Diario de iadeslaw

On Monday, May 24th I went to Kenilworth Aquatic Gardens in NE Washington, DC from 7 AM - 12:15 Pm. The weather was 73 degrees, and it raining until around 8 am and stayed overcast the rest of the day with little breeze. The wetland was composted of 8 small ponds with grass paths and trees intersecting them. There was a deciduous forest surround the wetland, and then as you continue, a more marsh-like habitat with a river running through it and a boardwalk to cross it all. There were many species observed, and calls and songs could be heard everywhere across the wetlands, marshes, and forest. The only species found in the water were the Mallards, and the Killdeer. However, the Canada Geese, and Great Blue Heron were observed directly next to the water. The species observed flying over the wetlands and in the trees were the Chimney Swifts, Northern Cardinals, American Robins, House Sparrows, Red-winged Blackbird, Song Sparrow, Red-bellied Woodpecker, Blue-gray Gnatcatcher, American Goldfinch, Eastern Kingbird, Gray Catbird, and Cliff Swallows. The Indigo Buntings were only observed in the forest around the wetlands, and the American Crows were only observed flying over the wetlands but not landing. There was a species heard in a tree on the edge of the wetland, but I was unable to identify it.

On Tuesday, May 25th I went to Sands Road Park in Lothian MD. The temperature was 78 degrees, cloudy, and moderately windy the entire day, and I was there from 7:15 AM - 12 PM. The park consisted of a vast grassland with about thigh high dry grasses, and a deciduous forest surrounding it. There was one paved path that went about 100 feet into the grass but ended there, and there were a few trees dispersed along the edge of the grass before the habitat turned into forest. The only shrubs were a few near the edge trees, but mainly the habitat consisted of high grass and then some trees. In the grass its self, the only species observed was the Blue Grosbeaks, and Yellow-breasted Chat, and neither of these species were observed in the the trees. They were seen hopping between grasses and perching on some low shrubs, and they were both very fast moving.There were generalists found flying across the grass, landing in it, and flying in the trees such as the Red-winged Blackbirds and Northern Mockingbird, and American Crows and Common Ravens were observed flying over head. In the trees, more song birds were observed like the Indigo Bunting, Common Yellowthroat, and multiple sparrow and warbler species. They were flying between trees and often multiple species were seen on a single tree. Additionally, larger species like Eastern Kingbirds and Eastern Towhees were observed in some of the taller trees. I saw the same two Northern Mockingbirds chasing each other, interacting in the air, and calling to each other which I thought was really interesting to see. I've never spent much time in grasslands so it was really interesting to see which species were there but also overwhelming!

On Wednesday, May 26th I went to Fort Dupont Park in Anacostia DC from 6:45 AM - 12:05 PM. The weather was 90 degrees, and the morning began as cloudy but by 9:30 AM it was very sunny and there was no wind. The park a large expanse of deciduous forest with intermixed grasslands that were about 50 yards long and ran parallel to the walking path. The grass was was shin height and full of grasshopper, crickets, and cicadas. The forest was mostly over story trees with very little understory species. There was a small stream that ran through the forest but it was mostly dried up. In the forest, I heard multiple species of flycatcher (Acadian, Least, Great Crested), as well as Wood Thrush, Red-eyed Vireo, and song birds like the American Goldfinch and Yellow Warbler. These species were all on the tops of trees in the forest and were rarely seen on the ground. In the forest I saw a Black Rat Snake which was very exciting, and I also heard an Eastern Wood-Pewee which I've never heard in person before! In the grassland area, I saw species like the Indigo Bunting which was flying through the grass and landing on shrubs, and the a Blue-gray Gnatcatcher and Eastern Kingbird which were perched on trees at the edge of the grassland. I wasn't expecting to see the Downy Woodpecker I was just leaving the forest and there it was which was exciting. I didn't recognize the call at first but then I saw it hopping up and down the tree which was interesting to see. There was a mowed area just before you enter the forest where I saw more general species like Blue Jays, Northern Cardinals, Chimney Swifts and American Robins. The cicadas gave me some trouble because their non stop noises muted some of the bird calls but if I walked far enough away from the grasslands it was more manageable to discern the different calls.

On Thursday, May 27th I went to Huntley Meadows Park in Fairfax, Virginia from 7 AM- 12 PM. The temperature was around 85 degrees, and partly cloudy in the morning but the sun came out at around 9:45 AM and there was a light breeze throughout the day. The park begins in a dense deciduous forest with a lot of canopy cover and a dense under story. There were thunderstorms last night so the forest was particularly humid. The forest eventually opens up into a vast open wetland consisting of marsh lands with vernal pools that all eventually lead into a large pond. There was a board walk for traversing the entire wetland. In the forest, it was difficult to discern different species because of the thick vegetation, and loud cicadas. However, a few species were heard like the Cedar Waxwing, Eastern Wood -Pewee, American Goldfinch, and a few species of woodpeckers (Downy and Pileated), as well as other song bird species. They were mostly all in the tops of the overstory and singing fairly consistently. But the woodpeckers were climbing along the trees along with the White-breasted Nuthatches. Once in the wetland, the some of the species swimming or standing in the water were Mallards, American Black Duck, Great Blue Heron, and the Green Heron. They were in some of the vernal pools but mainly in the main pond. I saw a family of Canada Geese swimming across the pond which was really cool to see, and the gosling were still small which I don't get to see often. There were many species flying across the wetlands like the Common Grackle, Red-winged Blackbird, Tree Swallows, and Barn Swallows. They were all singing and flying and diving in and out of the shrubbery as well as flying into the dispersed trees. Many of them would interact in the air and chase each other regardless of the species type. There were Osprey and Red-tailed Hawks flying overhead, and the hawks appeared to just be circling, but I could see the Opsrey looking for fish, and trying to get better angles for hunting which I'd never seen before. I also so multiple American Crows chasing a Green Heron through the air which was the most exciting thing I saw today!

On Friday, May 28th I went to Rock Creek Park in NW DC. The temperature was around 79 degrees, it was partly sunny, and there was no detectable breeze. The park is just one large forest with a small creek running through it that held less than a foot of water. The forest is deciduous, and ranged from dispersed trees and open canopy to a much more dense forest with a closed canopy and thick understory. The birding was ok there; there did not seem to be a ton of diversity were I was, but there was high abundance of the species. The forest has a lot of snags, and I saw three species of woodpecker (Flicker, Downy, and Red-bellied) interacting with the snags. I didn't realize where I am had such a large Acadian Flycatcher population, but they could be seen or heard everywhere I went today. I saw one for the first time which was interesting because I've only heard them! Around the stream I saw Common Grackles, Brown-headed Cowbirds, and American Robins. None were in the stream, but they were on the rocks that bordered it, or flying through the channel it created in the forest. The rest of the species I mostly had to ID by song because the trees were very tall and much of the forest was dense. I heard the usual songbirds like Carolina Wrens, American Goldfinches, as well as Blue-gray Gnatcatchers, Eastern Wood-Pewees, and Scarlet Tanagers. I've always had a hard time IDing the Scarlet Tanagers by call, but today I did, and I also saw a male and female which I've never seen before! It's crazy to me that such brilliant species could live in a city. Overall I think that my auditory ID skills improved, but I definitely still need to work on them. Listening comprehension has all been a struggle for me and this class put that to the test! I also saw Carolina Wrens today hopping on the ground and that's another species that I've only heard and never seen!