path from the end of Brickhouse Road to the upper end of Falls Lake

8:30-10:45, overcast, sunny, calm

Lots of singing and a few newly arrived migrants!

See more notes on special observations at the bottom!

ANSERIFORMES
Canada Goose	2	larger male following the smaller female up the lake
Wood Duck	2	flew past too quickly for a good look
PODICIPEDIFORMES
None!
PELICANIFORMES
Double-crested Cormorant	1	on the lake
CICONIIFORMES
Great Blue Heron	2	flew past
FALCONIFORMES
Turkey Vulture	12
Red-tailed Hawk	1	beside the highway
Red-shouldered Hawk	1	heard calling briefly in the distance near the lake
CHARADRIIFORMES
Ring-billed Gull	20	over the lake and scattered elsewhere
COLUMBIFORMES
Rock Pigeon	?	near bridges and in town
Mourning Dove	10
CORACIIFORMES
Belted Kingfisher	1	hear near the lake
PICIFORMES
Red-bellied Woodpecker	2	calling
Downy Woodpecker	1
Northern Flicker	4	calling and flying between wood lots
PASSERIFORMES
FLYCATCHER FAMILY
VIREO FAMILY
White-eyed Vireo	1	singing in a thicket -- but allowing good views -- its song had the usual nasal quality but lacked clicks either at start or end!
JAY AND CROW FAMILY
Blue Jay	8	including some doing their weird March bugling
American Crow	10	scattered singles and small parties
CHICKADEE FAMILY
Carolina Chickadee	10	including 2 singing briefly
Tufted Titmouse	10	including lots of singing
WREN FAMILY
Carolina Wren	8	with lots of singing
KINGLET FAMILY
Ruby-crowned Kinglet	6	including one singing sub-song
THRUSH FAMILY
American Robin	10	scattered
Hermit Thrush	1	showing its ruddy tail
Eastern Bluebird	2	with a little singing
MIMIC FAMILY
Brown Thrasher	1	singing nicely -- each phrase twice (mostly)
Northern Mockingbird	1	around the buildings -- not singing
STARLING FAMILY
European Starling	20	often on power lines
WAXWING FAMILY
Cedar Waxwing	4	flying over -- with high-pitched zeeee
WOOD-WARBLER FAMILY
Yellow-rumped Warbler	20	but none in bright spring plumage of males
Common Yellowthroat	1	male singing in plain view (a little hesitantly) then flying northward
NEW-WORLD SPARROW FAMILY
Eastern Towhee	6	often singing or uttering their distinctive "chwink" calls but skulking in bushes
Chipping Sparrow	15	in one flock
Field Sparrow	2	in hedgerows -- not allowing good views
Dark-eyed Junco	20	with the Chipping Sparrows
Song Sparrow	3	bushes beside roads
White-throated Sparrow	15
CARDINAL FAMILY
Northern Cardinal	15	including lots of singing
BLACKBIRD FAMILY
Red-winged Blackbird	4	females flew overhead
Brown-headed Cowbird	2	males flew over with their distinctive flight whistle
FINCH FAMILY
American Goldfinch	4	flew over without permitting good views

NOTES

Lots of singing by Northern Cardinals, Tufted Titmice, Carolina Wrens, Eastern Towhees ... all species that remain in NC for the winter, so they can start defending their breeding-season territories whenever it is warm enough.

The only two migrants were the Common Yellowthroat and the White-eyed Vireo ... both returning from wintering quarters farther south (both winter in Florida and the Caribbean).   These two species are among the first to arrive each spring.