Monday, May 10, 2010

Friday's Ovenbird sighting

I just wanted to share the details of our Ovenbird sighting. Friday morning, Lynn and I happened to arrive at the front entry to A-21 at the same time. We swapped "what did you see" lists for a minute then both saw a bird fly from a shrub down to the ground. Determined never to say "oh it was just a Song Sparrow" we both pulled out binoculars, and Lynn found it first, "It's an OVENBIRD!"

It ran along under the landscaping in front of the building, showing its orange crown outlined with black and white. We were intrigued by its rail-like posture and movements, as it held the tail at an upward angle and walked with a somewhat stalking gait.

We had great views of a pretty little wood warbler which is more often heard than seen. http://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Ovenbird/sounds
The link is to Cornell University's other bird info page. (I usually send you to Birds of North America Online, this page is All About Birds)

Doing a google search just now for Ovenbird images, I came across a Robert Frost poem. Having grown up in New Hampshire, Frost is a poet near and dear to my heart, so here's his poem from the Mountain Interval collection, dated 1920. The Oven Bird.
enjoy
and keep your ears open - the woods are FULL of song these days - I'm sure the Ovenbird is there

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