Local birding report

Every two to four years the tin hornlike notes of a particular little creature fill our forests. Less common of the two nuthatches that breed in Cape, the exceedingly active, Red-breasted Nuthatch is a scrappy little bird that gleans its way up and down tree trunks and branches searching for arachnids and insects.

Red-breasted Nuthatches have a black cap that fades to a bluish gloss, a white stripe above the eye, a black stripe through the eye and an underbelly that is a brilliant rusty cinnamon. Of note, there is a slight difference in appearance between male and female nuthatches.

One key thing to commit to memory is the variation in pitches between the White and Red-breasted Nuthatches songs. The Red-breasted has a higher pitched, more nasally call than the White-breasted. Interestingly, unlike other birds of the nuthatch clan, the Red-breasted uses its soft musical song to woo females during courtship. While both bird’s flight is undulating, the Red-breasted’ s overall appearance is smaller and despite a short tail, seems to turn readily while pursuing insects in the air. Such was the case on the afternoon of September 7 when I spied two Red-breasted Nuthatches hawking insects over the Pond Cove Brook Corridor. Earlier that same day I watched a Red-breasted in my backyard wedge a sunflower seed into a tree’s crevice then, hack the seed into smaller pieces with its sturdy little bill. This distinctive habit is called “hatching” and gives the birds in this family the name “nuthatch.” Red-breasted Nuthatch’s population has increased throughout most of its northern range between 1966 and 2019 according to the North American Breeding Bird survey.

Other mentionables from the yard and field during the first week of September include, at dusk on September 4 I was crossing a bridge in Robinson Woods II when a Barred Owl swooped right overhead and disappeared into the shadowy forest ahead. As I made my way along the meandering trail the curious owl followed me, and on several occasions surprised me when I came around a bend. As I stood momentarily enamored by the experience the ‘oo-eeks’ call of a Mother Wood Duck echoed through the old pine forest... quite possibly a warning that danger was about. Also known as ‘Squealer Ducks’ both male and female Wood Ducks produce a toy-like squeak noise.

Additionally, on the late afternoon of September 6, lingering Tree Swallows twittered high above my head as I plucked ripe tomatoes from our garden. And just before sunset I caught a glimpse of a Common Nighthawk roaming the skies over the treetops above our house. A brief time after that I heard a Great-horned Owl calling from somewhere far away.

On September 7 along Trundy Point’s sea misty promontory my sons and I discovered a female Common Yellowthroat skulking away in the dense Rosa Rugosas. Also, while crawling around in the small strand of conifers we came upon a male Magnolia Warbler picking insects from the undersides of pine needles. His summer faded black mask and tasseled necklace sent my mind back to the first time I had laid eyes on a Magnolia Warbler. The bird was singing in a blooming Dogwood tree on a warm spring morning in Mount Auburn Cemetery in Cambridge, Massachusetts.

And on September 8 along the Spurwink Marsh section of Sawyer Road I noted a single Belted Kingfisher, five Snowy Egrets, four Great Egrets and one Great Blue Heron. I also noted a single White-Rumped Sandpiper. This medium sized sandpiper has a slightly drooping bill, long wings that extend beyond its tail and when in flight a distinctive white rump. There were also Semipalmated Sandpipers and Semipalmated Plovers present. The former has yellow legs while the latter has a snazzy blackish brown breast band that is like that of a Piping Plover (only visibly smaller). In general, Semipalmated Plovers look quite similar to Piping Plovers. One way to tell the difference is to closely observe their plumage. I recently relearned that the bird’s color differences reflect their habitat preferences. Semipalmated Plovers are more the color of the rocky beaches and mudflats they haunt while Piping Plovers are the color of the sandy beaches they frequent.

Later that afternoon along the fringes of Robinson Woods III I came across two southbound Nashville Warblers. Lastly, on the morning of September 9 a male Blackpoll Warbler briefly appeared at our birdbath. Interestingly, male Blackpoll Warblers change their appearance come autumn while other warblers like Magnolias remain in the same attire. Imagining that this tiny warbler may be taking its last drink of fresh water (from my birdbath) before flying a 90-hour nonstop mission to Northern South America is simply out of this world.