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Birding
in Walden Woods
With Jeffrey Collins of Mass Audubon, and
a
group of experienced birders
One
early Saturday morning
(June 4th,
2005) 60 people
gathered at the
Walden Woods Project’s Thoreau Institute to bird watch
in Walden Woods.
After a presentation by Jeff Collins of
Mass Audubon, the participants split up into six groups and
were led by eight professional birders to wander through
Walden Woods in different directions. When they
reemerged two and a half hours later – they reported
staggering bird lists. On average, each group identified
around 30 species of birds! Since the trees had already
started to leaf out, many people learned about
identifying birds by sounds as well as by sight.
 An impressive
selection of experienced birders and naturalists made
the event a complete success. Please read on to learn a
little about the birders and the birds seen on that
beautiful summer day.
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At the Edge of
Morning
Early reflections
on the curiosity of the human spirit,
a spark of understanding
towards a larger view in nature.
Remove the veils of ordinary seeing
enjoy the intricate balance
of pure life asserting its existence
and seize the day.
Woodland birds
soaring above the earth
the calls of their sounding
teaching those below the forest canopy.
Intimate contact with place
a kinship with all things,
in the hollows of mighty oaks and beeches
to the shores of a frog filled pond.
Listening to the music of life,
observing in awe the shapes and colors,
understanding the oneness of it all,
pure therapy for the soul.
This poem was written
by Dan Shea, Birding in Walden Woods participant
and a friend of Walden Woods Project.
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Total 62 species of birds identified in a field on June 4th, 2005:
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Alder Flycatcher
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American Crow
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American Goldfinch
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American Redstart
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American Robin
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Baltimore Oriole
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Barn Swallow
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Barred Owl
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Black-and-white Warbler
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Black-capped Chickadee
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Blue Jay
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Blue Jay
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Blue-gray Gnatcatcher
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Blue-headed Vireo
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Blue-winged Warbler
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Brown-headed Cowbird
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Cedar Waxwing
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Chimney Swift
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Chipping Sparrow
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Common (Yellow-shafted)
Flicker
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Common Grackle
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Common Yellowthroat
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Double-crested Cormorant
-
Downy Woodpecker
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Eastern Bluebird
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Eastern Phoebe
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Eastern Towhee
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Eastern Wood-Pewee
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European Starling
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Gray Catbird
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Great Blue Heron
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Great-crested Flycatcher
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House Finch
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House Sparrow
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House Wren
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Killdeer
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Mallard
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Mourning Dove
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Northern Cardinal
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Northern Flicker
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Northern Mockingbird
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Northern Rough-winged
Swallow
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Ovenbird
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Pileated Woodpecker
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Pine Warbler
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Red-bellied Woodpecker
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Red-breasted Nuthatch
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Red-eyed Vireo
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Red-tailed Hawk
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Red-winged Blackbird
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Rose-breasted Grosbeak
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Ruby-throated Hummingbird
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Scarlet Tanager
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Song Sparrow
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Summer Tanager
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Tennessee Warbler
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Tree Swallow
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Tufted Titmouse
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Warbling Vireo
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White-breasted Nuthatch
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Wood Thrush
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Yellow Warbler
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Birding Leaders Bios:
Jeff Collins
is Director of Mass Audubon's Ecological Extension Service through which Mass
Audubon shares its expertise on conservation land management with partners such
as land trusts, towns, and state agencies. He studied landscape ecology at the
University of Vermont’s Field Naturalist Program. As an avid birder, he has
traveled and led natural history tours internationally.
Peter
Alden is the
principal author of several National Audubon Society Filed Guides and
other books. He has organized and led nature tours, and lectured all over the
world for travel and museum organizations.
Richie Hall has
been birding for as long as he can remember. He first got started walking
through the Fenway in Boston on his way to grammar school 50 years ago. During
the mid 1990's he worked as a naturalist for five years at the Cape Cod Museum
of Natural History, and was a past 3-term president of the Cape Cod Bird Club.
He also worked several years leading whale watches on Stellwagen Bank in the
Gulf of Maine where birds and whales abound. Richie has birded throughout the
US, Europe, South America and the Caribbean Islands.
Norman Levey’s
fascination with birds has been pursued with sporadic intensity since he was a
teen, working harder at it since 1994. Norman is intrigued with all aspects of
natural history and ecology, and the wonderful (but shrinking) diversity of the
entire animal, plant, and insect kingdom.
Gwyn Loud
has been birding since her parents sparked her interest when she was seven or
eight. After moving to Lincoln in 1968 she began helping in the banding room at
Manomet and for a few years ran a banding station at her home, but stopped when
she returned to work full time. For over twenty years she has taught an adult
birding class for Mass Audubon (Drumlin Farm). She also runs a Bird Club for
fifth and sixth graders at Tenacre School in Wellesley, where she is a science
teacher and assistant principal. Recently, she has been working with other
Lincoln birders to update the Town's bird list.
Grant Marley
started birding 25 years ago by watching hawks at Mt. Wachusett. Since then, he
has worked for Mass Audubon at Drumlin Farm and Wellfleet Bay Sanctuaries. Grant
was the Program Director at The Wild Bird Center in Acton from 1994-1999. He has
also taught birding classes for the Acton and Westford Adult Educational
programs. From 1997-2000, he was on the Board of Directors of the Eastern Mass
Hawkwatch. Currently, Grant is doing birding programs for the New England
Forestry Foundation. He is also on the Board of Directors of the Littleton
Conservation Trust.
Dick
Walton is a
teacher, writer, and naturalist with an interest in birds, butterflies, and
dragonflies. He is co-author, with Bob Lawson, of the Peterson Field Guide
Birding by Ear series. Dick is a principal in Brownbag Productions, a video
production business supplying video resources to other producers as well as
producing natural history DVDs for naturalists. Titles include Common
Butterflies and Skippers of Eastern North America. For more information
see:
www.brownbagproductions.com and
www.concord.org/~dick/mon.html |
