Diario de jwally325

Location: Centennial Woods Natural Area South Burlington, VT
Time: 1:15- 2:45 PM
Date: Sunday, April 4th
Temperature: 52-54 Degrees F
Weather: Partly cloudy

Wind: 10 mph - 15 mph
Habitat: Mix of hilled forest and flat wetlands

Upon arrival to the woods the first bird I heard and recognized was the Black-capped Chickadee. It seems that every time I do one of these field journals no matter the time of day or year, I am able to see or hear the Black-capped Chickadee. When observing them during the day, they are constantly moving from branch to branch foraging for small berries and whatever else they can find. There ability to forage defiantly contributes to their winter survival. In addition to this, I learned that they are very effective at lowering their body temperature at night which helps them conserve heat energy. This is another very important adaptation that contributes to their winter success.

I was lucky enough to spot an American Goldfinch during my time in the woods. I was surprised to see it, because usually at my home in Connecticut I don't see them until mid spring/summer. Because of this I figured they migrated farther south during the winter, but when I did some research today I was surprised to find that their yearly range goes into southern Canada! From what I have read, it seems that the Goldfinch follows a facultative migration pattern where they migrate depending on the food availability in their range. Because of this, they can migrate north of their range were people have seen them in northern Ontario. The Goldfinch I saw was a male due to its bright yellow pattern. Goldfinches are one of the latest nesters in the area and this could have attributed to why I saw a male out and about.

Unfortunately, I did not encounter any birds who's wintering range doesn't cover Northern VT. In order to do the mini activity, I focused on the American Goldfinch, which can commonly be found wintering in Florida as well as Vermont. Because of this, the Goldfinch I saw could possibly have flown 1,750 miles from southern Florida all the way to Burlington for the spring!

Date: April 18, 2021
Start Time: 4:30 - 5:45 PM
Weather: 54 Degrees F and partly cloudy clearing up later in the day
Location: Red Rocks Park, Burlington VT
Habitat: Hilly forest with rock cliff coast. Mainly shaded with lots moss environments.

Date - April 24, 2021
Start time -4:00 PM
End time -6:00 PM
Location -North Beach Park Burlington, VT
Weather (temperature, wind speed/direction, precipitation) - Partly Cloudy, 0-3 knots of wind W/NW, 55-60 Degrease F
Habitat(s) -Waterfront beach, grassy field, marsh, small forest.

When we arrived to North Beach the sun had started to go behind the clouds however it still remained very bright out. There was no wind and the lake was perfectly flat. Walking down the path to the beach American Robins were scattered all over the grass. They would hop around a little, pick at the grass and eventually fly away with something in their mouth. Walking a little farther we reached the wooded part of the park near the playground. When walking in there we saw a bird fly across our path and land on a tree branch. After walking around to get a better look we realized it was a Downy Woodpecker. It let us get surprisingly close as it hopped up and down the tree limb before flying off. On the other side of the woods is the marsh part of the park. Right when we got there the only bird call I kept hearing was that of the Red-winged Blackbird. Sitting on the tops of Cattails were about 8-10 Red-winged Blackbird that would make their call, fly off to the edge of the woods, and then after a while back to the Cattail. Additionally we were able to see a large Turkey Vulture hanging in the thermals above the park. We watched it do a few circles before we realized it had 2 American Crows flying after it. They seemed to be trading off diving down on it but oddly enough the Vulture seemed unfazed.

All of the Red-winged Blackbirds appeared to be nesting together in the relatively small patch of marsh. Red-winged Blackbirds keep their nests close to the ground/water, so it seemed like the males for each nest stayed on the top of the cattail above their nest in order to protect their eggs. Their calls seemed to just be a general warning that they where there to protect their nest. The Females were not visible since they tend to jump around closer to the ground in the marsh grass. In contrast to the Red-winged Blackbird, the American Robin seemed to be more comfortable leaving its nest. The Robin prefers nesting off the ground and because of that they need to bring nesting material to their preferred location in a tree. That is what we were witnessing, the Robins were picking through the grass for dry strong pieces of grass to weave into a nest.