Notes from My Nest: Changes

 The Mountains of Maine 6-29-15

It is a cool, gray day here on Mere Point. Gus and I are spending a quiet weekend at home. It has been awhile since I have written and a lot has changed in the past few months. I am done with physical therapy on my shoulder. It is almost as good as new. While I still have a lingering soreness in my thigh from where I had a huge bruise and hematoma after falling through the hole in the floor, most of the other symptoms have resolved themselves over time. I must say that this injury has deeply affected my life and changed me in many ways. I did not like being dependant on others for help. I did not like feeling helpless, and having this happen really made me feel old. While I am starting to feel like myself again, I find I am more cautious and more focused on getting and staying strong and healthy. I still have one remaining health concern. Before I fell through the floor and dislocated my shoulder, and before I had surgery last Christmas, I had trouble with my knee and was on crutches for about 10 days. That problem was never dealt with, but now it is finally being addressed as my knee can be just fine, then suddenly it will lock up on me and I cannot walk. I am going for an MRI this week. Hopefully we will get some answers.

Meanwhile, my time here at Mere Point has come to an end. Our lease on this cottage is up and we have chosen to move elsewhere. While Gus would love to move back to Tucson, (and he has been relentlessly applying for jobs there) so far there is no job offer, so we find ourselves on the lookout for a new place to rent. We have to be out of here by August 7^th and as yet, we have no place to go. Hopefully something will change this week and our path will become clear.

It’s funny how when you think you are leaving a place that everything becomes sharper and clearer. I find myself focusing on the greenness of the vegetation, the coolness of the air, and the scent of the salty sea. Right now the raspberries are all in bloom and their fragrance perfumes the air here in my yard and at the boat launch. Underlying all of these smells is the fragrance of pine and the scent of new mown grass. These are the smells of New England to me, made sweeter by the thought of moving away from them again.

 Me and my siblings 6-27-15

It is no secret that I have married a gypsy boy. He likes to move around, and I have been grateful for all the places that we have been able to see and experience, but now I am ready to settle down and quit moving. I want my own house again, and Gus wants to move to Tucson for good. He has decided it is his favorite place on earth and it is where he would like to retire. All of this makes me pensive and sweetly sad as I think of leaving my family once again. Yet, there is no telling when that might happen. Either way, we have to move and there will be yet another new yard and a new yard list. In my 18 months here, I have seen 117 species of birds. This has been THE BEST YARD ever.

In yet another change, I am sad to report that the Birding is Fun blog is going into retirement for now. I have enjoyed my time as a writer for this blog and am proud of my association with it. When Robert Mortenson was at the helm it was of unparalleled quality. I was sad to see him step down and now I am even more sad to see it end. But, as the saying goes, “To everything there is a Season, and a Time for every purpose under heaven…”

Here are some scenes from where I have been birding lately:

 6-20-15 Messalonskee Boat Ramp

Gus and I stopped by here on our way to visit Dad the day before father’s Day. I was able to see 4 Black Terns flying out over the lake as well as my first ever in Maine Pied-billed Grebe! Just a short distance farther up the road I got my Purple martins for the year!

 6-26-15 The boats are back in the water at Mere Point Bay

 

 6-27-15 Mom’s backyard sanctuary in Colchester, CT

On the weekend of June 27th we travelled to Connecticut for the annual Adams Family Road Race and Mom’s 79th birthday! I did not run, of course, but took photos and counted birds! I was hoping to find a Yellow-throated vireo and I think I may have heard one, but I did not see it so I did not count it because I was not sure. I counted a total of 20 species for Lake Hayward on this day. As you can see from the photo below, Mom’s hair is finally starting to grow back in after her latest battle with breast cancer. We are all so glad that she is still here to celebrate her birthday!

 7-27-15 Mom and her kids and one grandkid and their spouses

(My oldest brother had already left by the time it occurred to us to get a family photo!)

On June 29th I drove to Franklin County to count birds. This is yet another of the under-birded counties here in Maine. It was late in the day when I arrived after dropping my daughter off at her current residence in Livermore. I drove up the road to discover a place called Pine Island in the middle of the Androscoggin River.

