Lake Iroquois, Williston, VT

This birding excursion took place on Saturday April 20, 2019 at Iroquois Lake in Williston. I was with two other people and we were joined by a small birding group a few minutes in. It was extremely foggy, and it was raining on and off, but there was very little wind. It was about 40° F. We began birding immediately upon arrival at 8:45am and saw a male and female Common Merganser together on the shore before they took off. Very soon afterwards we saw a Canada Goose on the water. A male and female Pileated Woodpecker flew overhead and began to drum nearby, and a Downy Woodpecker was heard farther in the woods. An American Robin was heard and seen in a tree. An Eastern Phoebe was seen and heard in a tree in front of us, and it was joined by a Dark-eyed Junco. We were able to hear the distinct drumming of a sapsucker farther in the trees. A Tree Sparrow was seen in a bush close to us, and I was able to get a good look at the rusty eye stripe, distinguishing it from a Chipping Sparrow. Before heading down the road, we heard a White-breasted Nuthatch.

When we began to walk down the road, we immediately saw a Herring Gull in the water before it took off. There were several sparrows foraging in the bushes, and we were able to identify three White-throated Sparrows and one Song Sparrow. As we continued down the road, we saw four Black-capped Chickadees and three American Robins. There was a Brown Creeper calling and we were able to observe it flying between multiple trees. A Mourning Dove was heard in this area, and another American Robin was seen. We heard the hollow drumming of a Ruffed Grouse deeper in the woods. As we came to a medium sized pond off the side of the road, we saw a male and female Wood Duck in the water before they swam to shore and waddled into the underbrush. A Tufted Titmouse was heard from a distance.

We continued to an open field where we could hear Red-winged Blackbirds and Common Grackles. We saw a Common Grackle fly across the trail and land in a tree, and we saw a Mourning Dove in a tree farther in the field. Another American Robin and a Northern Cardinal were heard as we walked. As we continued along the field, we saw about five Red-winged Blackbirds and three more Common Grackles. A Tree Swallow was seen flying over the field. A Swamp Sparrow and another White-throated Sparrow were heard in the distance. A Northern Flicker was sighted in a tree before it flew among the trees for a few moments and returned to the same spot. Two more were seen in this area. A Red-bellied Woodpecker was heard and seen in the area as well. Two more American Robins were seen before we turned around. On our way back to the starting spot, we heard a Blue Jay and saw an American Crow.

Upon our return to our starting location, we saw another Eastern Phoebe and American Robin. We continued down the road in the opposite direction and heard a Canada Goose and another Eastern Phoebe. A Broad-winged Hawk flew past us and landed in a snag near the road. It was most likely hunting frogs in one of the vernal pools, and we saw the same individual again when we went to explore the vernal pool. When we returned to the car, we stopped to observe a flock of about five Dark-eyed Juncos, two Song Sparrows, and two White-throated Sparrows foraging on the grass. A Canada Goose was sighted flying over the lake, and shortly afterwards we saw one juvenile and one adult Herring Gull. One Red-Winged Blackbird and two American Robins were seen in a tree. A Brown Creeper was seen working its way up a tree, and a White-breasted Nuthatch landed in the tree next to it. The Brown Creeper was flushed away from its tree by a Yellow-bellied Sapsucker, who remained in the tree for a few minutes before flying into thicker woods. We walked down the road for about a minute and heard a Mourning Dove and saw an American Crow fly overhead. An American Goldfinch was heard farther in the woods. We sighted a female Pileated Woodpecker drumming against a log on the ground before concluding our wonderful excursion at 12:04pm.

Male Red-winged Blackbirds were preforming their signature “conk-la-ree” songs while perching on tall reeds or trees. They do this to both defend their territories and attract mates. The males will often sing while fluffing up their red shoulder patches and spreading their wings and tail feathers. The Ruffed Grouse we heard was making a rapid drumming noise by beating its wings. This also served the dual purpose of defending its territory or performing for a female.

There was a small snag with a cavity that we saw Black-capped Chickadees excavating, and at one point one of these birds landed on the edge and went inside the hole. It is very likely that this Chickadee is building a nest in this tree cavity. For the Wood Duck pair, it is likely that they are taking advantage of one of the many snags that we saw in the forest near the pond. The cattails and weeds in the marshes or the bushes that lined it would make good nesting sites for Red-winged Blackbirds. The trees and shrubs near the water could provide nesting sites for Common Grackles.

Wood Ducks prefer to nest in tree cavities that tend to be far from the ground. These trees are usually near a body of water, and nesting boxes are often utilized by these ducks. Broad-winged Hawks build nests relatively low in either conifer or deciduous trees using sticks, moss, and bark. These hawks can also take advantage of an abandoned hawk or crow nests to raise their own young. Ruffed Grouse are ground nesters, and typically nest in spots that provide a view of incoming predators. They tend to nest in the leaves at the base of a tree, stump, or in brush piles.

For the sound map activity, I heard five different species. These included one Eastern Phoebe, two Pileated Woodpeckers, one Downy Woodpecker, one Canada Goose, and one American Robin. One Pileated Woodpecker and a Canada Goose were flying while calling.

Posted on April 21, 2019 09:00 PM by meghanmurphy