A great crew of volunteers monitored the bird populations at Wendemuth Meadow this morning. With binoculars strapped around our necks and clipboards in hand, we divided into four groups. Each group took a field or several fields to monitor. That involves choosing a location with good visibility over the area and then watching, listening and recording all birds in the area for fifteen minutes. Once the first station is monitored, the group moves onto the next station.
All told we documented 12-14 pairs of bobolinks using Wendemuth. It’s a bit difficult to get an exact figure because the birds move from one field to another. Regardless, that is a healthy number for a species whose population is declining. The fields at Wendemuth get cut after July4th. Bobolinks nest on the ground, so cutting the hay runs over the nests and kills the young. By delaying the cutting until after July 4th, that gives the bobolink parents enough time to successfully rear their young for the year.
Other birds documented on the property include:
- Tree swallow
- American bluebird
- Red-winged blackbird
- Mourning dove
- Chickadee
- Little green heron
- Barn swallow
- Common yellow-throat warbler
- American robin
- Catbird
- Blue jay
- Chipping sparrow
- English sparrow
- Eastern phoebe
- Downy woodpecker
- Song sparrow
- Eastern king bird
- Baltimore oriele
- Red-bellied woodpecker
- House wren
- Goldfinch
- Chimney swift
- Alder fly-catcher
- Red-eyed vireo
- American crow
