Midsummer birding at Berlin Pond

After appointments this morning, I swung by a local birding hotspot — Berlin Pond — and was surprised to find, even in mid-morning, a lot going on.  The air was just full of feeding birds.  Swallows, Cedar Waxwings, Eastern Kingbirds, and others chased after insects while young Yellow-bellied Sapsuckers chased one another.

The pond is a protected water supply for the city of Montpelier.  This time of year, much of it is clogged with lilly pads and other aquatic weeds.  Amongst them, a Common Loon cruised, diving every so often for food.

I watched a Broad-winged Hawk being harassed by a Red-Winged Blackbird and thought once again, “Why don’t you just stop and clean that blackbird’s clock.”  But once it shook off the chaser, the hawk hightailed it off to the south.

Heading down to the south end of the pond, I came upon a Great Blue Heron who acted like I couldn’t see him.  Four juvenile ducks paddled around, in and out of the cattails (it looks to me like they are young wood ducks.) 

Juvenile Wood Ducks duck into the weeds

One of the dozens of Cedar Waxwings

So, in about an hour, I saw at least 30 species and missed a number more.  My dog was “helping” me bird and several times, she yanked on the leash just as I brought the binoculars in focus.  Such is the challenge of birding with a Vizsla.

So, as a fellow birder wrote:  it may be late July, and the birding a bit slower, but there are still fun places to visit and birds to be discovered.