July 4, 2026 [LINK / comment]
This is another episode in my efforts to get caught up with my blog posts about birding. (The first item should have been included with the previous post on May 25.)
January 28: In the morning (Tuesday) we had a Cooper's Hawk out back for the first time this season, or at least for the last couple months. It was a first-year bird, as you can see from the brown streaks in front. (Adults have a dull orange front.)
Cooper's Hawk (1st year) out back, Jan. 28
February 1-2: I took advantage of the nice weather by going for a nature hike at Dowell's Draft and then Braley Pond, and essentially struck out. Snow lingered, and the pond was still covered by ice. I heard a Red-breasted Nuthatch, but did not see a single bird! The next day was cloudier but birdier, with a variety of birds out back: Downy Woodpecker, White-breasted Nuthatch, House Finches, and Yellow-rumped Warblers. Over on Bell's Lane, the usual raptors were present: American Kestrel (feasting on a vole, it would appear), Two Northern Harriers, and two Red-tailed Hawks.
February 9: It was definitely a Superb Owl Sunday for me, as I saw three (3) Short-eared Owls in the Swoope area, and photographed two of them! The one shown here was squabbling with another one that eluded my camera. The other big highlight was a Bald Eagle perched in a tree, which may have been an auspicious sign for the Philadelphia Eagles, who ended up winning the big game! I also saw two American Kestrels, as well as some White-breasted Nuthatches, a Yellow-rumped Warbler, and a Ring-necked Duck on the lake by the Boy Scout camp.
(February 9, 2025)
February 12: In the aftermath of a snow storm, we had plenty of birds out back, and I had good looks at a Yellow-bellied Sapsucker as well as two Yellow-rumped Warblers. The Red-bellied Woodpecker, Downy Woodpecker, and White-breasted Nuthatch paid several visits, enabling me to get good images of each one. There were also quite a few Dark-eyed Juncos, White-throated Sparrows, etc.
February 14 (Valentine's Day!): I got some much-needed exercise walking along the trail behind the Murphy-Deming School in Fishersville. A few Yellow-rumped Warblers popped into view, and I heard and glimpsed a couple Red-breasted Nuthatches, but not much else. Then along Bell's Lane just before dusk, I spotted a Short-eared Owl and a Red-tailed Hawk.
February 16: It was the Great Back Yard Bird Count weekend, but we had no electric power due to the ice storm. So, I went for a brisk stroll along Bell's Lane, where the winds were wreaking havoc. Fallen branches everywhere! I had a beautiful view of an Eastern Bluebird early on, and eventually had decent views of some Yellow-bellied Sapsuckers and Red-bellied Woodpeckers. No raptors were in sight, but I did spot several Common Mergansers on one of the ponds.
February 22-23: Jacqueline and I took a random drive around the periphery of Staunton, and came across a variety of raptors. In front of Chipotle on Rt. 250 was a young Red-shouldered Hawk, and we soon saw two adults of that species: one was about a mile north, along National Avenue, and the other was along Bell's Lane. In that general area is where we also saw a Northern Harrier, a young Red-tailed Hawk, and an American Kestrel, along with a Red-bellied Woodpecker and a Yellow-rumped Warbler. The next day (Sunday) we went for a walk along the road at the Boy Scout Camp, but didn't see much other than a Yellow-rumped Warbler, a Field Sparrow, and a bunch of Dark-eyed Juncos. Elsewhere in the Swoope area, we saw two Killdeers, some Eastern Bluebirds, and some American Kestrels, but no other raptors, and no Shrike, once again.
(February 22, 2025)
February 25-28: Jacqueline and I went hiking at Madison Run (east of Grottoes), and saw a Mourning Cloak butterfly but no birds of note. Two days later (Thursday) we hiked along the Johnson's Draft trail near Braley Pond, but saw little more than a Dark-eyed junco. And on Friday (the 28th) we drove up to Harrisonburg and then the Mount Crawford area, apparently in search of some rare bird. (I forget what it was.) We stopped at the Green Valley Book Fair, then passed the Rockingham County Buc-ee's construction site, and ended up seeing various hawks, woodpeckers, a Yellow-rumped Warbler, and a Brown Creeper.
Additional photos and montages, including individual photos of some of the birds in the above montages, can be seen on the Wild Birds chronological (2025) page.