Report by John Edwards.
It was a beautiful sunny morning for an outing as “the early worm gets the bird”. Birding by Ear with Iwan Van Veen at the Wildwood Bluffs. As the group started off there was discussion that bird numbers in general are down all across North America and the world, due to factors such as climate change, pollution, loss of habitat, window crashes, with the number one reason being feral cats.
With the help of Iwan and Merlin bird identification app, we were able to identify and count 42 species. A very good number, as some have returned to the area after the pause on development and destruction in the area.
Some of the audio and/or sighting highlights were:
Orange crown warbler, Evening grosbeak, finches, towhees, robins, wrens, flycatchers, Golden eye, Gold finch, Black throated MacGillivray’s, Sooty grouse, Brown Headed cowbird, woodpeckers, sparrows and a special appearance by the vibrant blue plumage of a male Lazuli Bunting! Also observed were flyovers of eagles, ravens, doves, Band tail pigeons, Turkey vultures and a flock of migrating Snow geese.
A great field trip was had by all who attended.
