31 March 2025
Yesterday morning it was sprinkling when I left for the Duck Hollow outing. It looked like more rain would come so there were only three of us: Andy, John and myself.
At the start we saw a common merganser pair, a flock of three lesser scaup, two wood ducks in flight and one bufflehead (as promised).
The most numerous two species are usually mallards and Canada geese but yesterday they were topped by northern cardinals and red-winged blackbirds conspicuously singing, chasing, eating and chasing again. (The photos are from Wikimedia, not our outing.)
Andy found a tiny snail on the move with its antennae leading the way. By the time I took its picture it was hiding under leaves. Its outstretched neck and head are inside the pink circle but it is so dark that it’s hard to see.
Back at the parking lot John pointed out a northern rough-winged swallow flying over the river, considered “rare” by eBird because it showed up in March.
If you haven’t seen or heard another new arrival yet, the eastern phoebe, visit Duck Hollow. We saw/heard three.
View our checklist here https://ebird.org/checklist/S221872111
Duck Hollow, Allegheny, Pennsylvania, US
Mar 30, 2025 8:30 AM – 10:30 AM
30 species
Canada Goose (Branta canadensis) 9
Wood Duck (Aix sponsa) 2
Mallard (Anas platyrhynchos) 12
Lesser Scaup (Aythya affinis) 3
Bufflehead (Bucephala albeola) 1
Common Merganser (Mergus merganser) 2 Pair
Mourning Dove (Zenaida macroura) 8
American Coot (Fulica americana) 1
Killdeer (Charadrius vociferus) 2
Ring-billed Gull (Larus delawarensis) 3
American Herring Gull (Larus smithsonianus) 2
Turkey Vulture (Cathartes aura) 1
Red-tailed Hawk (Buteo jamaicensis) 1
Belted Kingfisher (Megaceryle alcyon) 1
Downy Woodpecker (Dryobates pubescens) 2
Northern Flicker (Colaptes auratus) 1
Eastern Phoebe (Sayornis phoebe) 3
Blue Jay (Cyanocitta cristata) 9
American Crow (Corvus brachyrhynchos) 4
Carolina Chickadee (Poecile carolinensis) 4
Tufted Titmouse (Baeolophus bicolor) 5
Northern Rough-winged Swallow (Stelgidopteryx serripennis) 1 (This is a rare bird in late March)
Carolina Wren (Thryothorus ludovicianus) 2
Northern Mockingbird (Mimus polyglottos) 1
American Robin (Turdus migratorius) 7
White-throated Sparrow (Zonotrichia albicollis) 8
Song Sparrow (Melospiza melodia) 9
Red-winged Blackbird (Agelaius phoeniceus) 10
Brown-headed Cowbird (Molothrus ater) 2
Northern Cardinal (Cardinalis cardinalis) 16