Sparrows and More

On a crisp clear morning, I headed out to Montgomery, NY to check two county parks for some autumn birds. We’re still in October, but the chilly temps, golden hues of early morning, and long shadows gave a hint of things to come as the year wears on. First stop was at Winding Hills Park where earlier in the day there were reports of some possible early arriving winter birds. Unfortunately, I was a little too late to catch those birds which were no longer where they had been heard and/or spotted earlier.

The woodlands at Winding Hills Park

And so, I decided to venture on over to Benedict Farm Park just a mile or so down the road. I had been told of Rusy blackbirds being seen there recently and decided it was worth the effort to take a walk around the edges of the fields to see if they were still in the area. It was not long into my walk that I heard the call which has been likened to the squeaks of a rusty gate. With some patience, I finally spotted several of the blackbirds flitting up into a nearby tree. I managed a couple of shots with the camera, but most were blocked by intervening twigs and foliage. Finally, I did get a shot which was good enough for identification purposes.

Northern cardinal

Perched close by was a much more common inhabitant of the park, the Northern cardinal. I wished that the blackbird had been as accommodating as this bird in finding a nice clear place to pose without twigs to contend with. The most numerous in our cast of characters this morning were the sparrows. These birds were all in nice light and in shrubs that allowed for some more pleasing images. The first sparrow I sighted, a White-throated sparrow, is a bird that I think of as a sign of winter being on the way. Although this species can be found in our part of New York throughout the year, they are in fact short-distance migrants and are more abundant in winter when they descend into our part of the country from the north.

White-throated sparrow

Swamp sparrow

The Swamp sparrow in is a small, secretive bird commonly found in wetland habitats such as marshes and bogs. This little guy was found along a little stream known as “Muddy Kill” in Benedict Park. Recognizable by its rich chestnut wings, gray face, and rusty crown which are visible in today’s image. In New York, the swamp sparrow’s presence is an important indicator of healthy wetland ecosystems, where it feeds mainly on insects and seeds. Their melodic, buzzy trill often is often heard near this type of habitat.

Yet another sparrow on the scene today was the much more common Song sparrow. These sparrows are very vocal and I always think of their three-part introductory phrase as being similar to an opera singer warming up by singing “me-me-me-”. The strong striping on the breast coming together in a spot known as the “stick-pin” makes this sparrow easy to identify.

Finally, another member of the sparrow family which was present at the farm today but which Iunfortunately did not get to photograph was another winter speciality, the Dark-eyed junco. I am sure that as the season rolls on, more and more of these cute little guys will be visiting our feeders and showing up at many of the parks we’ll be birding in the coming months. It is a time of change as we’ve been saying all month long.