Damon's Birds for the Week of April 29 - May 4

Have noticed the dearth of posting on the blog lately? Paul has noticed that I haven't emailed him much at all the past week too, but he already knew why. You see, I am in the middle of moving and, while it isn't quite like the drama that skirted close to disaster that my move from Kentucky to Pennsylvania was, it is still a lot of work. Add onto that that I also volunteered for Earth Day at my kids' school (yes, they celebrated a week after everyone else) and also have worked a bunch lately plus whole bunch of other things and that leaves you with one exhausted and overwhelmed person with little time to go birding and even less energy to write about it.

But what is Paul's excuse?

So that is why I haven't written much lately (and probably for a couple more days, the official internet transition to the new house goes on today, so wish us luck!), there is good news! Now that I have a house and yard of my own again I can start a house list!

Ok, the house list won't be as good as Paul's and it won't be as good as when I lived overlooking a reservoir in Kentucky, but once I took possession of the house I started keeping a list of birds I've seen from it. So even before I moved in, I already had 11 birds on the list. Yeah, mostly suburban birds, but just wait until I get my feeders up!

This week I had a non-birding trip to Tyler Arboretum where I saw a Pine Siskin (which is a rare bird sighting but I will not put it on eBird because I am a bitter, bitter man) and my weekly trip to Heinz Wildlife Refuge. While at the refuge (which was oddly low on warblers) I spent part of the time with a birding group, which is good and bad. Good for the many eyes, but bad because different birders have different priorities and agendas and mine are more on the lines of the orioles and warblers and less for the ubiquitous Osprey and Great Blue Herons. I always joke that you can tell the birders at Heinz by the way they react to the Bald Eagles, Osprey, and Great Blue Herons, and it really turns out to be true. But I did see one oriole, heard another (not going on my list), and saw some almost fledged Great Horned Owls.

102; Pine Sisken; 4/28/13; Tyler Arboretum; Media, Pa
103; Orchard Oriole; 5/4/13; John Heinz National Wildlife Refuge; Philadelphia, PA
104; Eastern Kingbird; 5/4/13; John Heinz National Wildlife Refuge; Philadelphia, PA