Author Archives: Chris Bosak

Unknown's avatar

About Chris Bosak

Bird columnist and nature photographer based in New England.

For the Birds: Birds sightings can happen anywhere

Posted on by
2
Photo by Chris Bosak – A Cooper’s hawk eats a meal in New England, summer 2025.

“One of the nice things about birdwatching is …”

I’ve started many sentences with that phrase over the years. The backend of that line may be finished in almost innumerable ways:

… everyone, regardless of age or skill level, can enjoy it.

… it can be done during any time of the day or year.

… no two days are alike.

… there is always something new to learn or discover, regardless of how advanced you are.

… each time of year brings its own delights.

For the purposes of this column, the sentence will read: “One of the nice things about birdwatching is that it can be done anywhere.” Not many hobbies can be enjoyed in the woods, in a canoe or kayak, at a local park, or sitting in the kitchen looking out the window with your morning cup of coffee.

Continue reading →

Piping plover chicks are high on the cuteness scale

Posted on by
1
Photo by Chris Bosak Piping plover chick and adult, Milford, Connecticut, summer 2025.

Here are a few shots of piping plover chicks with an attentive parent nearby. I got these shots on the same day as my recent visit to a beach in southern Connecticut. Cute hardly begins to describe these little birds. Here are some shots of oystercatchers (including a chick) I got on the same day.

Hard to beat an American oystercatcher sighting
A few more oystercatcher photos
Photo by Chris Bosak Piping plover chick and adult, Milford, Connecticut, summer 2025.
Photo by Chris Bosak Piping plover chick, Milford, Connecticut, summer 2025.
Photo by Chris Bosak Piping plover chick and adult, Milford, Connecticut, summer 2025.

For the Birds: New England birding from top to bottom

Posted on by
1
Photo by Chris Bosak Piping plover, Milford, Connecticut, summer 2025.

I’ve looked for birds in New England from top to bottom this month. At the beginning of July, I drove to Pittsburg, NH, near the Canadian border, and last week, I visited a beach/nature preserve on Long Island Sound in southern Connecticut.

Yes, technically, northern Maine would be top of New England, but let’s not split hairs here.

It was quite a contrast in habitat and birdlife between the two points, from the boreal forest up north to the marsh and shoreline down south. 

Continue reading →

For the Birds: Young birds offer hope for the future

Posted on by
1
Photo by Chris Bosak – A young male rose-breasted grosbeak visits a feeder in New England, summer 2025. Note the brown feathers on the wings.

I was heading to my car at work when four or five relatively large birds emerged on the ground from around the corner of a building. I didn’t immediately recognize them, as their sudden appearance surprised me and my mind was elsewhere.

I took a few more steps and quickly realized what they were: baby turkeys. By that time, I had progressed enough that the mother turkey was now visible and only a few yards away. Will she attack like a mute swan or Canada goose might? Never get between a mother and her babies, the saying goes. I wasn’t actually between them, but I was certainly close enough to some of the babies that I could be considered a threat.

Continue reading →

A few more oystercatcher photos

Posted on by
2
Photo by Chris Bosak American oystercatcher, Milford, Connecticut, summer 2025.

Following up on yesterday’s post, here are a few more American oystercatcher photos. I find both of these photos rather humorous. The top photo looks like an unhappy customer storming away from the counter. The bottom photo looks like an oystercatcher giving someone the evil eye.

Here’s the original post with more photos, including an oystercatcher chick.

Photo by Chris Bosak American oystercatcher, Milford, Connecticut, summer 2025.

Hard to beat an American oystercatcher sighting

Posted on by
Reply
Photo by Chris Bosak American oystercatcher, Milford, Connecticut, summer 2025.

They aren’t particularly rare, especially if you know where to look, but American oystercatchers are always a thrill to see. I saw these beauties during a short birdwalk at Connecticut Audubon Society Coastal Center at Milford Point the other day. One of the coolest looking birds in New England, if you ask me. Check out the youngster below.

More information about the American oystercatcher may be found here.

Photo by Chris Bosak American oystercatcher, Milford, Connecticut, summer 2025.
Photo by Chris Bosak American oystercatcher chick, Milford, Connecticut, summer 2025.

Clapper rail comes out of hiding

Posted on by
1
Photo by Chris Bosak Clapper rail in Milford, Connecticut, summer 2025.

Rails are shy birds of the marshlands. Clapper rails are usually heard before they are seen, if they are seen at all. I stood in the muck at low tide for several minutes, and finally, this clapper rail decided to come out of the vegetation and walk along the mud for a few seconds. Several rails were calling back and forth in the marsh.

Photo by Chris Bosak Clapper rail in Milford, Connecticut, summer 2025.
Photo by Chris Bosak Clapper rail in Milford, Connecticut, summer 2025.

For the Birds: House wren becomes northern house wren

Posted on by
2
Photo by Chris Bosak
A house wren perches on a branch in New England.

My brother and I were on our favorite birding trail in my old hometown of Erie, Pennsylvania, when one of those fantastic bird flurries happened.

It was mid-May and the flurry consisted of four or five types of warblers, two brown thrashers, a blue-gray gnatcatcher, Baltimore orioles, a house wren and a few other species. When the flurry died down and I entered the species into my eBird report, I noticed something that struck me as odd.

When I entered house wren, the only option that came up was northern house wren. What the heck is that? I thought. I assumed that was the species I’ve always known as house wren, but I still wondered where the “northern” came from.

A quick internet search confirmed that the new official name for the house wren species that occurs in the U.S. is northern house wren. The southern house wren, formerly considered the same species as the northern, lives south of the U.S. and there are also five separate Caribbean endemic species. The split and name changes happened in 2024. Somehow, I missed the memo until now.

Continue reading →

A kingbird to kick off the weekend

Posted on by
1
Photo by Chris Bosak Eastern kingbird at Presque Isle State Park, Erie, Pa., May 2025.

Let’s kick off the summer weekend with a portrait of an eastern kingbird. Why not?

Here’s information on this feisty New England bird.

Here’s a story about how my son Will and I saved a kingbird once.

For the Birds: Red-headed woodpecker makes surprise visit to New Hampshire

Posted on by
3
Photo by Chris Bosak A red-headed woodpecker in Pennsylvania earlier this year.

It wasn’t long ago, just last week, in fact, that I wrote about uncommon birds showing up unexpectedly now and then.

You never know where or when they will appear, I wrote, but being vigilant is the key to finding them.

Not long after that column went to print, I received an email that really drove home that point. Eric from Surry wrote to say he had seen a red-headed woodpecker in his backyard.

When I opened the email, I could see only the text, not the photos. I have no way of knowing one’s bird identification skills when I get an email, so it’s always nice when a photo is attached, regardless of quality, to confirm the sighting.

Continue reading →