Field Observation Journal Entry #2 (3/3)

Around 1:20 pm, on the lovely Tuesday afternoon of March 3rd, I went birding along the waterfront. It was a beautiful 52 degrees Fahrenheit outside and the sun was shining. Overall, it was a perfect day to do my field journal because so many birds out and about soaking up the sun.
While I was waiting for the bus to downtown Burlington, I saw 3 black-capped chickadees in pines trees by the University Heights bus stop.
The Burlington Waterfront is mostly open area with trees and shrubs scattered along the shore. It is also a great place for birds to feed, since many people visit it everyday and occasionally leave behind or drop food. Down by the water front I saw over 30 mallards. Some of them were on lake Champlain, but the majority were dabbling their bills in the mud and puddles looking for bits of food around the boardwalk and sitting in the sun. I also saw 3 common mergansers swimming in the lake and diving for fish. The common mergansers would occasionally stand on the ice sheets on the lake, possibly trying to warm up after being in the cold water. There were also approximately 20 ring-billed gulls seen along the boardwalk. Most of the ring-billed gulls I saw were gliding through the air maybe searching for food and a couple were swimming in the lake. I heard many rock pigeons under the boardwalk where some were definitely roosting. Out of the 20 rock pigeons I saw, a couple of them seemed to be trying to court females.
I am not sure that the behavior I saw among the birds was normal for the winter season, considering the weather that day made it feel like spring. Many of the birds were much more active than I would assume they would be during colder days. The 52 degree weather definitely encouraged the birds to take advantage of the day. On cold winter days, one might expect them to roost somewhere with shelter, such as in the trees and shrubs, under the boardwalk and docks or in and under buildings near the lake. Tuesday's birding excursion was a great success and I am very pleased with what I observed overall.

Publicado el 05 de marzo de 2020 a las 10:23 PM por kaglenn