July 2, 2021: What’s Flying Over the Lagoon?
As the very hot weather has descended on Hershey’s Mill, it’s led to an overabundance of the insect population above the lagoon. And as a result, several bird species are taking advantage of the smorgasbord!
TREE SWALLOWS – The Tree Swallow is about five inches long. It has a forked tail, metallic green to blue head, back and wing feathers, and white feathers on its underside. Females are duller in color.
BARN SWALLOWS – Barn Swallows are bright little birds, with blue “suits” and orange “dress shirts.” From the tops of their heads to their tails, their feathers are blue. On the other side, from their throats to the undersides of their tails, they are reddish-orange. They also have a bright orange patch of feathers directly above their beaks. This species is quite small, with most individuals about six or seven inches long and weighing in at less than an ounce.
CHIMNEY SWIFTS – Chimney Swifts are very small birds with slender bodies and very long, narrow, curved wings. They have round heads, short necks, and short, tapered tails. The wide bill is so short that it is actually hard to see.
A very large population of CEDAR WAXWINGS – A treat to find in your binocular view field, the Cedar Waxwing is a silky, shiny collection of brown, gray, and lemon-yellow, accented with a subdued crest, rakish black mask, and brilliant-red wax droplets on the wing feathers. Cedar waxwings were discussed in a Spotlight from February 2021.
Happy Birding!