Since last year I've been paying particular attention to the Northern Shrike and even started to document each date that I see one. So being that my first sighting last year was on October 27th, I've been on the lookout recently. Though I did finally spot one today, I've heard from other reliable sources that the Shrike had been seen at the park close to 2 weeks ago already. But today was
my first, so I'll probably make a new date tracker that you can view in the green column on the right side of my blog.
I didn't get a good photo by any means, but it gives you the idea of what to look for if you are trying to spot a Shrike. Wherever they are they typically choose the highest available perch they can find, even if it's a very skinny twig. And from a very long distance if all you can make out is a "Robin-sized" bird perched high like this, it's likely to be a Northern Shrike. Of course, the time of year is the main factor. Last year my sightings ranged from late October to late the following March. My walk around PLP today was with a friend of mine, and although we did a fair amount of talking, we were able to spot a few more birds besides the Shrike. These were; Northern Cardinal, American Tree Sparrow, Mallard, Downy Woodpecker, Canada Goose, Black-capped Chickadee and Ring-billed Gulls. Not a very long list but that's pretty common when two people end up talking more than observing.
The only bird I was able to catch a decent photo of was this female Cardinal who was about to eat whatever she'd just caught. It looks almost like a worm of some kind but that seems unlikely given how late in the season it is. As we hiked around the south side we started hearing and seeing Garter Snakes on the sunny side of the trail. I think we saw 3 of them within just 10 feet or so. They were obviously trying to warm up and probably creeping closer to the dark colored paved path. I tried to get a photo but some of them were so small I lost them quickly in the tall grass. Later near the north end I spotted this Gray Squirrel with a mouth full of maple seeds. At least he stayed still for me while I took his photo.
I didn't get a good photo by any means, but it gives you the idea of what to look for if you are trying to spot a Shrike. Wherever they are they typically choose the highest available perch they can find, even if it's a very skinny twig. And from a very long distance if all you can make out is a "Robin-sized" bird perched high like this, it's likely to be a Northern Shrike. Of course, the time of year is the main factor. Last year my sightings ranged from late October to late the following March. My walk around PLP today was with a friend of mine, and although we did a fair amount of talking, we were able to spot a few more birds besides the Shrike. These were; Northern Cardinal, American Tree Sparrow, Mallard, Downy Woodpecker, Canada Goose, Black-capped Chickadee and Ring-billed Gulls. Not a very long list but that's pretty common when two people end up talking more than observing. 
The only bird I was able to catch a decent photo of was this female Cardinal who was about to eat whatever she'd just caught. It looks almost like a worm of some kind but that seems unlikely given how late in the season it is. As we hiked around the south side we started hearing and seeing Garter Snakes on the sunny side of the trail. I think we saw 3 of them within just 10 feet or so. They were obviously trying to warm up and probably creeping closer to the dark colored paved path. I tried to get a photo but some of them were so small I lost them quickly in the tall grass. Later near the north end I spotted this Gray Squirrel with a mouth full of maple seeds. At least he stayed still for me while I took his photo.
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