Awaiting fall migrants #1,030

Since moving to Connecticut from Florida early this year, my birding style has become much more passive. There, I commonly spent two or more hours seeking out varied habitats along the route we followed nearly every morning before sunrise. It was not unusual to encounter ten nocturnal and crepuscular species within the first 20 minutes. My expected total species count almost always included over 20 species, exceeding BirdChaser's  recommended Minimun Daily Requirement. 

Here in Connecticut, weather permitting. we enjoy a mid-morning walk of a little over mile. We follow a loop that includes several steep inclines, first  from our home at 800 feet down to 700 feet elevation at the end of our street. We then climb to 760 feet to a bluff which overlooks Diamond Lake, and down to a nice level quarter of a mile along the edge of the lake at 690 feet, before the final arduous trek back up to "The Castle on the Hill," as neighbors like to call it. 

On our walks I carry my iPhone but neither binoculars nor DSLR camera. Rather, we wait at home tor the birds to come to us. Fall migrants have buttressed the yard list by seven species since early September, to a total of 70. They have included---

Purple Finches, another female...

...and a colorful male:

A Common Raven is here seen flying with an American Crow, which has a squared-off tail, Note the the larger size and wedge-shaped tail of the raven:

Red-breasted Nuthatch:

Nashville Warbler:

Tennessee Warbler:

Interestingly, despite their names, neither the Nashville nor the Tennessee Warblers have ever been known to breed in Nashville or anywhere in the State of Tennessee. They both derive their names from specimens which were shot by Alexander Wilson during migration in 1811 along the Cumberland River in Tennessee.

A Palm Warbler put in a brief appearance, but I could not obtain a photo. 

Also seen this week, the First of Season (FOS) Dark-eyed (Slate-colored) Juncos. These little "Snow Birds" will become common during the next few weeks and stay here for the winter:

View down the peaceful lane along the lake shore:

The foliage is beginning to turn into autumn colors, hints of which were visible from our side yard on October 3rd:. 

Sunrise reflects against the clouds on the opposite horizon to the west:

Day by day, more and more  rich yellow, orange and red colors adorn the lakeside woodlands:

A neighbor is raising his dock above the anticipated ice and snow level before taking his little boat into shelter for the winter:

A glorious sunset on September 30:

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Linking to:

Garden Affair

Nature Thursday

Skywatch Friday

Weekend Reflections

Saturday's Critters

BirdD'Pot

All Seasons

Image-in-ing

Wordless Wednesday (on Tuesday)

Wild Bird Wednesday

My Corner of the World
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Please visit the links to all these posts to see some excellent photos on display
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