 6-29-15 Bridge to Pine Island

I crossed the bridge and followed a path down to the woods by the river. I saw several warblers down in that cool green place, as well as a mink that came slinking out of the undergrowth. We were both surprised to see each other and I slowly raised my camera hoping for a photo, but the small brown animal quietly turned and slipped back into the green foliage before I could focus on it! I counted 10 species on Pine Island before heading for Wilson Pond in Wilton, Maine where I counted 8 species. It was getting late by now and I only had a short time to count birds before it got dark. While I did not see a lot of birds at the lake, I did see a pair of loons and some tree swallows.

6-29-15 Sunset on Wilson Pond in Wilton, Maine

 

6-30-15 Back at home, a raccoon has been hanging around the yard!

 

 7-2-15 The South End of Brunswick Landing airfield.

I counted 23 species in 1 1/2 hours while driving 4.4 miles through Brunswick Landing on this day. There have been a lot of changes to the Landing since I moved here 18 months ago with new businesses going in and lots of construction going on. One of my favorite areas to bird is down in back where the old army bunkers are, but it has been gated off and one can no longer drive down there. I believe you can still hike in, but it is a bit of a walk with lots of black flies and mosquitoes and with my knee being the way it is, I have not attempted it.

 

 7-3-15 Blueberries on Bowdoin Island Mill in Topsham, Maine.

Gus and I went here for breakfast yesterday. It was so nice that we sat outside and of course, I counted birds while we ate! There were song sparrows and yellow warblers singing in the trees and bushes while chimney swifts twittered overhead. Afterwards I walked over to the river’s edge where I saw dozens of herring gulls, three Great Blue Herons, and a Bald Eagle! I counted 10 species in the 45 minutes we were here.

 7-3-15 Bricks and roses under a bright blue sky on Bowdoin Mill Island

Then, we stopped by Wharton Point on our way home.

 7-3-15 High Tide at Wharton Point

The Song Sparrows and Bobolinks were singing up a symphony here!

 7-3-14 Horseshoe crabs were too busy mating to notice the birds!

So, Happy Fourth of July everyone!

We can only wait and see what the Future holds!

But for now…I think I’ll take a nap!

7-4-15 Kitty Bliss

Mere Point Yard Birds in Two Seasons

 Junco and Cardinal in snow 1-4-2015

Winter Birding in my yard is often viewed through through windows.

The waters of Maquoit Bay have long ago frozen over for good.

 

House Finches still fill my treetops.

 

Occasionally I still see a female Purple Finch or two.

 

White-throated sparrows were everywhere in Autumn,

but gradually their numbers dwindled. I now only see one occasionally.

Juvenile Cedar Waxwings were as thick as autumn leaves on October 24, 2014, but their numbers have dwindled as well. The most I have seen recently is five birds, but I know they will return. I had two adult birds in the yard today.

Last November I had this juvenile Red-shouldered Hawk in the yard.

 

By December 1st we had some of our first snow and our last Red-winged Blackbirds!

The White-breasted nuthatches are here year round!

 

And the crows like to hang out in the Sentinel Tree by the driveway!

 

It took me awhile to get use to feeding meal worms to the birds. I hate the look and smell of them, but the chickadees and titmice love them, so I hold my breath and fill the feeders with a canning jar funnel so I don’t have to touch them! Occasionally I see the nuthatches eating them as well. In this cold winter with such deep snow, the birds really need the protein!

Black-capped Chickadee at one of my feeders 12-21-14

 

Mourning Doves in the treetops 12-21-14

 

Female Hairy Woodpecker on apple tree by driveway 12-21-14

 

I moved the meal worm feeder and the finch feeder to this location by the driveway for the winter. I remembered that last year it was hard to get to the feeders on the side of the house and I knew I would not be able to shovel a path to that location this year. This proved to be a wise decision, for little did I know then how deep the snow would get this winter.

In summer I hung a hummingbird feeder here, but with the approach of winter, I exchanged the nectar feeder for a finch feeder. This feeder is located right out my back door across the driveway in an easy access location.

I was thrilled when the Common Redpolls showed up in January!

 

But so did the woodland hunter, who stalked the forest like a ghost.

 

The birds fed on berries in the thickets, like this Happy Hermit Thrush 1-18-15

But the Cardinal was wiser and more wary.

 

By January 21 we had just a bit of snow and a few Common Redpolls.

The grass was still visible and it was still easy to get around the yard.

January 25 it was still easy to get in and out of the driveway!

But then the snows came.

And the bitter cold.

