October 4, 2005 [LINK]
First sapsucker of season
A quick stroll along the trail behind the Staunton-Augusta Rescue Squad this morning yielded the following highlights:
- Yellow-bellied sapsucker (F) (FOS)
- Hairy woodpecker (F)
- Downy woodpecker (F)
- Phoebe
- E. wood pewee
- Palm warbler
- Magnolia warbler (prob.; or else Cape May or prairie warbler)
- Cooper's hawk, chasing flock of starlings
That makes four years in a row that I first saw a Yellow-bellied sapsucker on either October 3 or 4! I also heard some kinglets, but did not see any. Butterfly numbers are declining day by day, as the temperatures drop.