22 February 2021

A male Blue-winged Teal (# 59) provided a species new to the annual list today when it was seen on the lake in the company of nine shovelers. Teal and shovelers often form associations with the teal usually being the dominant species but not in this instance.

21 February 2021

The owl parade continues.

A half dozen years ago a screech-owl box came into my possession, and therefore into my yard, from a birding acquaintance in Smith County. Over the years it has attracted the attention of local screech-owls from time to time, mostly during winter.

Today I noticed a chickadee and a titmouse near the entrance to the box; they were nervously peering into the box and acting quite agitated, so I surmised that a screech-owl had once again taken up residence. Sure enough, a half hour later I noticed that the entrance to the box no longer looked like a black disc but now was of a color that somewhat blended with the color of the old wooden box itself. A handy pair of bins confirmed that a rufous morph Eastern Screech-Owl (# 58) was perched in the entrance, surveying his or her little slice of paradise. The local feeder birds were few and far between.

20 February 2021

An owl near the premises.

As I was going out to fill the bird feeders at exactly 6:00 AM this morning, I was greeted by the hooting of a Barred Owl, off to the west in City Lake Natural Area, a small Cookeville natural area. I had been hearing Barred Owls calling in the natural area for a couple of years and have even seen or heard them in my nearby yard at least once during that period. This particular classic rendition of the who-cooks-for-you call in the first light of dawn was the first evidence of the continued presence of Barred Owls within hearing distance of the yard this year and so it became species # 56 on my annual yard list, which I maintain based on all birds I can see or hear while I am within the boundaries of my 2-acre yard.

Later in the day another new species for the annual list in the yard was supplied by distant, but loud, flocks of Sandhill Cranes (# 57) that were noted about 11:30 AM and 2:00 PM.

18 February 2021

The next new species for this year was Northern Shoveler (# 55), represented on the lake by 5 males and 2 females.

17 February 2021

More snow and more new annual species

Two male Rusty Blackbirds (# 51) found the feeder area attractive today, while the lake attracted three species of ducks: a male Ring-necked Duck (# 52), a female Bufflehead (# 53), and five Hooded Mergansers (# 54), including 3 males and 2 females.

16 February 2021

A snow event and its predictable avian consequence.

Overnight snow cover worked its usual winter magic by bringing three Fox Sparrows (# 50) to the feeders on this date.

14 February 2021

Four Ring-billed Gull (# 49) briefly foraged over the lake today, providing another new annual species in the yeard.

5 February 2021

The next new annual species for this year was a Brown Creeper (# 48).

26 January 2021

A calling Red-shouldered Hawk (# 47) became the next species new to the annual list today.

24 January 2021

A pair of Gadwalls (# 46) provided a species new to the annual list today.

8 January 2021

One new annual species made an appearance today, Swamp Sparrow (# 45).

5 January 2021

One new annual species made an appearance today, Red-winged Blackbird (# 44).

4 January 2021

Canada Goose (# 43) was the only species new to the annual list today.

3 January 2021

Only one new annual species made an appearance today, Mallard (# 42).

2 January 2021

Six more species were added to the 2021 yard list today, as follows: Northern Flicker (# 36), Hermit Thrush (# 37), Cedar Waxwing (# 38), Dark-eyed Junco (# 39), Black Vulture (# 40), and Red-tailed Hawk (# 41).

1 January 2021

The new year began on a day when the temperature rose to 70 degrees Fahrenheit and the skies offered intermittent rain. With the new year also began a new annual list of bird species identified at 2675 Lakeland Dr. in Putnam Co., TN. Thirty-five species were recorded in the yard, all expected species for the time of year at this site. Here is a list of those species in the order that I wrote them down but not in the order that they were actually encountered:

Pied-billed Grebe

Great Blue Heron

Belted Kingfisher

Yellow-bellied Sapsucker

American Crow

Carolina Chickadee

Tufted Titmouse

White-breated Nuthatch

Winter Wren

Carolina Wren

Ruby-crowned Kinglet

Eastern Bluebird

American Robin

Northern Mockingbird

Yellow-rumped Warbler

Eastern Towhee

Song Sparrow

White-throated Sparrow

Northern Cardinal

American Goldfinch

Blue Jay

House Finch

Red-bellied Woodpecker

Downy Woodpecker

Mourning Dove

European Starling

Golden-crowned Kinglet

Brown Thrasher

Turkey Vulture

Eastern Phoebee

Pine Siskin

Purple Finch

Hairy Woodpecker

Northern Flicker

Common Grackle