More Birding at the Burlington Waterfront
Time: 8:15 to 9:15 AM on February 19
Location: Burlington Waterfront - walked from Waterfront Park to Perkins Pier to the bridge
Weather: Clear, no precipitation. 20° F with a consistent biting wind.
Habitat: Lake, softened by a breakwater. Some shrubs and trees on the shore.
For this journal entry, I also went birding at the Burlington Waterfront, checking most of the same places as I did two weeks ago. It was colder today, and I also saw fewer birds, perhaps due to the cold. The only species I was able to identify were Mallards and Common Goldeneye. I saw one pair of Mallards by Waterfront Park, and a larger group near the bridge. Also near the bridge, there were a pair of Goldeneye. These birds were behaving similarly to how they normally do, and they didn't seem to be paying much attention to the cold. However, there also was a group of Mallards hanging out in the pools of still water in the Burlington Wastewater Treatment Plant. I think this may have been warmer than the open lake water, since there are walls surrounding the pool that can help break then wind. These mallards were also staying pretty still and not moving around much, which could have further helped them to conserve heat.
Besides the birds I was able to identify, I also saw a sparrow or junco-sized and shaped bird hopping around in the bushes. It wasn't staying very still, and the lighting also made it hard to note the colors of its plumage, so I couldn't identify it for certain beyond that it was a Passerine. It did appear a bit plumper than Sparrows or Juncos usually are, so I think it may have fluffed up its feathers to help conserve heat. Additionally I saw some crows flying overhead and landing in a tree, but they never made any noise so I can't tell if they were American or Fish Crows.
There were not many clearly dead trees in the area where I was walking, however that may have been where many of the birds that seemed absent this week were hiding. I imagine that the birds most likely to use cavities in dead trees as a way to keep warm in the winter are passerines and woodpeckers. Passerines are small enough to fit into sufficiently big holes, and woodpeckers can make a hole bigger as needed since they drill into trees to find food anyways.
Species List:
40 Mallard
2 Common Goldeneye
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