And then...

 

4:15 to 5:00pm, 71 Degrees, Mostly Cloudy, Wind 8mph NNE, Bar 29.86 rise

The birds were chattering normally for a half hour and then.... they went quiet. Not sure why. There were no alarm calls, just quiet. It will remain a mystery. Picture is of a female Downy Woodpecker in the tree I call Pinky. Most days I sit a downy will appear in this tree. Some great dead branches for a woodpecker. And it is on the way from the deeper woods across Fall Brook to the feeder ant Number 1. 

Just because the birds are quiet does not mean they are gone. Or out of my sight. I saw what I think was a song sparrow in the detritus on the side of the Gulley. A two inch bird moving amongst leaves and twigs is hard to spot at 200 feet. It was motion. It hopped a few times. Then I used the binoculars to see it. In its own way it was very exciting to see and identify a bird that way. The hoping motion gave it away. 

Merlin Identified 15 bird species. Most of them were probably there. I still do not think the Northern Waterthrush is there no matter how many times Merlin says it. But you never know. The song sparrow was not on Merlin. I also saw a Mourning Dove. Not on Merlin. 

Subdued

 

 

8:00 to 8:40am, 65 Degrees, Cloudy, Wind 3mph NW, Bar 29.79 even, 

It felt really subdued in the sit spot this morning. As quiet as it gets at this time of day. The normal cardinal chatter was not even there. Does the barometer have something to do with bird activity? It is pretty low. Moon phase? Even the cars on Ocean Avenue seemed quiet. High humiidity and fog warning on the coast can dampen sounds. 

Merlin Identifies 15 species. I got a Carolina Wren, My bird of the day! A year round resident of Maine. It was the highlight of the morning. The little guys can really belt it out! 

Wow!

 6:20 to 7:10am, 63 Degrees, Cloudy, Wind 5 SSE, Bar 30.00 falling

I talked to a neighbor yesterday and she suggested I sit behind Number 1.No body is in Number 1. It has a nice view of the Fall Brook valley. Fall Brook rises to the east and drops off to the south, running down to Back Cove in Casco Bay. It is definitely more wild back there. Fall Brook is part of Canco Woods there. I am going to have to walk and explore back there at some time. I did not like the sound of the cars coming from Ocean Avenue. I can still hear the car pollution from my normal sit spot. However, it is less. So, I decided to move back to my regular spot. 

I am glad I moved back to my normal spot. I like feeling that I am in the woods. At Number 1, I am on manicured grass above a retaining wall. Shortly after moving to my regular spot, I saw a large bird fluter to the top of Old Red. I could not see it through the leaves. Way to many Norwegian Maples. Then it took off heading west. Large hawk! In The Little Forrest. The light was not great. When I looked at Merlin It had added Red Tailed Hawk. So I am going with that. I have heard them overhead but not seen one in the Little Forrest. Thinking of moving my sit spot to below the retaining wall so I can see the Crick in the Gulley and Fall Brook Valley. Some exploring will happen. 

It was a subdued morning. Storm is coming. It looks from radar mostly north and south of here. Birds still moving about. A few birds flying from the feeder at Number 1 to the dense copse of trees. I noticed a spot that needs a name. At the end of the back yards where it gets wild again. I saw a few birds moving about there. I do not have a great line of sight. However it needs to be checked out. At one point I could hear Downy Woodpeckers calling back and forth. One was over by the feeder at Number 1. And the other at the spot where it starts to get wild. Then the downy at the feeder flew through the Gulley into the wild where its partner was. Pretty cool. Also, there was another close pass. A dark bird flew within five feet of me below head hight. Moving fast. Maybe a catbird. 

Merlin Identified 15 bird species. Mostly the normal suspects. I saw the Red-tailed Hawk. It will be moving south soon. It will probably stay in the States. Northern Water Thrush, Merlin really wants that one. They migrate to Central America. It is possible one is here and remembers when there was water here. And again with the Yellow-bellied Flycatcher. 

Dreary

 

6:40 to 8:00 am, 64 Degrees, Cloudy, Wind 8mph E, 

There is a a storm coming. I think I need to start adding barometric pressure to the top line. I suspect birds are far more attune to that than modern humans are. Should start raining after dark tonight. I may have felt some heavy mist or a drop in my sit spot. The birds seemed subdued. There was chatter just not that much. Also, I do not think it was blowing 8 mph like the app said. 

