eBird Report - Sachuest Point NWR, 1/1/11 - GREEN-TAILED TOWHEE - What an amazing way to kick off the New Year of 2011!!

What a way to kick off the New Year of 2011 right by snagging an amazing Life Bird with my great birding buddy, Kirk Marshall and my own lucky bird-charm (and sweetheart), Jennifer Carson!! I say this because during the past few months or so, for the most part, whenever Kirk and I went out bird watching, we would always nearly have bad luck finding the target birds we were looking for (like the Cave Swallows for instance). This time, I was joined by my own very lucky bird-charm, Jen! Her charisma and aura seemed to give us the good fortune we needed to start off 2011 right!


Our whole point and goal heading down to the Newport/Middletown area of Rhode Island was to observe the vagrant Green-tailed Towhee that had made the northwesterly border of Sachuest Point NWR (adjacent to the campground near Second Beach) home for the past couple of weeks! My god, what an utterly amazing and GORGEOUS Lifer!! Tis a bird that Kirk and I have wanted to see for quite some time since first seeing its likeness in our birding field guides. Of course, its range is mainly found out in the Rocky Mountains down through the Southwest and western Texas. From my understanding, it is only the 2nd or 3rd recorded sighting of a Green-tailed Towhee within the Ocean State! This bird was fairly cooperative, though a bit timid at times, hopping in and out of the thickets, kicking up dirt and debris looking for yummy goodness along with a number of American Tree Sparrows, Savannah Sparrows, and Song Sparrows.

Photo of Green-tailed Towhee taken on 12/30/2010 by Myer Bornstein of Taunton, MA

The towhee was obviously the big-time highlight of the day, and I would have been completely happy if that were the only bird I saw this day, but again, thanks to good luck that Jen brought with her, we had numerous other birds of interest that made this day superb, including a Northern Shrike!! The shrike is only the second time I have ever had good fortune to observe one (though I have only been an active birder for a few years), this particular bird being found perched atop the highest shrub overlooking the Flint Point Loop side of Sachuest Point NWR. Other rather notable birds included: A half-dozen Common Eiders along the Third Beach side of Sachuest Point; 4 lovely Surf Scoters seen through Kirk's spotting scope off of Flint Point on Sachuest; a lone Brant seen resting on the Island Rocks with a flotilla of a dozen other Brant seen along the Third Beach side of Sachuest near Flint Point; 3 Common Loons in their nonbreeding plumage off of various points of interest along Sachuest; 7 Red-breasted Mergansers, most near Flint Point and the Island Rocks; 2 American Pipits that we heard (through their flight song of course) flying over our heads when we first got to the area where the Green-tailed Towhee was being seen; a pair of Harlequin Ducks (my all-time favorite duck!) seen near the observation platform overlooking Island Rocks off of Sachuest; and lastly, a cluster of 15 Ruddy Turnstones that had been pointed out to us by a very friendly birder from Bristol, RI, whom found them roosting atop the rocky shoreline on the northerly side of Flint Point looking towards Third Beach.


A truly remarkable day filled with wonderful companionship, beautiful weather, and great bird-watching! As always, below you will find my full list of sightings today whilst at Sachuest Point NWR! Happy New Year to everyone, and more importantly, happy birding!!!

Location:     Sachuest Point NWR
Observation date:     1/1/11
Notes:     The lone and vagrant Green-tailed Towhee that has been seen since the 18th of December, 2010 was observed my numerous birders throughout the course of our time down and around Sachuest Point NWR, mingling with various other ground-feeders, such as American Tree Sparrows, Song Sparrows and Savannah Sparrows; Northern Shrike was seen while trekking along the southerly side of the Flint Point Loop trail, looking inland perched atop the tallest shrub in that area.
Number of species:     30

Brant - Branta bernicla     13
Mallard - Anas platyrhynchos     42
Common Eider - Somateria mollissima     6
Harlequin Duck - Histrionicus histrionicus     2
Surf Scoter - Melanitta perspicillata     4
Red-breasted Merganser - Mergus serrator     7
Common Loon - Gavia immer     3
Double-crested Cormorant - Phalacrocorax auritus     1
Great Blue Heron - Ardea herodias     1
Northern Harrier - Circus cyaneus     1
Red-tailed Hawk - Buteo jamaicensis     2
Ruddy Turnstone - Arenaria interpres     15
Sanderling - Calidris alba     13
Ring-billed Gull - Larus delawarensis     3
Herring Gull - Larus argentatus     5
Northern Shrike - Lanius excubitor     1
American Crow - Corvus brachyrhynchos     6
Black-capped Chickadee - Poecile atricapillus     6
Carolina Wren - Thryothorus ludovicianus     1
Gray Catbird - Dumetella carolinensis     1
Northern Mockingbird - Mimus polyglottos     5
European Starling - Sturnus vulgaris     200
American Pipit - Anthus rubescens     2
Green-tailed Towhee - Pipilo chlorurus     1
American Tree Sparrow - Spizella arborea     10
Savannah Sparrow - Passerculus sandwichensis     2
Song Sparrow - Melospiza melodia     3
White-throated Sparrow - Zonotrichia albicollis     1
Northern Cardinal - Cardinalis cardinalis     3
American Goldfinch - Spinus tristis     4

