May 2, 1995
Hazy, 65°F

After an appointment in town, I took a late morning walk through the park. I saw lots of birds by the bridge, and also found a path down on the other side of the creek which was very isolated, and gave me a great view of the birds going about their business.

One of my first sightings of the day was of a Bay-breasted Warbler. A lovely bird that I spotted from the bridge, and had a really good look. An exciting start to my day. I also had a really close look at a Brown Thrasher from the bridge, and Bank Swallow were nesting under the bridges near Lincolnway, as they’ve done every year that I have been here. It is always a joy to walk through that area and know they will be there.

As usual, I saw Blue Jay in the park, and Song Sparrow were singing in the meadow and along the creek. After having seen a lot of winter birds in Florida, I finally saw a pair of Palm Warbler in breeding plumage, in the bushes at the southeast corner of the meadow. Still wagging their tails! For the first time, I had good, close-up looks at Field Sparrow in the meadow. I saw gorgeous Yellow Warbler and Rose-breasted Grosbeak, and a Turkey Vulture soaring overhead. This park is genuinely one of my favorite places.

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Species List

• Bay-breasted Warbler (Setophaga castanea), Blue Jay (Cyanocitta cristata), Palm Warbler (Setophaga palmarum), Red-bellied Woodpecker (Melanerpes carolinus), Yellow-bellied Sapsucker (Sphyrapicus varius), Downy Woodpecker (Dryobates pubescens), Northern Flicker (Colaptes auratus), Tufted Titmouse (Baeolophus bicolor), Ruby-crowned Kinglet (Corthylio calendula), Eastern Phoebe (Sayornis phoebe), Brown Thrasher (Toxostoma rufum), Field Sparrow (Spizella pusilla), Song Sparrow (Melospiza melodia), Blue-gray Gnatcatcher (Polioptila caerulea), American Robin (Turdus migratorius), Yellow-rumped Warbler (Setophaga coronata), Yellow Warbler (Setophaga petechia), Turkey Vulture (Cathartes aura), Rose-breasted Grosbeak (Pheucticus ludovicianus), Rock Pigeon (Columba livia), Common Grackle (Quiscalus quiscula), Brown-headed Cowbird (Molothrus ater), Bank Swallow (Riparia riparia), Northern Cardinal (Cardinalis cardinalis), Mallard (Anas platyrhynchos), White-breasted Nuthatch (Sitta carolinensis)

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