A Few Birds in Norridgewock

 An Eastern Phoebe on its nest 6-7-15

Over the course of the summer we visited Norridgewock, Maine several times. My in-laws have a returning pair of phoebes that nest on their garage which I am always happy to see. They also put their feeders out over the summer, but take them in again in the fall before the snow flies because it is too hard for them to get to them through the snow. When we were there 2 weeks ago I was sad to see them down already. Since they live farther inland, they have yard birds that I usually only see passing through on migration. Here are just a few of the species I saw this summer with names and dates seen posted beneath each photo.

 Female Purple Finch in front. Rose-breasted Grosbeak behind.

 American Robin 6-7-15

 

 Male Rose-breasted Grosbeak 6-7-15

 Red Squirrel 6-12-15

 Eastern Chipmunk 6-12-15

 

 Male Purple Finch 6-20-15

 Indigo Bunting (front) Mourning Dove (behind) 6-20-15

Whenever I am in Norridgewock, I try to do some birding at Oosoola Park.

On July 10th, I saw the following birds there.

 Bald Eagle flying over the Kennebec River 7-10-15

 Eastern Kingbird on a wire 7-10-15

I often find Kingbirds here in summer.

Frequently I find Kingfishers and ducks in this back cove.

On this day there was a family of ducks swimming in the shadows and hiding behind this fallen tree. But eventually they emerged and I had my first Wood ducks for this location!

 Wood Ducks at Oosoola Park 7-10-15

There were more ducks in the river as well.

If you look closely at this picture you can just see a few mallards at the line where the water meets the trees!

Closer to me at the boat ramp and dock more mallards and a couple of American Black Ducks swam up begging for food. A mom with kids obliged them! Yes, bread.

 

 Mallards and American Black Ducks looking for more food.

 

 Meanwhile the kingbird watches.

 

Note: I am gradually getting caught up with all my summer photos with new bird photos to come soon. By the time you read this, I will be returning from a trip to Colorado where I met up with my friend, Chris Rohrer! Won’t I have more stories to tell then! Currently my 2015 Year List is below 200 at 183 species. Perhaps I can get it above that number on this trip! I will let you know soon!

Notes From My Nest: Life Birds and More

 Sunrise over Mere Point Bay 11-23-2014

November 23, 2014: After days of wind and cold the air warmed overnight and the dawn arrived flushed with pink and gold. Though it is still Autumn, it feels more like winter with a biting northwest wind that blew for days. Yesterday morning was still chilly and cold, but in the afternoon the temperature started to rise so that by nightfall it was warmer than noontime. It should be relatively warm here for the next couple of days, and then another shot of winter weather is headed here for Wednesday. I am looking forward to Thanksgiving this year since my daughter and her husband just moved back to Maine from Colorado! It has been over two years since I have seen her! She and I have been able to spend a little bit of time together since her return and I am so happy to have someone who not only likes nature like I do, but also likes to decorate for Christmas and watch girly movies with me!

 Giving my daughter a hug 11-13-14

On Thursday I drove over Livermore to pick Renee up to spend the day with me. She and her husband only have one car and he needs it to drive to work. Renee was driving as we headed up the steep drive of Waters Hill Road, one of the back roads of Maine near Livermore. I don’t remember who spotted them first, but we saw some small birds alongside the road. There were farm fields on either side and as I looked at the birds it suddenly dawned on me what they were. Since she was driving I screamed at her to STOP THE CAR! STOP THE CAR! She quickly applied the brakes and I couldn’t leap out of the door fast enough, for there in front of me were Snow Buntings! After confirming it with my binoculars, I grabbed for my camera and walked up the road. The road was steep and bumpy. I was walking uphill with the sun directly in front of me, so the birds were backlit, but still, I attempted to get their pictures.

Snow Buntings on Waters Hill Road in Livermore, Maine 11-21-14

It was a small flock of five brown and white birds feeding along the road edge. As I got nearer they walked farther and I kept snapping away. Finally they decided I was too close for comfort and they flew off a short distance into the closely cropped farm field. By now I was freezing as a stiff wind reached inside my jacket and pinched my flesh! I decided I had enough Snow Bunting pictures and got back into the car! My smile was as wide as the Androscoggin River! Though I had seen snow buntings years before in the town of Jay, Maine I had not eBirded them. This made them a Life Bird on my eBird List.

