A walk through the Granite Area of the Pataspco Valley State Park on
Saturday was very nice. Wayne Gordon joined me during a seven-hour hike that
tallied thirty-nine species for Mid-winter Bird Count. We saw lots of
Red-breasted Nuthatches at close range and heard many more. A single Hermit
Thrush was found on ht edge of an old Christmas Tree farm. The Thrush, busy
eating berries, accepted our presence without so much as a second glance.
Although we saw Downy Woodpeckers in the area; the bird found excavating a
hole last week was not near that cavity.

We did not find the Swamp and Field Sparrows until the final hour of the
walk. They had been hiding in a field close the Job Corps buildings. I was
sooooo happy to see them.

 15  Black Vulture 
 19  Turkey Vulture
 94  Canada Goose  
  0  Red-shouldered Hawk
  1  Buteo Species 
  1  Accipiter Species
  0  Ring-billed Gull
  1  Rock Pigeon   
  8  Mourning Dove 
  4  Pileated Woodpecker
 11  Northern Flicker
 14  Red-bellied Woodpecker
  6  Hairy Woodpecker
 11  Downy Woodpecker
 26  Blue Jay   
100  American Crow 
 24  Fish Crow   
 13  Crow Species 
 33  Carolina Chickadee
 18  Tufted Titmouse
  5  White-breasted Nuthatch
 25  Red-breasted Nuthatch
  7  Brown Creeper 
 12  Carolina Wren 
  1  Wren Species (possible House)
  1  Hermit Thrush 
 25  Eastern Bluebird
 29  Golden-crowned Kinglet
  6  European Starling
  6  Red-winged Blackbird
  1  Common Grackle
 51  Northern Cardinal
  8  American Goldfinch
  6  Eastern Towhee
 92  Slate-colored Junco
  9  Field Sparrow 
155  White-throated Sparrow
  1  Swamp Sparrow 
 45  Song Sparrow  

Keith Eric Costley

Randallstown, Baltimore County, MD