This report was generated automatically by eBird v2(http://ebird.org)

Project FeederWatch - Week 6 (12/26/2010)

During the beginning stages and the prelude to this holiday weekend's big snowstorm/blizzard (or as the media calls it: "The Blizzard of 2010"), I continued my participation with Project FeederWatch. And it surely was not disappointing. The birds knew something big was going down, for they were everywhere and in good numbers! And as soon as it started to snow steadily and the winds picked up some, they hunkered down and the activity dropped off dramatically late in the afternoon!


6 Northern Cardinals (4 males, 2 females) were around all day long; 9 Dark-eyed Juncos were meandering around the bushes on the ground, trying to dig up goodness with their feet; 13 Mourning Doves flew in together, again scaring all the other diners off; a gorgeous Red-bellied Woodpecker (mature male) scared off a pair of Blue Jays out front so he could get at the suet cakes; and most notably, 3 Purple Finches and a good grouping of 16 House Finches kept all other comers at bay for the privilege of eating at the main tube feeder full of sunflower seeds.


All in all, quite pleased with yesterday's observance of 16 bird species, totaling 77 birds altogether. As always, the full listing is below.....happy birding everyone and good luck digging out from this storm....we had 12 inches here in Littleton, and I know many other places got much more!

Mourning Dove	13
Red-bellied Woodpecker	1
Downy Woodpecker	1
Hairy Woodpecker	1
Blue Jay	5
Black-capped Chickadee	5
Tufted Titmouse	5
White-breasted Nuthatch	2
Carolina Wren	1
American Robin	1
White-throated Sparrow	3
Dark-eyed Junco	9
Northern Cardinal	6
Purple Finch	3
House Finch	16
American Goldfinch	5

Project FeederWatch - Week 5

Today in Week 5 of my participation in the 2010-2011 Project FeederWatch program featured the highest number of birds seen at any one time during the course of my observance today, that being 46 total birds compared to 43 from last weekend. The pair of boisterous and wicked cutesy (yes, I said cutesy) Carolina Wrens showed up today, eating all 3 varieties of birdy-goodness available (the black sunflower seeds in the main tube feeder; the suet cakes and Nyjer from the Nyjer seed tube feeder).


Woodpeckers were prevalent today, where 2 Red-bellied Woodpeckers made an appearance today, though only 1 can be counted for both were not together at the same time, unfortunately. 3 Downy Woodpeckers and 2 Hairy Woodpeckers also showed up.....too bad a Northern Flicker or Pileated Woodpecker didn't show up, or a Yellow-bellied Sapsucker for that matter (one had been seen a couple days ago in Framingham at a feeder).


For me, the biggest surprise of today's count was the number of Northern Cardinals that were around, 5 in all (2 males, 3 females) all at one particular moment in time during the course of my time watching the birdiness today. No matter how many times you see a Cardinal, I can always revel in the rich and bright redness of the male and the brown and subtle redness of the female!


Below, as always, is the full listing of birds seen....happy birding to all!!

Mourning Dove	5
Red-bellied Woodpecker	1
Downy Woodpecker	3
Hairy Woodpecker	2
Blue Jay	3
Black-capped Chickadee	8
Tufted Titmouse	7
Red-breasted Nuthatch	1
White-breasted Nuthatch	1
Carolina Wren	2
Dark-eyed Junco	5
Northern Cardinal	5
American Goldfinch	3

Project FeederWatch - Week 4

This weekend's observance featured the highest numbers of birds and bird species to date during my first go with Project FeederWatch, despite today's nasty weather filled with water and wind! 14 different species visited the feeders at our home (between 11:20 am and 4 pm), including the first White-throated Sparrow to visit during the Project so far. When White-throats first started showing up this season, they were seen for two weeks in a row prior to my joining up with FeederWatch. Since then, nothing seen until today.