All the boats are gone from Mere Point Bay now 11-13-14

But, Renee must be my good luck charm, for later that day when we were at my cottage I went out to turn the car around in preparation for a trip to town when I heard the cry of a raptor overhead. Though I see Bald Eagles here on a regular basis, and lately I have been seeing Red-tailed Hawks, this cry was different. Fortunately I did have my binoculars with me and I looked up to see a large accipiter hanging on the wind.

With the leaves off the trees I can finally see Maquoit Bay from my living room again!

It was light gray below and its size and shape made me realize I was looking at a Northern Goshawk! I ran to the back door for my camera, which I thought was in the kitchen, but it was not. Renee ran to get it from my office, while I stepped back outside to keep my eyes on that bird. It gave its wailing cry again as it slowly drifted over the treetops down towards Maquoit Bay. Just as Renee got to the back door with my camera, it disappeared from view! Too bad! I was alerted to the fact that a goshawk was hanging around the neighborhood by one of my neighbors who is a registered Maine Guide. So when I heard that strange cry that was not an eagle or a Red-tailed Hawk I looked up and found yet another Life Bird! That made two in one day! I was thrilled!

 Ring-billed gulls and Dunlin at Wharton Point 11-20-2014

But today, on this sunny Maine day, I have more serious things in mind. I am about to leave for Connecticut to be with my mom as she goes through yet another breast cancer surgery. After being cancer free for three years, she has had a new cancer develop in her other breast. They caught this one while it is still quite small and we are hoping that she will have a successful surgery and only need radiation this time around.

 Sunset on Mere Point Bay 11-10-2014

In this new world of cancer I was surprised to learn that there is more than one type of breast cancer. So, this is not the return of her old cancer, but a totally new cancer. Her surgery is first thing tomorrow and I hope to be back in Maine before Thanksgiving. Gus is off, so he is here to take care of the house and pets. Our little dog, Miss Blossom, is nearing the end of her life and needs much more care and attention than she used to. It is an unpredictable life we all live, and ours is a bit tenuous right now, but there are still sunrises and sunsets, and plenty of birds to make me smile. With the spotting of the Goshawk I am now up to 105 Yard Birds here on Mere Point. Recently I have had a female Red-bellied woodpecker hanging around. The American Tree Sparrows and Dark-eyed Juncos have returned from the boreal forest of the north, and yesterday I observed a Brown Creeper climbing the trunk of the apple tree where one of my bird feeders hangs. Life is good.

My new favorite store in Brunswick, Maine 11-22-14

Spring Migrants in the Yard

 Female Ruby-throated Hummingbird 5-12-14

Once the snow melted and the birds started arriving it was just plain chaos around here. I had so many new birds in my yard that I often submitted 3 to 4 bird counts a day. I found it hard to get anything done, including blogging, because I was often out watching birds. It started with American woodcocks in early April. I hoped to get a photo but since they are most active at duck, that did not happen. Still, for a few night you could find me out on my front lawn, head tipped back and mouth open as I watched them fly overhead and I listened to their calls. Being new to Maine birding, I had hoped this would be a nightly display for the rest of the summer, but alas, it only lasted a couple of weeks, and then it was over. While the woodcocks may still be around, they are a lot harder to find nowadays!

Brown Thrasher 5-9-14

Waves and waves of sparrows moved through my yard with White-throated, Savannah, and White-crowned sparrows. fox sparrows were here for about two weeks, then they were gone. Eastern Towhees passed through as well, but I only saw them once or twice and I have not seen or heard any since. I was wondering if I would get to see a Brown thrasher, and I asked Don Smith, a birder I recently met and went birding with. he told me they are here in Maine, but a bit hard to find as they are so secretive. However, on the same day I asked him I found one in my yard under the pine tree by the back door after I returned home! It was here for about two days, then it, too, was gone. It was my first Brown Thrasher in Maine and I saw it in my own back yard!

Gray Catbirds arrived on May 10th and have been here ever since.

 

 Black-throated Blue Warbler 5-15-14

I was stunned the day I looked out and saw a black-throated Blue warbler in my yard. Can you see it in this tree?

 Baltimore Oriole 5-15-14

The orioles were around for about two to three weeks on a regular basis, but now I only see or hear them occasionally.

