Field Sparrow
I needed to be in Nellysford this morning, and then did a late morning hike on the Rockfish Valley Trail. It was a bit "birdier" than some of my previous hikes there during the past few years, but most of the birds were sparrows. I ended up with 16 avian species on this hike.
Field Sparrow
Song Sparrow
White-throated Sparrow
Swamp Sparrow
Carolina Wren
Yellow-bellied Sapsucker
Great Blue Heron
I saw my First of Season (FOS) Purple Finch (female).
Purple Finch
I saw a Yellow-rumped Warbler there that prompted my to check my warbler references as it had a yellowish throat like that of a western Audubon subspecies. This bird was most likely a first fall female Myrtle subspecies that can have a throat with a buffy wash.
Yellow-rumped Warbler
Yellow-rumped Warbler
My Rockfish Valley Trail list:
Great Blue Heron
Black Vulture
Turkey Vulture
Red-tailed Hawk
Yellow-bellied Sapsucker
Blue Jay
American Crow
Carolina Wren
Yellow-rumped Warbler
Chipping Sparrow
Field Sparrow
White-throated Sparrow
Song Sparrow
Swamp Sparrow
Northern Cardinal
Purple Finch
I did a couple of hikes here in Old Trail, logged about 30 avain speces each day, and added 23 avian species to my Rockfish Valley Trail list to give me 39 species for the week. Cedar Waxwings were very active flying bout to varoius trees for berries. At least one of these birds had a dietary induced orange tail tip.
Cedar Waxwings
Cedar Waxwing
Cedar Waxwings
Cedar Waxwing
Cedar Waxwings
Cedar Waxwings
I saw a male and a female Purple Finch, and added three more FOS species: Dark-eyed Junco, Hermit Thrush, and Winter Wren.
Purple Finch
Purple Finch
Dark-eyed Junco
Hermit Thrush
Winter Wren
Yellow-rumped Warbler
Red-shouldered Hawk
Red-shouldered Hawk
Red-shouldered Hawk
Downy Woodpecker
Red-bellied Woodpecker
Ruby-crowned Kinglet
Eastern Bluebird
Field Sparrow
Song Sparrow
Savannah Sparrow
More White-crowned Sparrows have arrived, and one of them had a gray supraloral area. There's a photo of a similar bird in Beadle and Rising's sparrow reference, with a note suggesting a subspecies intergrade.
White-crowned Sparrow
White-crowned Sparrow with gray supraloral area
White-crowned Sparrows
Squirrel gathering materials for its winter home
Species added in Old Trail to my weekly list:
Canada Goose
Red-shouldered Hawk
Belted Kingfisher
Downy Woodpecker
Northern Flicker
Red-bellied Woodpecker
Carolina Chickadee
Ruby-crowned Kinglet
Eastern Bluebird
Northern Mockingbird
Cedar Waxwing
White-crowned Sparrow
Red-winged Blackbird
American Goldfinch
White-breasted Nuthatch
Tufted Titmouse
Pileated Woodpecker
Winter Wren
Dark-eyed Junco
House Finch
Savannah Sparrow
House Sparrow
Hermit Thrush