An Owl at Spring Grove Cemetery

 Great Horned Owl 5-7-12

I knew that more rain was on its way, so on Monday I decided to take advantage of the good weather and head down to another cemetery in Andover. I had never been here but I saw on eBird that someone had recorded a Pileated woodpecker at this location the day before. I have yet to get this species on my Massachusetts Life List, so I headed out to find one! It was a positively gorgeous sunny day and shortly after I arrived and parked my car a woman drove by and asked me what I was photographing. I had just started taking a few shots of the graveyard before I began my walk around. She told me there was an owl nest nearby, so I followed her over to the tree where the owls were suppose to be. After numerous trips around the tree we only found owl pellets but no owls. Then, we heard the crows return that I had heard when I first arrived. Ann (the woman I met) followed the crows and found the adult male high in this tree. None of the chicks or the female were anywhere in sight. Ann was told they were fully fledged and would be leaving the nest soon. I guess they were already gone.

 Great Horned Owl High in a tree.

Though I spent 2 1/2 hours here, most of that time was spent looking at and photographing the owl and talking to others about it and birding. Everyone that saw me with my hat, bins and camera wanted to ask me about birds. As a result, it was after 6 p.m. when I finally got to walk the perimeter and look for birds. By then most of them had go to bed! I never did find the pileated but I was happy about the owl!

 Graves in the Graveyard at Spring Grove Cemetery May 7, 2012

 

 The Old Rugged Cross

Birds seen at Spring Grove Cemetery on May 7, 2012

1. Red-tailed hawk 1
2. Great Horned Owl 1
3. Downy woodpecker 2
4. Northern Flicker 1
5. Blue Jay 5
6. American crow 5
7. White-breasted Nuthatch 5
8. American Robin 20
9. Chipping sparrow 10
10. Red-winged Blackbirds 10
11. Common Grackle 8
12. Brown-headed cowbirds 4

Why do these lists matter? Because I submit them to eBird. eBird needs data collected over time to help track bird populations. In many parts of the country there are counties with zero data because zero checklists have been submitted. If you live in one or these areas, please consider learning about how to become an eBirder and then go out and count the birds! If you are already a seasoned eBirder, then perhaps you can visits a location near you. It’s a great way to enjoy being outside and help the birds that we all love! And for those of you with Smart Phones, eBird now has a new eBird BirdLog app to make things even easier! To find out where eBird needs the most help, just click on the link below:

Birding the Road Less Traveled