Well, here it is 1/1/12, the beginning of my blogging career. I decided to initiate this online journal to keep a running account of my travels and adventures during the upcoming year and hopefully beyond.
Birding, a.k.a. bird watching, has almost always been a big part of my life, but lately I have strayed away from it. I vowed late last year to reinvigorate my birding interest by creating a challenge for myself. I decided to go back to my roots in birding and focus on my home area of Dauphin County. I intend to bird, at least once during the year, in every one of the counties 40 municipalities and keep track of the species I observe in each. Today was the beginning of the journey and I started in Lancaster County!
Yesterday, 12/31/11, a hatch year male Painted Bunting was found in Washington Boro by Justin Bosler while he was participating on the Lancaster Christmas Bird Count. This is an excellent sighting and would represent a county life bird for me. Unable to make it down yesterday I decided to make it priority number one today.
I arrived shortly after 7 A.M. with the morning light just starting to penetrate the brush piles located along River Road in "downtown" Washington Boro. Numerous Dark-eyed Juncos, White-throated and Song Sparrows were already up and active. Shortly after new activity to my right attracted my interest. A few Carolina Chickadees, Tufted Titmice and then BOOM--the female Painted Bunting. I delighted in the observation for mere seconds until a pugnacious Northern Mockingbird flew in, full of aggression, scattering the smaller birds. I lingered till after 9 A.M. to no avail, our little southern visitor decided not to show himself again to me.
Photos of the Painted Bunting, taken by Tom Amico, can be seen here http://www.nemesisbird.com/2011/12/painted-bunting-washington-boro/
Feeling guilty that I started my 2012 birding year off in Lancaster County I decided I would make amends on the way home and hit some locations along PA 441 in Londonderry Township, Royalton and Middletown. I made stops near Three Mile Island and The Canal Lock Boat Launch in Londonderry Twp, Water Street and Kiwanis Park in Royalton and Union Street in Middletown. Overall I tallied 38 species in Dauphin County during my homeward journey.
All in all a nice morning of birding highlighted by my brief observation of the Painted Bunting....to bad it wasn't in Dauphin County! Oh well, there is always tomorrow!
Species for year Dauphin--38, PA--40
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