I stopped at the Wilder dam overflow this morning on my way into work. 5 minutes of no birds. Then I happened to notice this dark passerine perched on the ice at the river's edge. The bird was on the New Hampshire side, just 50 meters downriver from the overflow. My first thought was Red-winged Blackbird based on the size and the dark coloration. But then I got this bird in my binocs and I watched him walk and hop along the shoreline and probe around the rocks. After 3 minutes he flew back towards some trees about 10 meters from the water. No wing bars were noticeable in flight.
Admittedly, this observation was made via binocs from 250 m so I couldn't see eye color or distinguish dark brown/black probably. A first year male Red-winged Blackbird is certainly a possibility as well as Rusty Blackbird.
This was about 9 a,.
Jason
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Jason M. Hill, PhD
Post-doctoral Researcher
Vermont Center for Ecostudies
802.649.1431 Ext. 112
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