Birds of Six Sons Farm
An Ongoing Count
Photos courtesy of Wix and Unsplash
In addition to many native plant species—including a few uncommon ones like native prickly pear—our farm is also home to a large number of bird species. A few we've recently welcomed back after decades without hearing or seeing them. All this, thanks to our well-managed woodland and Dale transitioning most of the crop fields back to grasslands and prairie.
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We started compiling a list of bird species we've witnessed on the farm, and we know there are many more that reside here or migrate through. So far (organized by category):
Ring-Necked Pheasant
Ruffed Grouse
Wild Turkey
Northern Bobwhite
Turkey Vulture
Bald Eagle
Red-Tailed Hawk
American Kestrel
Sandhill Crane
Killdeer
Mourning Dove
Black-Billed Cuckoo
Yellow-Billed Cuckoo
Eastern Screech Owl
Great Horned Owl
Barred Owl
Common Nighthawk
Whip-poor-will
Ruby-Throated Hummingbird
Red-Headed Woodpecker
Red-Bellied Woodpecker
Down Woodpecker
Hairy Woodpecker
Northern Flicker
Pileated Woodpecker
Eastern Phoebe
Great Crested Flycatcher
Eastern Kingbird
Warbling Vireo
Blue Jay
American Crow
Tree Swallow
Cliff Swallow
Barn Swallow
Black-Capped Chickadee
Tufted Titmouse
White-Breasted Nuthatch
House Wren
Blue-Gray Gnatcatcher
Eastern Bluebird
American Robin
Gray Catbird
Brown Thrasher
European Starling
Cedar Waxwing
Blue-Winged Warbler
Tennessee Warbler
Common Yellowthroat
Scarlet Tanager
Spotted Towhee
Eastern Towhee
Chipping Sparrow
Field Sparrow
Song Sparrow
Dark-Eyed Junco
Northern Cardinal
Rose-Breasted Grosbeak
Indigo Bunting
Red-Winged Blackbird
Eastern Meadowlark
Brewer's Blackbird
Common Grackle
Orchard Oriole
Baltimore/Northern Oriole
Purple Finch
House Finch
American Goldfinch
House Sparrow
We'll continue adding to this list as the seasons roll by. In the meantime, learn more about bird identification at Cornell University's All About Birds website. Happy birdwatching!