed Hawk
Ring-billed Gull
Mourning Dove
Eastern Screech-Owl (both rufous and gray morphs)
Barred Owl
Red-bellied Woodpecker
Downy Woodpecker
Blue Jay
American Crow
Carolina Chickadee
Tufted Titmouse
White-breasted Nuthatch
Brown Creeper
Carolina Wren
Ruby-crowned Kinglet
Eastern Bluebird
American Robin
Northern Mockingbird
European Starling
Yellow-rumped Warbler
American Tree Sparrow
Song Sparrow
Swamp Sparrow
White-throated Sparrow
Dark-eyed Junco
Northern Cardinal
Red-winged Blackbird
American Goldfinch
House Sparrow
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