As I said yesterday, I moved the sit spot ten feet to the east. And was rewarded with a view of this hole in a tree. Maybe a white oak. Will definitely investigate more. It looks as if there is a whole on the left hand side as well. A green leaf in there makes me think it is in use. Perhaps a woodpecker? A squirrel hole? I saw nothing come or go, yet. More will be revealed if I just sit and let it happen.

Since the birds were quiet this morning I was sitting very still. No turning, shifting, craning my neck, just still. At one point I turned and a small greenish yellow bird was coming right for me. It was perhaps five or six feet from me when I picked it up. It flew within two feet of my face and it was moving. I never really got to focus on it. It came and went in about a second. One of those did this just happen moments. Wild! I am guessing Yellow-bellied Flycatcher. Unlikely in Portland today. I am only guessing this as Merlin Identified it today. The Little Forrest is wild. 

I am once again reminded by how much can be learned by sitting quietly and listening. Not just learning about birds. I never once learned anything by speaking. It is by listening that I learn. Folks will talk to fill the void. It is amazing what can be learned by sitting quietly and letting life happen around you. 

Merlin heard 23 species. It did not pick up Herring Gull. I heard a few on the wind. Northern Waterthrush again. This was a mis identification today. It was picking up a chipping noise at the top of the Gulley. Not where the waterthrush would be. It heard a Great Egret for the first time in The Little Forrest. This I will add to the list. Very plausible one was flying over. Not going to add the fly catcher to the list. It is plausible that the flycatcher was migrating to its wintering grounds in Southern Mexico and Central America. Wildly connected to the world is The Little Forrest.

Small Changes, Big Rewards

 

3:40 to 5:00pm, 68 Degrees, Partly Cloudy, Wind 7mph E

Wow! Another Black_capped Chickadee feeding frenzy. I moved another ten feet to the east. A seemingly small change. Big difference. The chickadees fed for a long time. My small change made a large difference to the inhabitants of The Little Forrest. I am closer to where the crick turns south into Fall Brook. Or would if there was any water. I could hear the chickadees off to the east. Then see them is silhouette on the far side of The Little Forrest. Near the yards of the houses on the other side of the Gulley. Into the dense copse of trees. Into Old Red, Into Pinky, then everywhere! Mostly I sat still and let them be. From their perches near the feeder to the feeder and back they went. At times they would perch on a branch less that five feet from my face! Too close for me to move. Sometimes flying just feet over my head. On and on they sang and flew. The Little Forrest was alive with bird song and activity. It became contagious. Then came the White-breasted Nuthatches. 

And then the Downy Woodpeckers

It was amazing at one point there were maybe thirty chickadees, two nuthatches, and two downys that I could see at once. Just alive and letting it be. I think letting the chickadees feed freely allowed the others to feel safe. The Blue Jays came lower into The Little Forrest than they usually do. I saw more of the jays than I ever have. Maybe five at one time. I suspect some of that was my small move, ten feet, to the right.Small change, big reward! A better advantage point of seeing where Fall Brook is. Fall Brook comes out of Canco Woods and the south into Casco Bay, in the Gulf of Maine, in the Atlantic Ocean. 

The Little Forrest is connected to the larger world. And the larger world affects The Little Forrest. At one point I could hear the Norwegian Cruise ship blow its horn. More than two miles away as the crows from The Little Forrest flies. Do the people of Norway think of The Little Forrest when they send their ships here. Probably not. However their noise pollution comes anyway. Today the Little Forrest was connected to Norway. It is all connected. I have a meditation teacher named Devon who says, "if a butterfly flaps its wings in China it affects us here."

Merlin heard 21 species. Most were probably there. I question the wild turkey. I know I put it on the list for the Little Forrest. However, I am thinking of taking it off. Northern Waterthrush came up again. No water in the crick or Fall Brook so... I did see a bird down where it is clearly damp and water would be. It was the size and shape of a waterthrush and the colors were right. I can't say for sure. A little move in the right direction and was rewarded with a new sight. 

