Journal 6: Bird Observations

Location: Carkeek Park, South Trail Bluff

Weather: sunny, warm, clear skies

Time: 2:30-3:30 pm

                Since visiting my site last week I noticed how large the shrubs and small trees in my space have become. Some species like the Sword Ferns and Thimbleberry has leaves that are starting to die and new starts emerging. My site was very active during this time of day, pollinators and flying insects could be seen and heard moving from shrub to shrub. The clear paths I would take through the forest have become overgrown with small plant species and logs that were once sparsely covered by moss are now overed.

                The first bird species I closely observed was the Golden-Crowned Kinglet (right picture, upper right corner). This bird was small, with a greenish yellow back, wings, and face. It was slim and had darker coloring on its wings and face. The bird’s song a short “click” sound and reacted to my attempt at bird calls by moving between the large shrubs in the forest. The bird was mostly seen perching on the small forest trees and large shrubs, staying hidden in the light green leaves. Occasionally the bird would take flight and move from the larger trees or hover above the shrubs, but at most points in my observations, the bird remained fairly visible, perched in the outer branches of the shrubs. When he flew his wings fluttered quickly, exposing the large yellow bellow and dark wings. The bird was seen alone and appears to be territorial towards predators.

                The second bird species I closely observed was the American Robin (left picture, right corner). Two robins were seen together, taking flight occasionally, but mostly remaining deep in the large shrubs and trees. They would sometimes walk on the forest floor and would hop from branch to branch in the large shrubs. The robin I saw most frequently had the characteristic white circle around the eyes, red belly, large beak, and brown body. They were fairly large, but still smaller than a foot high. They did not seem to be alarmed by my “bird call” and would stay in the area, but they would flap their wings soon after I spoke with them. The robins remained low to the ground in a shady area, apparently searching for something in the bushes, most likely food. It appears from my observations that they are social with their own species and remain together while looking for food.

Bird watching was an exciting task. I had difficulty engaging with the birds from a close distance and figuring out what their behavior was from their place in the trees, but I enjoyed spotting hidden birds and trying to speak with them. I also tried to snap a few photos, which I included though they have been zoomed and do not clearly show the full birds’ bodies.