I led a field trip for ANS today (Sat., Jan 6th) to the Natl. Arboretum.
There was a great turnout, and we had a very nice walk on this balmy January
day, with the following species seen:

Double-crested Cormorant
Canada Goose
Turkey Vulture
Bald Eagle
Merlin
Ring-billed Gull
Great Black-backed Gull
Herring Gull
Belted Kingfisher
Red-bellied Woodpecker
Downy Woodpecker
Ruby-crowned Kinglet
Cedar Waxwing
Carolina Wren
Winter Wren
Northern Mockingbird
Brown Thrasher
Eastern Bluebird
American Robin
Carolina Chickadee
Tufted Titmouse
White-breasted Nuthatch
Blue Jay
American Crow
Fish Crow
European Starling
House Finch
Eastern Towhee
White-throated Sparrow
Northern Cardinal
Common Grackle

Amazingly, we also saw 2 sulphurs (butterflies), 1 other unidentified dark
butterfly, and 1 dragonfly:
Cloudless Sulphur
Clouded Sulphur
Darner (prob. Common Green)

Other birds of note seen today in DC included:
Black Duck (Kenilworth Aquatic Garden - KAG)
Hooded Merganser (KAG)
Common Merganser (KAG)
American Kestrel (Arboretum, after the walk)
Lesser Black-backed Gull (Georgetown Res)
Laughing Gull (Anacostia River Park)
Eastern Phoebe (KAG)
American Goldfinch (KAG)
Savannah Sparrow (Kenilworth Park)
Fox Sparrow (2 at KAG, 1 was singing!)
Swamp Sparrow (KAG)
Red-winged Blackbird (KAG)

No sign of the Rusty Blackbirds or Great Egrets at KAG seen last month.

Good birding,
Paul Pisano
Arlington, VA