{"id":2666,"date":"2012-11-05T21:29:25","date_gmt":"2012-11-06T02:29:25","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/glenprovidencepark.org\/?p=2666"},"modified":"2012-11-06T19:45:31","modified_gmt":"2012-11-07T00:45:31","slug":"a-bountiful-bird-walk","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/glenprovidencepark.org\/2012\/11\/05\/a-bountiful-bird-walk\/","title":{"rendered":"A Bountiful Bird Walk"},"content":{"rendered":"

What a productive bird walk in Glen Providence Park<\/strong> yesterday!\u00a0 Thanks to the expert assistance of cousins Nick Pulcinella and Nick Crocetto<\/strong>, we were able to add 2 new birds for our 2012 Birding Big Year<\/a>– the Golden-crowned Kinglet<\/strong> and Swamp Sparrow<\/strong>, bringing us up to 81 species.\u00a0 Equally exciting, the Swamp Sparrow was new for any year, bringing our total Park Bird List<\/a> to a tantalizing 98!<\/strong><\/p>\n

It was a brisk morning, but the late fall colors in the park were beautiful,<\/strong>\u00a0and the 11 adults and 2 children on our walk were rewarded by spotting 30 bird species!<\/strong>\u00a0 We were treated to a White-breasted Nuthatch<\/strong> that seemed to follow us around, and to Nick and Nick sharing their knowledge about birds. \u00a0 As we watched an imposing\u00a0Turkey Vulture<\/strong> sitting on a bare tree and spreading its wings, we learned that its new feathers are black, and its old feathers become worn and brown.\u00a0 We saw examples of 2 different races of White-throated Sparrow<\/strong>– one has white stripes on its crown, the other brown- and they are selective about how they inter-breed. And without Nicks’ help, we would never have identified that Swamp Sparrow! <\/strong>\u00a0Of course we are always impressed by those who can identify birds so readily by sound. \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

We were also excited to find a Winter Wren along Broomall’s Run<\/strong>, especially when I thought it was a new bird for the park.\u00a0 But it turns out it was already on our list from March- probably spotted by our birding guru Al Guarente<\/strong>, who happens to also be a cousin to both Nicks!\u00a0 The Winter Wren was exciting to see nonetheless, and we hope to see it more as it winters in the park.<\/p>\n

A tremendous thank you to Nick and Nick for guiding our Bird Walk, and to those who attended and made the walk so enjoyable!<\/em><\/p>\n

Here is our list of sightings, along with a couple I spotted in the park on my way to and from our bird walk. \u00a0Below that you can scroll through photos of our walk taken by George & Marcia Tate!<\/p>\n

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30 species total, as entered on eBird:<\/strong><\/p>\n

10 Canada Goose
\n8 Mallard
\n2 Black Vulture
\n10 Turkey Vulture
\n1 Red-shouldered Hawk
\n5 Mourning Dove
\n1 Belted Kingfisher
\n4 Red-bellied Woodpecker
\n1 Downy Woodpecker
\n1 Hairy Woodpecker
\n3 Northern Flicker
\n10 Blue Jay
\n5 American Crow
\n5 Tufted Titmouse
\n4 White-breasted Nuthatch
\n1 Winter Wren
\n3 Carolina Wren
\n1 Golden-crowned Kinglet
\n1 Ruby-crowned Kinglet
\n10 American Robin
\n1 Northern Mockingbird
\n5 Yellow-rumped Warbler
\n2 Song Sparrow
\n1 Swamp Sparrow
\n20 White-throated Sparrow
\n20 Dark-eyed Junco
\n6 Northern Cardinal
\n5 Common Grackle
\n3 House Finch
\n1 American Goldfinch<\/p>\n

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