A male Red-bellied Woodpecker made an appearance again, mowing down upon the suet before being driven off by Blue Jays. I found it highly amusing to see a small group of Mourning Doves (5 in all) flying in from across the yard all at once to the base of the main tube feeder filled with black sunflower seed, scattering the 2 Blue Jays, gray squirrels and a female Northern Cardinal that had been busy pecking away at the ground for sustenance at the time.


The biggest surprise for me was seeing 2 Carolina Wrens with each other scoping out the ground in the front yard around the base of the suet feeder. None were vocal, but I suppose I wouldn't want to be singing too much with the copious amounts of rain coming down today, and the fact that it is not breeding season!


Anyhow, here is today's full list of birds observed are below. Happy birding everyone!

Mourning Dove	5
Red-bellied Woodpecker	1
Downy Woodpecker	1
Blue Jay	2
Black-capped Chickadee	8
Tufted Titmouse	6
Red-breasted Nuthatch	1
White-breasted Nuthatch	2
Carolina Wren	2
White-throated Sparrow	1
Dark-eyed Junco	5
Northern Cardinal	3
House Finch	2
American Goldfinch	4

Project FeederWatch - Week 3 (12/05/2010)

This weekend of observing the feeders and environs surrounding them around our house featured 2 new species making an appearance and the return of a species of bird (American Goldfinch) that had been absent last weekend. A lone Brown Creeper (I love them "boids" to pieces!) as well as a lone male House Finch showed up during the course of my observance (from 11 am to 1:15 pm) before heading off to join all the nutjobs in purchasing Christmas gifts.


I just love watching Brown Creepers and their mannerisms! This amazing, bark-colored bird with curved-bill has the habit of walking (climbing) directly up a tree from the base-upwards in a spiral, gleaning insects from the crevices in the bark of the tree....then, when its had its fun, it will either fly back down to base of the very same tree to make sure it didn't miss anything or make its way over to the base of another tree, always spiraling upwards in search of deliciousness! Their habit of walking along the trunks and branches of a tree are similar to woodpeckers and nuthatches, but as noted early, are different for their upwards spiraling climb. Creepers will use their stiffened tail much like a woodpecker for balance and grip. But nuthatches can climb upwards AND downwards in any direction compared the aforementioned. All 3 families of bird species just enthrall me to no end!


Below is my full list for yesterday's observance! Happy birding to everyone out their!

Downy Woodpecker	1
Blue Jay	2
Black-capped Chickadee	7
Tufted Titmouse	4
Red-breasted Nuthatch	1
White-breasted Nuthatch	2
Brown Creeper	1
Dark-eyed Junco	5
Northern Cardinal	2
House Finch	1
American Goldfinch	4

Project FeederWatch - Week 2 (11/28/2010)

Nothing overly significant to report with this post....just want to keep a "journal" of sorts of my time participating in Project FeederWatch this year. Though I would imagine on a week-to-week basis that the numbers and variety of species of birds will not change very much. As it is for this weekend (Sunday rather), a very noisy and boisterous Carolina Wren and an always lovely little Red-breasted Nuthatch were the highlights of this week's observance! What was most pleasant was that the RBNH stuck around the black sunflower seed tube feeder during most of the time I watched the feeders, whereas the Carolina was here for a few minutes, flitting from lilac to tree to shrub, etcetera. And yes, the RBNH was making its cute, nasally little "anks"! Anyhoo, here is my full list of sightings around our feeders:

Mourning Dove	4
Downy Woodpecker	1
Hairy Woodpecker	1
Blue Jay	2
Black-capped Chickadee	6
Tufted Titmouse	5
Red-breasted Nuthatch	1
White-breasted Nuthatch	2
Carolina Wren	1
Dark-eyed Junco	3
Northern Cardinal	2

Turkey Day Birding: 2 New Lifers (Pink-footed Goose & Northern Pintail)!! - 11/25/10

Before this momentous day was filled with feasting, football and family got into full-swing, I joined my good buddy Kirk Marshall on a morning/early afternoon stuffed with bird watching! And what a way to start off the day by shooting for our main target species, the rare Pink-footed Goose! This vagrant from Eurasia had been seen over the past week or so in the fields near the Lincoln-Sudbury Regional High School and in the fields in and around the Davis Farm Conservation Land. For today and the past couple of days, the Pink-footed had been sighted by other birders in and around a pond (on a private residence) just due west of the Frost/Fairview Farm area (which is across the street, that being 117/North Road, from the Davis Farm CL) in Sudbury, MA. This amazing Lifer was enjoying itself amongst a moderate-sized flock of Canada Geese (35-50 birds) and a lone juvenile Snow Goose. We had fantastic looks at its pink feet as it would preen itself and walk amongst the Canadas up on the shore of the pond. Its a crying shame I don't have a good camera, for I would have loved to have taken some photos of this once-in-a-lifetime bird!


