Blue Jay

BLUE JAY
Cyanocitta cristata11-12''
Cornell link
These are very common in the central and eastern US. I have always thought that despite their number, they really aren't very common. They are really a very beautiful bird, and they're big. I even like one of their more common calls and have always thought it to be icy.
It was difficult to find a decent picture of a bluejay, they always seem to be in the top of the trees alerting everyone that I am there.

Mourning Dove

MOURNING DOVE
Zenaida macroura: 11-13"
Cornell link
Very common all through the united States. These are often the first birds active in the early morning.
That, does not however, lend the dove its name. I read a reference in "The education of Little Tree" that stated that the Mourning Dove's gentle call mourned the death of a loved one.

Red-winged Blackbird

Red-winged Blackbird

Agelaius Pheniceus: 7.5-9.5"

Cornell link

These are found everywhere I guess... They have a bright red patch on their shoulder, bordered on the bottom by a buff white stripe. The females are brown and black with a buff eyebrow.

The best part about these is their call, a very liquid conk-a-reee. They ruffle up their frathers when they sound also. They come in huge flocks and fill the air with their call.

American Goldfinch

AMERICAN GOLDFINCH

Carduelis tristis 4.5 -5.5:

Cornell link

These have a little black cap that looks like it is tipped forward. Bright yellow and dark black, but they mellow out in the winter, bearing olive green and dull yellow colors instead.

I love these, they are so cheery and prevalent. I took this picture in Rutland State Park by a stream.

Swamp Sparrow

SWAMP SPARROW
Melospiza geogiana:5-5 3/4:
Rusty colored with a grey face and that eyebrow stripe.

I may be wrong about this identification.... If I am, let me know. The were incredibly prevalent in the bog I was walking through.

Turkey Vulture

TURKEY VULTURE
Cathartes aura: 26-32" This guy has a 6 foot wingspan!! It is smilar to a black vulture, but black vultures are smaller and have grey heads.

I have never seen one of these perched. It was really big. It was sitting at head level, perched on a tree above a river.

American Robin

AMERICAN ROBIN: (9-11") Its call is a rich "cheer-up, cheerily."
These guys are found everywhere... They hung around all winter this year, which I guess is actualy normal for them... at least according to Audubon, but I don't think I have ever seen more of them in the winter than this year.

Barred Owl

BARRED OWL: (17-24'')Its also called a "Hoot Owl." Its call is a very clear nine note call (who-cooks-for-you--who-cooks-for-you-all). Barred owls prefer wooded swamps and deep forests and typically eat frogs and very small rodents.
I took this picture with a pretty serious zoom out of my back window this past February. It has been "haunting" the woods by our house for a while and I am pretty happy to have snapped a picture.