Absent grackles!

         Many grackles nest in the fir trees that surround the cemetery. While they are nesting they are very raucous when Kaia and I get near the trees. They create such racket that the only other bird loud enough to be heard is a nesting robin. Today the grackles were all gone.

       In the absence of their noise it was possible to hear many other birds. Using my phone's Merlin App from Cornell I made a  recording and these are the birds I heard: song sparrow, blue jay, common yellowthroat, red-winged blackbird, eurasian collard dove, chipping sparrow, house wren, american robin and grasshopper sparrow. Not a single grackle was recorded. Perhaps there could have been more varieties because this recording was less than five minutes. No ducks, geese or pheasants today. 

     The app is a free download from Cornell. Being able to identify species by their song adds to my outdoor pleasure.

Takk for alt,

Al

                                    Grasshopper sparrow.