The route Kirk and I took to get to this location is as follows: From Burlington - take 128/95 South to Exit 30B for Route 2A West. Take 2A West until it joins up with Route 2 West. Continue on 2/2A West until you get to the intersection for Route 126. Take Route 126 South (a left) towards Lincoln/Framingham until it intersects with Route 117. Proceed to take 117 West (a right) towards Concord/Sudbury. The parking lot for the Davis Farm Conservation Land is approx. a mile past the intersection of 117 and Sudbury Road (Nine-Acres Corner) on your left with Frost Farm on your right. Park in the parking lot for the Davis Farm Conservation Land/Recreation Park, cross the street (Route 117/North Road) and go up the private driveway that parallels an old railroad bed that abuts the Frost/Fairview Farms area. The pond with the geese will be on your left across the railroad bed as you walk up the driveway.


Anyhow, after observing this beautiful and rare goose, Kirk and I made our way up to Parker River NWR (Plum Island) to see if we could chance upon at least one Cave Swallow of the myriad of swallows that had been reported over the past day or so up and down the east coast from Maine to New York. Sadly, no luck whatsoever in terms of coming across a single Cave Swallow. It was the second time we had ventured out for such a swallow and came up empty (last time happened to be not too long ago at Salisbury Beach State Reservation). Still, I came across another new Life bird at Stage Island Pool, the fairly common Northern Pintail. I say common because it is, I just never had the fortune of coming across any, though in my defense, I haven't been seriously bird watching for terribly long (coming on 3 years now). What a gorgeous dabbling duck the Pintail is, especially the male of course! Truly lovely! Goes right up there with my other favorite ducks, the Wood Duck and the Harlequin Duck! Another fave duck of mine we observed yesterday at SIP were a few Buffleheads of which I had not seen since last winter (yes, I know, its not technically winter yet, but it sure feels and looks like it)! Other highlights were seeing a lone, mature adult Bald Eagle soaring high over us while stopping by the Wardens and a handful of Northern Shovelers at Stage Island Pool. Below are the checklists from both locations visited yesterday....happy birding everybody and I hope everyone had a momentous Thanksgiving full of good times and deliciousness!

Location:     Frost/Fairview Farm, Sudbury, MA
Observation date:     11/25/10
Notes:     This location is a private residence (due to the no trespassing signs located along the drive up to the location marked on the map). As noted from the checklist, our target species was the Pink-footed Goose that had been seen for the past week or so in the fields near the Lincoln-Sudbury Regional High School as well as the fields located in the Davis Farm Conservation Land located just south of this observation area. For the past couple of days the Pink-footed was seen with a moderate-sized flock of Canada's and a lone juvenile Snow Goose as is noted in this checklist. My buddy and myself also observed the Pink-footed Goose along with Zeke Cornwell (Cornell?) and a young lady named Lisa (did not happen to catch her last name, unforatunately).
Number of species:     5

Pink-footed Goose - Anser brachyrhynchus     1
Snow Goose - Chen caerulescens     1
Canada Goose - Branta canadensis     35
Blue Jay - Cyanocitta cristata     3
Northern Cardinal - Cardinalis cardinalis     2

This report was generated automatically by eBird v2(http://ebird.org)


Location:     Parker River NWR
Observation date:     11/25/10
Notes:     Northern Pintails, Buffleheads and Shovelers seen at Stage Island Pool; Bald Eagle seen soaring over the Wardens
Number of species:     19

Canada Goose - Branta canadensis     125
American Black Duck - Anas rubripes     75
Mallard - Anas platyrhynchos     25
Northern Shoveler - Anas clypeata     6
Northern Pintail - Anas acuta     20
Bufflehead - Bucephala albeola     4
Great Blue Heron - Ardea herodias     2
Bald Eagle - Haliaeetus leucocephalus     1
Northern Harrier - Circus cyaneus     1
peep sp. - Calidris sp.     12
Mourning Dove - Zenaida macroura     2
Blue Jay - Cyanocitta cristata     5
American Crow - Corvus brachyrhynchos     8
American Robin - Turdus migratorius     6
Northern Mockingbird - Mimus polyglottos     2
American Tree Sparrow - Spizella arborea     5
Song Sparrow - Melospiza melodia     3
White-throated Sparrow - Zonotrichia albicollis     4
Dark-eyed Junco (Slate-colored) - Junco hyemalis hyemalis/carolinensis     7
House Finch - Carpodacus mexicanus     1