The snow started to pile up! 1-28-15

 

It got deeper and deeper 1-31-15

 

Soon I had to move the finch feeder from the hook to the bush by the edge of the driveway. I could not climb over the snow bank, and the bird bath disappeared into the ever deepening snow! The snow took its toll on everyone, and hunger made the birds even more desperate and more bold.

So it was not surprising that during a snow storm I looked out the window to see a young Cooper’s Hawk dining beneath my feeder. I know this is the way of the wild but I was a bit sad that it ate my Happy Hermit Thrush! The Hermit Thrush’s hunger made it careless. The Cooper Hawk’s hunger helped it to hunt. Hunger drove them both to this end result. It is the way of Nature.

We had even more snow on this past Sunday, but it didn’t last long.

It was my birthday, so Gus took me out for breakfast and birding along the coast of Maine. We stopped at the Wild Birds Unlimited of Portland, where I spent the gift card a friend gave me for my birthday. Gus chipped in a few bucks as well and I was able to buy everything I wanted! I was so thrilled. After birding Biddeford Pool for the very first time (a future post), we drove home in sunshine and warm temps.

It was almost dusk when Gus mounted this new feeder platform on the pole for me. I had wanted one of these for a very long time but since moving this feeder to this location I had noticed the birds did not use it as much. I use to have the other bird feeders over here as well but I moved them to the side of the driveway for the winter as the yew tree I hang them from gets too weighed down with snow in winter. Once thing I  have learned from all this bird feeding is that the birds like to feed near each other. I guess it is because of that old adage, there is safety in numbers.

With the addition of the feeder platform, the birds are visiting this feeder once again! They just love it! I have had whole flocks of finches on it already, as well as Mourning Doves, Blue Jays, chickadees, titmice, nuthatches and woodpeckers! However, I am guessing it will be mobbed by blackbirds when spring migration begins! And really, that is not too far away now! Just a few more weeks, right?

Are You READY FOR SOME BIRDING!

 Red-tailed Hawk above the trees in my yard 10-13-14

Current 2015 Stats	Life	Year	Month
Species Seen	479	60	55
Checklists Submitted	7531	154	70
Mere Point Cottage yard birds	111	40	28

A Rainbow, a Sunset, and some Common Eiders

 Mere Point Boat Launch 4-27-14

At the end of April on Mere Point Bay,

the setting sun decides to play,

and casts a golden glow on me

as I go down to see the sea.

 

A Great Blue Heron sails above

the silver bay and steely sky

it seems to bring the birds of spring,

I stand on shore and watch it fly.

 

All around the glassy bay

I watch the daylight slip away,

 

I watch the first clouds start to blush,

I listened to the water rush,

 

The Common Eiders come floating by

they bob like corks upon the sea,

 

In Mere Point Bay the ducks and buoys,

are nature mixed with manmade toys!

 

and over all a rainbow shines

a promise of the coming spring,

and all the birds the winds will bring!

 

For now the Eiders prepare for sleep,

and float upon the ocean deep,

 

And make their very own parade,

 

while another heron glides o’er the bay,

 

I bid the eiders a calm good-bye

while their gentle growls fill the sky

 

I quickly hurry and cross the street

to watch the sunset on Maquoit Bay.

Here where I stand on the western shore

is where I say good-night to day,

 

I watch the fading lavender light…

 

then welcome the soft indigo night.

Notes: I had a little fun with these shots I took of Mere Point Bay and Maquoit Bay one evening in late April. We had recently had our last snow and I was surprised to see the floating dock out in the bay. It was my first time walking out on it and I was enthralled with the look and feel of it. I walked all the way to the end and felt the motion of the lapping waters and looked back at the shore for a new perspective! It’s now become a ritual whenever I cross the street to the boat launch. Even Miss Blossom, our little dog has come to like walking out on the dock. The Common eiders are still in the bay, but they have been joined by Double-crested Cormorants and the occasional Great Blue Heron. In the bushes and trees surrounding the boat launch I have found sparrows, warblers, and even American Woodcocks!. Just this morning when I went to do a bird count I saw my first Laughing Gull flying over Mere Point Bay and there was still a lingering Blackpoll Warbler along with the Yellow Warblers and Common Yellowthroats. I know my poem is not perfect, but it was a fun way to tell the story. Sometimes my thoughts just come out in rhymes. I can’t help it! I hope you enjoyed it! I caught a little break in all the family activities this afternoon. I hope to have more bird pictures coming soon!

April 16, 2014 (Our last snow)