Perfect conditions for the 5th annual Stanton Bird Club Tracking and Snowshoeing trip at Woodbury Sanctuary this morning! .
Trip report by Steve Reed, Leader: The Stanton Bird Club on February 16th sponsored a winter tracking trip in our Woodbury Nature Sanctuary. The participants were leader and recorder Steve Reed, Elaine Freeman, Doug Boyd, and Judy Marden. We were equipped with snowshoes and tracking cards. Tracks were hard to find since it snowed and rained on Friday, but it was a beautiful day…Sunny and 30-40 degrees. In places the snow was 2 feet deep. We walked about 1 and 1/2 miles. We were able to ID the following: Coyote, Snowshoe Hare, Porcupine, Red Squirrel, and a Mouse. There was a running debate about deer tracks…the nays won. Because of it’s many tracks, the animal of the day was Coyote, even though Judy and Elaine tried to claim a possum from tracks in Elaine’s yard. Of course, we keep looking for birds {that’s what we do}. We saw or heard the following: Coopers Hawk in Staples parking lot, Bald Eagle, American Crow, Chickadee, Ring-billed Gull, Blue Jay, Starlings, and Rock Pigeons, and the bird of the day was the Pileated Woodpecker. It pecked, called, and showed his red head for about 5 minutes. This was the 5th year of our walks at Woodbury. Every year there have been challenges, but it’s always fun. Please join us next year.