This report was generated automatically by eBird v2(http://ebird.org)

Project FeederWatch - Week 1

Just a fairly quick post here, something of which I will be attempting to do every weekend to give weekly updates on how my time participating in the Cornell Lab of Ornithology's Project FeederWatch is going. This is the 24th year running for this program instituted by the Cornell Lab of Ornithology and Bird Studies Canada, and this year it will run from November 13th, 2010 up until April 8th, 2011. This is my very first time participating with this annual program (I have participated with Mass Audubon's Focus on Feeders program in the past, and I'll do the same this year when it comes time; this season it is the weekend of February 5th and 6th, 2011).


Below you will find a complete list of the birds I observed off and on from Noon-time today until dusk. Highlights were a female Red-bellied Woodpecker and a Red-breasted Nuthatch both visiting our suet feeder out in the front yard. Sadly, of the 3 American Goldfinches that visited the nyjer and black sunflower seed feeders today, one of them had contracted House Finch eye disease, otherwise known as conjuctivitis. Will definitely have to clean the feeders to be sure there is a lessened chance of spreading the disease, and if there happen to be several birds infected, I will have to take our feeders down for at least a full week. Anyhow, here are my sightings for the day (normally, during Project FeederWatch, an observer would try to watch the feeders for 2 consecutive days for any period of time, though if only one day can be done, then that day must have a longer protracted time of observance):

Mourning Dove	4
Red-bellied Woodpecker	1
Downy Woodpecker	2
Hairy Woodpecker	1
Blue Jay	3
American Crow	2
Black-capped Chickadee	8
Tufted Titmouse	5
Red-breasted Nuthatch	1
White-breasted Nuthatch	2
Dark-eyed Junco	3
Northern Cardinal	2
American Goldfinch	3    (1 with eye disease)

Snow Buntings @ Salisbury Beach; Sandhill Crane in Rowley off of 1A!!! - 10/31/2010

There are some days of being out in the field bird watching that can be just so utterly frustrating! Yesterday, on Halloween in 2010, was one of those days. My buddy Kirk and myself ventured out first thing in the morning (well, not exactly at the crack of dawn) and hit up Salisbury Beach State Reservation around 9 am to look for one of 2 target birds of the day we had planned to try and see, this particular species at Salisbury being a Cave Swallow. A handful of Cave Swallows had been sighted at this location over the past few days, and since knowing the rarity of such a species around these parts (more commonly found in the Southwest and Texas, though even there it is still somewhat uncommon), we just had to try our luck at seeing at least one of them. Well, for roughly 2 and a half to 2 and 3-quarters hours we combed the reservation. When we heard report of the swallows being seen at the main parking lot, we'd head over there and wait a while......but nothing. Then some other birder would venture over and report that a swallow had been seen over near the "Owl Grove" that is near the pull-off in the campground......but nothing. Then we'd hear it was over at near the boat ramp....and still nothing. We were on a wild "swallow" chase, but sadly, no matter our diligence, we were not rewarded with the bird we came to see. It was so frustrating because so many other birders there had an opportunity to see at least ONE Cave Swallow, but us, no such luck. That is how birding can go sometimes, ya know?! Ya have a banner day one weekend, get skunked the next (as we had at Cumbies not too long ago looking for the CT Warbler, Vesper Sparrow and Buff-breasted Sandpiper).


But there is always some sort of positive spin you can make on almost any situation, and despite not being able to see the bird we so desperately wanted to see, we did chance upon a few species of birds that are always nice to see, such as a good-sized flock of 60 Snow Buntings in winter (non-breeding) plumage, a pair of Horned Larks over near the main parking lot, a Forster's Tern (Lifer) and 2 FOS Common Goldeneyes over near the boat ramp.


After the rough and tumble venture at Salisbury, Kirk and I drove over to Pikul's Pan (near Pikul's Farm) off of Route 1A in Rowley to get ourselves the other target bird of the day, a lone Sandhill Crane that had been seen there every day for the past week or so. This majestic and awe-inspiring bird did not disappoint! It was approx. 40 yards from the roadside, feeding and preening in the low waters of the pan. It was accompanied by a pair of Lesser Yellowlegs, but obviously, with the Sandhill there, we could really care less for them! Certainly a Life bird for myself, and twas a Lifer for Kirk the day before when he went out to see it.


To finish the day off, while watching the Vikings vs. Patriots game, we had a lone Golden-crowned Kinglet (female) flitting about the trees out front, seemingly checking out every branch on every tree it visited! First time I had ever seen a GC Kinglet in our yard! Cute, gorgeous "micro-bird" it is!


