Took a walk in the park after the rain Wednesday on the way to the allotment gardens. Wood ducks with babies are in full force on the duck ponds (if even half of them come back next year it'll be a sight to behold, and it was already a sight to behold this spring). I spotted a solitary (go figure) Solitary Sandpiper on the northern duck pond.
Indigo buntings are all over the place, and so are cedar waxwings. The house wren at the gardens themselves still sings occasionally. He's usually at the west end this year, along where the dog path passes by the "top" of the gardens.
There is a family of four Cooper's Hawks on the wood chip path that runs from Centre Road past the Dream Site to the allotment gardens. I've seen them there two weeks in a row, they are very visible and are constantly calling to each other. Last week one of them landed on a branch at eye level not fifteen feet away from us and there were a few tense moments when a grey squirrel climbed up on a branch right in front of him and was wagging its tail seductively at us for a peanut. The squirrel survived, at least temporarily. Usually one of the hawks can be seen perched on a branch chowing down on something.
Note: In case nobody's noticed, I *stink* at birds of prey. Based on their size and their barred tails, I've made a "most likely" diagnosis of Cooper's. If anyone else is in the area, check them out. I assume their nest was in the area, and these are the fledged young. (I've yet to pick one out that doesn't look "juvenile", but again, I *stink*.)
Stinky, stinky Julia
« Last Edit: December 31, 1969, 07:00:00 PM by Julia »
Curtsey while you\'re thinking what to say - it saves time.
