American Kestrel Sighting

Yan Thomas shared a report of her American Kestrel sighting a few days ago:

I watched the kestrel for several minutes about ten yards right off my house on Dudley Road on the field in somewhat of a declivity, wings out to the side, obviously "working on" some kind of prey underneath. Though a small hawk the colors were dramatic, mostly rufous, face a black and white curved pattern.

These birds have become much rarer in our area lately. Thanks, Yan.

Bird Sightings

Yan Thomas has been kind enough to share the details of some bird sightings here in Bedford. Please send news of any interesting flora or fauna you encounter to bedfordlandstewards@gmail.com. Here are Yan's notes:

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January 13, 2011, sighted for the second time this season a Red-bellied woodpecker (male) at a suet feeder on Dudley Rd.

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December 15, 2010, sighted a pair of Red-bellied woodpeckers (separately) feeding on mixed seed on the ground under my bird feeder on Dudley Rd. A misnomer, they do not have red bellies; the male has a red crown and nape, the female, only a red nape!

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November 12, 2010, A flock of Pine Siskins visited my thistle feeder on Dudley Road. A small finch with dark, heavily –streaked breast
stripes, a touch of yellow in its wings and base of tail. The flock did not remain into the next day.

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November 23, 2010, A male Pileated Woodpecker (up to 20” in length) visited the backwoods behind my house. When it flew most striking were the large flashing white patches on the underwings against the black body. When it landed on a dead tree the very red crest was evident and through the binoculars looked like a huge flaming-red helmet. Large oblong holes in the tree’s trunk showed where the bird was feeding (carpenter ants). What caught my attention at first was the LOUD irregular kik-kik call like that of a Flicker.