 Female Common Yellowthroat 5-21-14

I loved having the Common Yellowthroats in my yard. I saw them here for several days working their way through the low bushes. They have now moved across the street to the boat launch and I see and hear them over there almost every time i visit and count birds.

 Male Ruby-throated Hummingbird 5-21-14

I was not sure If I would get hummingbirds out here on the point or not but they did arrive and a few have stayed around. I set out three feeders at first, but they do not visit them enough to make it worth maintaining them all. In fact, this is the only one of the three they seem to like, so I took the others down, including my pretty blue glass feeder, which they have never used. I usually see at least one hummingbird a day, sometime two or three. The most I ever saw was four birds, but that was only once. Still, I will take what I can get, but it does make me miss the four to five species that would visit my feeders in Tucson!

 Black-throated Green Warbler 5-21-14

I am still seeing and hearing this warbler species in my yard and all over Maine.

 American Redstart (male) 5-21-14

 Indigo Bunting 5-21-14

The Indigo Buntings arrived on May 15th and stayed around for about a week. I only saw a female once at the top of a tree with a male. The males were the only ones I ever saw at my feeders and I have not seen one in the yard since May 28th.

 

 White-crowned Sparrow 5-28-2014

I had a couple of White-crowned Sparrows move through at the beginning of May, but when once showed up on May 27th it was flagged by eBird. I set out to get a photo and shot this photo through the picture window the next day as the bird nibbled on dandelion seeds beneath the feeder. It stayed around for two days and then it was gone. These photos are my proof I saw it! Notice the bold black and white stripes, the lack of a white throat, and the pinkish-brown bill!

 White-crowned Sparrow 5-28-14

 

 Willow Flycatcher 5-31-14

I think this was a Willow Flycatcher from the call I heard it make. I am still learning my eastern empids and I know I have a ways to go, but here is proof they did pass through my Mere Point yard! May was an exciting month on Mere Point. Below is a list of all 35 bird species I added to the yard list during that month.

Mere Point Cottage New May Yard Birds:

1. Red-bellied Woodpecker 5-5-14
2. Yellow-rumped Warbler 5-5-14
3. Yellow Warbler 5-5-14
4. Black-and-white Warbler 5-5-14
5. Pine Warbler 5-5-14
6. Chimney Swift 5-6-14
7. Lincoln’s Sparrow 5-7-14
8. Northern Parula 5-7-14
9. Rose-breasted Grosbeak 5-8-14
10. Brown Thrasher 5-9-14
11. White-crowned Sparrow 5-9-14
12. Mallard 5-10-14
13. Ruby-throated Hummingbird 5-10-14
14. Gray Catbird 5-10-14
15. Broad-winged Hawk 5-12-14
16. Black-throated Green Warbler 5-12-14
17. Common Yellowthroat 5-12-14
18. Baltimore Oriole 5-12-14
19. Red- Shouldered hawk 5-14-14
20. Great Crested Flycatcher 5-15-14
21. American Redstart 5-15-14
22. Black-throated Blue Warbler 5-15-14
23. Indigo Bunting 5-15-14
24. Chestnut-sided Warbler 5-16-14
25. Wilson’s Warbler 5-19-14
26. Red-eyed Vireo 5-22-14
27. Swainson’s Thrush 5-22-14
28. Pileated Woodpecker 5-23-14
29. Eastern Bluebird 5-25-14
30. Mourning Warbler 5-28-14
31. Black-billed Cuckoo 5-28-14
32. Blackpoll Warbler 5-28-14
33. Magnolia Warbler 5-30-14
34. Rock Pigeon 5-31-14
35. Willow Flycatcher 5-31-14

 

Ruby-throated Hummingbird 5-21-14

Oh, The Places I Bird!

 Cassin’s Kingbird at Kino Springs 8-17-13

Birding can take you to some of the strangest places. Last month I went birding with Chris Rohrer as we went searching for some of the rare birds being seen in Arizona. Our main target was the Blue-footed Booby being seen at Patagonia Lake State Park, but along the way we made several other stops where seasonal birds were being seen.

Our first stop was at the Sonoita Rest area on route 82 in Sonoita. It is an eBird Hotspot due to its easy accessibility and the birds that can be found in the grasslands surrounding it. (Plus, it is the ONLY public restroom you will find out here!)

