Date: 3/31/26 12:50 pm From: Grove, Deborah Shuey <dsg4...> Subject: New Species for the Year
I headed out to check a couple of places to find out what was new and added 5 new year species.
Ponderosa Road, a quiet dirt road near us, yielded my first of the year Blue-headed Vireo. I was somewhat surprised but it was quite distinctive. eBird flagged it and so the “local reviewer" will have to OK it — which I know he will. Probably one day early for the filter. Heading down the road, I heard an Eastern Towhee, a species that has already been found in the county. And then, one of my favorite songs, alerted me to a Louisiana Waterthrush, in the usual spot. I also had a Cedar Waxwing.
I headed to SGL 322 to check on the Red-headed Woodpeckers that stay through the winter because I had not been over there yet this year. And I was rewarded with 7. I had wanted to check out a road that looped around the area that I was interested in but had never walked on before. I found two sets of two birds toward the back of the area where we have found only 2 birds before. Moving back to the road, I found the other two that nest near the road. And, as I was almost back to the parking area, I heard a titmouse and as I looked at it, I spied another Red-headed Woodpecker on a tree behind it! So I was truly rewarded with my favorite bird. Some of these might be migrating but there have been two pairs nesting in the past. I heard the usual quier sound but also a scratchier sound coming from two in the back as I watched them fly around. And not the rattle sound that I have heard before in late fall as sort of a sound to alert others to where they were.
Another reason that I was visiting the area is that it is where I survey Golden-winged Warblers for the PGC every year. I have not heard any at a site which is back in the woods. However, the road passes on the edge of a logged area with had the right type of habitat in previous years so I thought it might yield a new site to survey. But, it was also an area just burned so I am not sure if it will prove to be welcoming or not for the birds.
Just a few thoughts on these surveys. With genetic evidence in recent years that indicates there are only 6 genomic loci differences between Golden and Blue-winged and that these differences are in sequences determining color, the lifetime of continuing these surveys may be limited. It is already well-known that they interbreed and if there is no other evidence to make them separate species, birders may lose another tick on their lists.
Ponderosa Rd, Huntingdon, Pennsylvania, US
Mar 31, 2026 9:56 AM - 10:06 AM
Protocol: Traveling
1.138 mile(s)
15 species
Red-bellied Woodpecker 1
Hairy Woodpecker 1
Blue-headed Vireo 1 Unmistakable singing.
Blue Jay 4
Black-capped Chickadee 4
Tufted Titmouse 3
Golden-crowned Kinglet 1
American Robin 4
Cedar Waxwing 1
American Goldfinch 1
Field Sparrow 1
Eastern Towhee 1
Brown-headed Cowbird 1
Louisiana Waterthrush 1
Pine Warbler 2
State Game Lands 322--South (incl. Habitat Cut), Huntingdon, Pennsylvania, US
Mar 31, 2026 10:19 AM - 11:26 AM
Protocol: Traveling
1.208 mile(s)
20 species
Red-headed Woodpecker 7 2 groups. Two sets in back and one set at road although on opposite side. Then nearly at the parking area, one on a tree.
Red-bellied Woodpecker 8
Downy Woodpecker 5
Pileated Woodpecker 4
Northern Flicker 3
Blue Jay 1
American Crow 1
Common Raven 1
Tufted Titmouse 8
White-breasted Nuthatch 3
Brown Creeper 1
Eastern Bluebird 1
American Robin 6
American Goldfinch 1
Field Sparrow 4
Dark-eyed Junco 3
White-throated Sparrow 1
Eastern Towhee 7
Brown-headed Cowbird 3
Northern Cardinal 3