Move a Muscle

 

6:30 to 7:30 am, 57 Degrees, Clear Skies, Wind 5mph NNW

Move a muscle change a thought. Perhaps not the right phrase. I moved maybe two feet to my right and I noticed a birch tree. It does not take much of a shift to change one's perspective. It is not that close to me. It was behind some tree trunks. The other day when it was slow in the sit spot I saw some birch bark on the ground down by where the crick would be if it was not a drought. I thought I was wrong because I had not seen a birch tree. I need to trust my observations more. 

As I walked out my door I could see Black-capped Chickadees on the feeder in front of my home. These are the same chickadees that inhabit The Little Forrest. I saw them fly out to the island as I walked out to the sit spot. Shortly after I sat, the chickadees came into the Little Forrest from behind me. Low and all around me for a moment. I had hoped they would hit the feeder near my sit spot. Same feeder same seed. They are eating the seed in front of my house faster than in The Little Forrest. It has been there longer. Perhaps it is because they have been eating in front of my condominium for years. From All About Birds

• The oldest known wild Black-capped Chickadee was a male and at least 11 years, 8 months old when it was recaptured and rereleased during banding operations in New York in 2021. It had been banded in the same state in 2009.

 It is amazing to me what watching nature regularly has changed in me. I have moved into watching the birds and now I think about the birds more. I have never really thought about how old a chickadee could be. Now I wonder.  

When I got to my sit spot there was a fair amount of bird activity. Mostly calls. The aforementioned chickadees flying through. And one agitated squirrel. The bird calls did not seem agitated. Around ten minutes or so, there was a squirrel in Old Red clearly agitated with me! I thought we had passed that. It took off to the west. I followed its travel through the motion of branches and leaves. It moved to the far end of my sight. Perhaps it was not a regular visitor to the Little Forrest. Later another squirrel traveled within ten feet of me without worry. My phone shifted on my chair and I moved and the squirrel moved faster! It let out a couple of quick calls and then stopped. So, I am not fully trusted. 

The birds while calling seemed subdued until the sun started to reach down into the Little Forrest. It was 57 degrees. It seems like the fifties is the time they slow in the mornings. I know a few of the birds are year round. It gets much colder so it will be interesting to see how they act going into winter. Some birds will head to South America! Not sure when they will leave but the Red-eyed Vireo travels to the Amazon rain forrest. A much larger forrest. And that to is connected to and part of The Little Forrest. Amazing how interconnected everything is!

Merlin heard 23 bird species. Most of them were probably there. The mallard was an agitated squirrel. I still do not think there is a water thrush in the Little Forrest as there is no water. We are in drought. 

Seemed Quiet

 

5:55 to 6:55am, 59 degrees, Clear Skies, Wind 7 S

Seemed Quiet even though I heard many bird species. Fall has arrived in The Little Forrest Even if it is still 23 days away. In Maine winter comes early and stays late. Not a terrible amount of bird activity this morning. A fair amount of song and calls. The sun does not actually start to warm up the Little Forrest until about an hour and a half after sunrise. It takes its time to rise over the islands in Casco Bay, part of the Gulf of Maine in the Atlantic Ocean.   

This Grey Catbird was checking me out. There is quite often one near the feeder at 23. This morning it came into the Little Forrest and circled me a bit. It stopped a few times to check me out. It would have a clear line of site to me while still having a little something in between us. I suspect some birds have done this without me even knowing. 

The squirrels were active this morning. Not really affected by the cold. I saw at least one chipmunk. I suspect I saw the same one on two occasions. It is not often that I see a chipmunk in the Little Forrest. I am guessing where there is a whole for it from the few times I saw one. 

At one point I heard a Red-Breasted Nuthatch. Or as I like to say lobster-breasted nuthatch. Maine you know. It is the first time I was sure without Merlin.  Unlikely in Portland today. I knew! My hearing is getting better. It sounds a lot like the White-breasted Nuthatch. Maybe smaller and less deep. it is a cool feeling to know a bird sound and not question it. 

Sound can only be heard in the present moment. Perhaps that is why nature/bird meditations are so good for us. Must be present to hear the birds.

Merlin heard 22 species this morning. Way different than yesterday afternoon. Also, I do not think the wind was actually 7mph. The tree canopy was barely moving. Unlikely in Portland today. Eastern Towhee, White Throated Sparrow, and Red-breasted Nuthatch. The nuthatch was definitely here. I suspect the White Throated Sparrows are here as well. I also saw five Mallards fly over. Not a bad morning in the Little Forrest.