Behind the restrooms we found Barn Swallows and Lark Sparrows.

 

Across the street to the west we found Western Kingbirds on the wires.

 

Across the street in the grasslands we saw and heard Grasshopper Sparrows, a Target Bird for this location.

Yes, there is a sparrow on that twig!

 

Closer to the road we found an Eastern Meadowlark!

We stopped at Paton’s in Patagonia to count the hummingbirds…

 

…but my Target Bird at this location was this Lazuli Bunting!

It was my first time seeing this species since moving back to Tucson a year ago.

Our next stop and another eBird Hotspot was the Patagonia Rest Area. Thick-billed Kingbirds were reported to be here. But birding in Arizona can often turn up a different kind of bird…

The Border Patrol was out in force on this day. I often see them when birding in Arizona, especially if I am in a remote area near the border.

While we were here some other birders arrived looking for the Thick-billed Kingbird. Everyone got excited when some kingbirds were spotted high in the trees. Everyone rushed over and took pictures. The three other birders that were there ticked the Thick-billed Kingbird off their lists and moved on, but Chris and I did not, because this is one of the three birds we saw and it is not a thick-billed kingbird. Initially I thought it was a Western Kingbird, because in the moment and in that light it looked like it had the white side feathers on the tail. But, after seeing my photos I have come to the conclusion this is a juvenile Cassin's Kingbird due to the white chin and dark breast with a bright yellow belly. A Thick-billed kingbird has a white throat and breast and a pale yellow wash on its under belly, but not up its breast. And, of course, it has a very thick bill!

After a stop at Patagonia Lake State Park to see and photograph the Blue-footed Booby Chris and I continued on to Kino Springs. Kino Springs is a Golf course community in southern Arizona very close to the Mexican Border. The owners kindly let birders onto the property to count birds. It is also an eBird Hotspot. Chris had never been here and I had only been here once before so it was exciting to go back again. The day had grown quite hot, but there was a cool breeze blowing here and we were seeing so many birds that soon I forgot how hot I was! The sky and the trees were full of swallows!

Down around one of the ponds we found so many sparrows and buntings!

The grasses were full of Lazuli Buntings!

 

Kingbirds were being seen everywhere and I have to confess that at first I thought this was a Tropical Kingbird due to the notched tail, but after further investigation it turns out to be a Cassin's Kingbird once again. Notice the white chin and dark gray head and breast. Tropical kingbirds have a paler head and a paler yellow breast that comes all the way up to meet the throat. Wanting a bird to be a certain species doesn’t make it so. I have had to go in and correct my eBird list, but that’s okay, because accuracy is more important than getting a species on your list.

Besides the driving greens there were also sewage treatment ponds with birds in them.

Our final stop was at the Rio Rico Pond in Rio Rico, AZ. This is a small farm pond alongside the road that is well known for having all kinds of rare birds show up here. One only has to park alongside Rio Rico Drive and just walk down the embankment to the fence to look for birds. There wasn’t much here today, but this Snowy Egret was a nice find. When I think back to this day it’s kind of funny to think that I went birding at two rest areas, a golf course, a sewage treatment pond and a farm pond as well as a state park. Yes, birding takes me to all kinds of strange and wonderful places, but best of all, I get to see all kinds of birds!

Places I birded on August 17, 2013 with number of species seen at each location:

1. Sonoita Rest Area-10 species
2. Paton’s Bird Haven-16 species
3. Patagonia Roadside Rest Area-7 species
4. Patagonia Lake State Park-20 species
5. Kino Springs-45 Species
6. Rio Rico Pond-12 species
7. Circulo Cerro Road in Rio Rico-12 species
8. Rio Rico Agricultural Fields-3 species (by now it was dusk)

(This does not include all the bird counts we did while driving between locations!)

Yes, it was a full day of birding and I was exhausted by the time we got home, but we had so much fun and saw so many birds, including two Life Birds for me: the Grasshopper Sparrow seen at the Sonoita Rest Area, and the Blue-footed Booby seen at Patagonia Lake State Park!

Blue-footed Booby 8-17-13

 

Links:

• eBird Hotspot Explorer
• Life Bird 457: Blue-footed Booby (my post)
• The Winds of Change (Chris’ post)