Winter is Coming!

 

10:15 to 11:30, 68 degrees, Cloudy, Wind 6mph ESE

So far one of the coolest sit spots, especially for the time of day. Merlin heard a few birds that should not be here for another few weeks or a month. Dark Eyed Junco, Red Breasted Nuthatch, White Throated Sparrow. They could be early arrivals. They could be wrong guesses. Either way, winter is coming. 

I am definitely seeing better into The Little Forrest. I saw this Blue Jay and never heard its cry. A very cropped picture. Way up in a tree on the other side of The Crick. By the time Merlin heard a Blue Jay this one was long gone from my sight. How many birds have gone through my line of sight without me seeing them? I saw many more birds today than any other day! Yes, it was longer than any other sit spot. However, it was longer because I was seeing birds! I was able to get pictures of this Jay, a White Breasted Nuthatch and a Downey Woodpecker. 

At one point I heard a hawk on the wind above The Little Forrest. I am not sure how I knew it was a hawk but I knew it was a hawk. Not sure I have heard enough hawks while seeing them for this knowledge. Micah Mortali, often talks about ancestral knowledge. Perhaps this is how I knew. Eventually, Merlin showed a red tailed hawk. Likely in Portland today! That was a really cool experience. Getting in tune with my spot and nature in a way I have not before. 

I also heard a Great Blue Heron on high flying from the south (Back Cove) to the north. (perhaps Sebago Lake) I heard and knew before Merlin showed Great Blue Heron. Also, I could hear it after Merlin stopped lighting it up. While the heron and hawk did not stop in The Little Forrest, I count them on the bird list as they are here: visibly and audibly.