As always, the full list of sighted birds are below! Happy birding to all!

Location:     Salisbury Beach State Reservation
Observation date:     10/31/10
Notes:     Our target bird were the handful of Cave Swallows that had been reported. The Cave Swallows were seen by numerous other birders, but unfortunately, we were always in the wrong part of the reservation at the wrong time, going back and forth; thankfully the day was not a total loss. Always a pleasure seeing a good-sized flock of Snow Buntings in their winter plumage!
Number of species:     16

Common Eider (Atlantic) - Somateria mollissima dresseri     3
Surf Scoter - Melanitta perspicillata     5
White-winged Scoter - Melanitta fusca     14
Common Goldeneye - Bucephala clangula     2
Double-crested Cormorant - Phalacrocorax auritus     16
Northern Harrier - Circus cyaneus     1
Buteo sp. - Buteo sp.     1
Ring-billed Gull - Larus delawarensis     X
Herring Gull - Larus argentatus     X
Great Black-backed Gull - Larus marinus     4
Forster's Tern - Sterna forsteri     1
Rock Pigeon - Columba livia     2
American Crow - Corvus brachyrhynchos     2
Horned Lark - Eremophila alpestris     2
Snow Bunting - Plectrophenax nivalis     60
House Finch - Carpodacus mexicanus     2
American Goldfinch - Spinus tristis     6

This report was generated automatically by eBird v2(http://ebird.org)


Location:     Pikul's Pan, Rowley, MA
Observation date:     10/31/10
Notes:     Fantastic views right from the roadside of this lone Sandhill, observed feeding and preening. It has been in attendance for approximately the past week and several birders from all across the region have had the pleasure of seeing this majestic bird! A Lifer for me!
Number of species:     2

Sandhill Crane - Grus canadensis     1
Lesser Yellowlegs - Tringa flavipes     2

This report was generated automatically by eBird v2(http://ebird.org)

I have returned from my hiatus and am back in action!

It seems like it has been ages since last I graced you all with my presence and my whereabouts! Never fear, for bird watching will always be on my mind, just a matter of having the time and mula to do so.


At any rate, I usually spend my Saturday mornings to early afternoons with the fine folks and even more intriguing animals and birds over with Wildlife Care at Drumlin Farm Wildlife Sanctuary. I have been giving my time, roughly 3 hours at a time, once a week for the past several months since late January of this year. It truly is an honor and a privilege to work with the animals over at WLC, most in particular the birds they tend to there. From the American Crows to the Raven, to the raptors (American Kestrels, Broad-winged Hawks, Red-tailed Hawks, Turkey Vultures) and owls (Great Horned Owls, Barred Owls, Eastern-Screech Owls), to even the Mallards, Pekin Ducks, and our "ambassador" Canada Goose, I just can't get enough of them. It is my hope to continue working with these amazing creatures over at Drumlin for as long as possible, of course depending on what life throws at me in the future.


After my time was done today at Drumlin, I shot over to Assabet River National Wildlife Refuge to finally get some physical exercise, to find some sense of solitude, and to see what birds I could possibly find through all the fierce winds we had whirling about today! As expected, not much in the way of activity was observed, thanks in part to the winds and also the simple fact I was there from 12:15 to 3:30 pm when birds typically are not as active. Our avian friends are more apt to be active in the dawn to mid-morning hours and also during the late-afternoon to dusk hours. The best bird of the day was seeing a Brown Creeper while hiking along Petapawag Trail....just fantastic looks at one of my all-time favorite birds! What I found most amusing was its propensity to follow this one White-breasted Nuthatch around from tree to tree. While the nuthatch probed the tree by walking up and down all sides of the trunk and branches, the creeper would, as is characteristic, walk in a spiral from base to crown until the nuthatch moved on and then would keep following aforementioned nuthatch! Its like the White-breasted Nuthatch was the Brown Creeper's best buddy or older brother! Of further note was seeing good numbers of Yellow-rumped (Myrtle) Warblers and Dark-eyed (Slate-colored) Juncos. Here is the full list of birds seen....not many, but here they are all the same:

Location:     Assabet River National Wildlife Refuge--IBA
Observation date:     10/16/10
Notes:     Please also note that weather conditions were as follows: Mostly Sunny, temps in the mid 50s, winds at times in excess of 25 mph.
Number of species:     9

