Thirty hardy birders started out on March 28 from the Edgewood Park tennis court parking lot to make the second of our twice-annual explorations of this often surprising park. At 37 degrees and breezy when we started, the feeling of sun from time to time on our faces and backs made us all happy. Our circuit from the tennis courts to Edgewood Avenue and around the west-side paths was momentarily blocked by dead trees and impassable thickets of mugwort; we persevered, nevertheless, and were rewarded with 37 species, including early-arriving Ospreys, Eastern Phoebes, and Tree Swallows. Highlights were three Brown Creepers, two Yellow-bellied Sapsuckers, a Golden-crowned Kinglet, and a loose flock of about 7 Eastern Phoebes that accompanied us all the way as we returned along the west-side path to the parking lot. The many habitats at Edgewood Park can always be counted on for a great three hours or so of birding.
DeWitt Allen