A lovely morning with sunny skies and a temperature of 20 degrees.

We had a long look and listen with a Northern Mockingbird who did excellent imitations of Blue jay, Willow Flycatcher, Red-winged Blackbird, Northern Oriole and several others.

Species list: double-crested cormorant, black-crowned night heron, mute swan, Canada goose, mallard, American black duck, ring-billed gull,  common tern, Caspian tern, chimney swift, belted kingfisher, willow flycatcher, eastern kingbird, barn swallow, tree swallow, cliff swallow, rough-winged swallow, blue jay, common raven, American crow, black-capped chickadee, white-breasted nuthatch, northern mockingbird, gray catbird, American robin, blue-gray gnatcatcher, European starling, warbling vireo, red-eyed vireo, yellow warbler,  American redstart, house sparrow, red-winged blackbird, brown-headed cowbird, common grackle, Baltimore oriole, orchard oriole, northern cardinal, American goldfinch, indigo bunting, song sparrow.  (41  species)

As you can see, we had a good variety of bird species:

Other sights:

Some botany:

Park scenes:

This morning’s group:

NATURE POETRY

Hyla Brook

By June our brook’s run out of song and speed.
Sought for much after that, it will be found
Either to have gone groping underground
(And taken with it all the Hyla breed
That shouted in the mist a month ago,
Like ghost of sleigh-bells in a ghost of snow)–
Or flourished and come up in jewel-weed,
Weak foliage that is blown upon and bent
Even against the way its waters went.
Its bed is left a faded paper sheet
Of dead leaves stuck together by the heat–
A brook to none but who remember long.
This as it will be seen is other far
Than with brooks taken otherwhere in song.
We love the things we love for what they are. – Robert Frost

Miles Hearn