Canada Goose - Branta canadensis     11
Downy Woodpecker - Picoides pubescens     2
Hairy Woodpecker - Picoides villosus     1
Blue Jay - Cyanocitta cristata     5
Black-capped Chickadee - Poecile atricapillus     26
White-breasted Nuthatch - Sitta carolinensis     3
Brown Creeper - Certhia americana     1
Yellow-rumped Warbler (Myrtle) - Dendroica coronata coronata     18
Dark-eyed Junco (Slate-colored) - Junco hyemalis hyemalis/carolinensis     18

This report was generated automatically by eBird v2(http://ebird.org)


To finish the day, I joined up with my always dependable good buddy Kirk Marshall and attended a banding demonstration of Northern Saw-whet Owls over at Drumlin Farm from 7 to 9:45 pm. What a freaking treat that was! For one, neither Kirk or myself had ever seen a Saw-whet Owl, and for me, this was my first banding demonstration of any kind! These lovely little owls (they only average 7 to 8 inches in length, from crown to tip of tail) are just so damned cute, especially with those huge saucer eyes that are so very startling yellow in contrast with their black pupils, pale facial disk and rufous-colored, streaky chest! We got to see how the tags were put on and how they recorded the data they obtained from each owl they captured. By the time Kirk and I had left Drumlin, from my best recollection (I was too concerned with the individual owls themselves afterall), we had 7 Saw-whets captured, banded, data-recorded and released back into the wild. I do wish I could count these Saw-whets as a Life bird, but that would be cheating. Yes, they are wild birds, but they were not seen on normal, everyday terms, as in just being out birding and chancing upon one in the wild, unfettered and not tampered with. These wild owls were captured in nets, tagged, measurements taken and finally released. Oh well.....one day Kirk and I will chance upon a Saw-whet in the wild just doing its thing without human interference! I did take a few pictures, but they are on my camera phone and not readily accessible to download to my laptop and thusly, upload to Facebook and this blog. The memory however, shall always remain, etched in my mind!


Truly a superb day it was....now it is time to catch some shut-eye and sleep in! Happy birding to everyone!

eBird Report - Drumlin Farm Wildlife Sanctuary, 9/18/10 - The Buff-breasted Sandpiper is still in attendance!!

Hello my fellow birders! Just a fairly quick notation here about my 55 minute trek at Drumlin Farm Wildlife Sanctuary in search of the reported Buff-breasted Sandpiper that had been seen over this past week and was initially sighted this past Saturday (the 11th) by Pamela Sowizral, Kathy Seymour and her birding group that she was leading that Saturday morning! So yes, as the title of this post implies, the Buff-breasted is still present in the southern section of the Boyce Farm Fields, chilling and perusing along with at least a Baker's dozen of Killdeer (probably more there)! A half-dozen Eastern Bluebirds (most of them immature) were hanging around the bluebird boxes they have up near Boyce Field. Other highlights were a Red-tailed Hawk buzzing by right over my head near the entrance of Wildlife Care while I was walking back to my car; a Red-bellied Woodpecker noisily looking for insects near the Education Center and a female Ruby-throated Hummingbird zipping around and perching near the array of bird feeders that are situated near the main parking lot/walkway up to the Nature Center. I hope other folks get a chance to see this Buff-breasted, for it was definitely a Lifer for me today! Happy birding everybody!

Location:     Drumlin Farm Wildlife Sanctuary
Observation date:     9/18/10
Notes:     Buff-breasted Sandpiper is still present at the Boyce Farm Fields near the southwestern quadrant of the area along with numerous Killdeer.
Number of species:     19

Red-tailed Hawk - Buteo jamaicensis     1 (Wildlife Care area)
Killdeer - Charadrius vociferus     13 (Boyce Farm Fields)
Buff-breasted Sandpiper - Tryngites subruficollis     1 (Boyce Farm Fields)

Mourning Dove - Zenaida macroura     1

Ruby-throated Hummingbird - Archilochus colubris     1 (bird feeder area near parking lot)
Red-bellied Woodpecker - Melanerpes carolinus     1 (near Education Center)

Downy Woodpecker - Picoides pubescens     1
Eastern Phoebe - Sayornis phoebe     1
Blue Jay - Cyanocitta cristata     6
American Crow - Corvus brachyrhynchos     2
Black-capped Chickadee - Poecile atricapillus     9
Tufted Titmouse - Baeolophus bicolor     3
White-breasted Nuthatch - Sitta carolinensis     5

Eastern Bluebird - Sialia sialis     6 (Boyce Field area)

American Robin - Turdus migratorius     10
Gray Catbird - Dumetella carolinensis     4

Baltimore Oriole - Icterus galbula     1 (Drumlin Loop Trail)

American Goldfinch - Spinus tristis     7
House Sparrow - Passer domesticus     8

This report was generated automatically by eBird v2(http://ebird.org)

eBird Report - Oxbow National Wildlife Refuge, 9/6/10 - A pleasant afternoon at my favorite place to find solitude!

I just could not waste this amazingly gorgeous day with a slight breeze in the air, temps in the mid 70s, the sky boasting bright sunshine and a few wispy clouds. Though you may have thought I did waste a good portion of the day sleeping in until 11:20 am, but it was so worth it and necessary! After a great day of birding (and stuffing my face) yesterday, I had to continue this blessed Labor Day weekend being out and about enjoying Mother Nature! Of course, I made sure I completed what errands I had chosen to tackle today before ending my day the best way I could, by taking in all the sights and sounds, the atmosphere and environs of my favorite place to find solitude, that being Oxbow National Wildlife Refuge in Harvard, MA!


I arrived at Oxbow and started on my way at about 3:15 pm EST, not coming back to the parking lot until 3 hours later. I did my usual, routine route, going from the gate to Riverside Trail that parallels the Nashua River, then following Turnpike Trail that cuts across the vast wetlands until it joins up with Tank Road. Most times I would take a right at this junction following Tank Road all the way back to the parking lot, but on occasion, as I did today, I went left following Tank Road north that eventually comes upon Route 2. I didn't go as far as Route 2, for I typically will stop at the pond that is on the right-hand side, but is fairly close in proximity to Route 2 nonetheless.


I did not expect to see much in the way of birds, even though sometimes birds will become more active again in the late afternoon to evening hours. But once must consider that it is late in the summer and the summer months out here in the inland areas of MA tend to be rather quiet, that is of course until the Fall migration begins anew, which should be within the next week or 2 I believe. All the birds I saw there were of the usual variety, but a few favorites that one can typically find there were in attendance! The most notable birds observed were indeed a few favorites, such as a couple of Red-bellied Woodpeckers, one along Turnpike Trail (great looks!) and one at the parking lot when I had returned. A few Eastern Phoebes were seen, one on Turnpike Trail, one along Tank Road and one at the pond catching some flying insects. 2 noisy, yet striking Belted Kingfishers made their presence known with said explosive chatterings, one briefly seen along Riverside Trail near the junction of Turnpike Trail and one seen at the aforementioned pond that is on the right-hand side of Tank Road. The 2nd Kingfisher was especially cooperative and active. It seemed that he was diving into the water for some din dins, but no, it was diving in to the pond to help preen itself, for it would return to the same snag and start picking away at its water-soaked feathers.


However, the most noteworthy warm-blooded fauna observed were as follows: A Beaver down at that pond along Tank Road nearest to Route 2. This lovely beaver was just lounging, eating some vegetation, caring not for my presence. A Fisher was unexpectantly seen just sitting on the railroad tracks that run parallel to the eastern edge of the refuge, near the entrance to the dirt road that leads down to the parking lot. Initially I did not recognize this mammal to be a fisher until I got my binocs on it! Best looks I have ever had of a fisher, with its dark-grayish head, dark-brown body and very long, bushy tail....it stared at me for a few moments before deciding I was not a threat and headed onwards into Oxbow NWR. What a treat that was, for this was on the way heading out of Oxbow!


I must apologize for my narrative of today's exploits not being so boisterous and exuberant, for I am still feeling a bit exhausted after this long and fruitful weekend! At any rate, my bird observations are below! Happy birding to all!

Location:     Oxbow National Wildlife Refuge
Observation date:     9/6/10
Number of species:     17

Great Blue Heron - Ardea herodias     3
Mourning Dove - Zenaida macroura     2
Belted Kingfisher - Megaceryle alcyon     2
Red-bellied Woodpecker - Melanerpes carolinus     2
Downy Woodpecker - Picoides pubescens     3
Hairy Woodpecker - Picoides villosus     2
Eastern Phoebe - Sayornis phoebe     3
Blue Jay - Cyanocitta cristata     10
American Crow - Corvus brachyrhynchos     3
Black-capped Chickadee - Poecile atricapillus     31
Tufted Titmouse - Baeolophus bicolor     14
White-breasted Nuthatch - Sitta carolinensis     9
American Robin - Turdus migratorius     8
Gray Catbird - Dumetella carolinensis     4
Red-winged Blackbird - Agelaius phoeniceus     1
Common Grackle - Quiscalus quiscula     2
American Goldfinch - Spinus tristis     4

This report was generated automatically by eBird v2(http://ebird.org)