Stop posting photos of loons, said no one ever. So, to celebrate Father’s Day, BirdsofNewEngland.com presents a common loon bonanza. Every hour on the hour, a new loon photo will post. All photos were taken earlier this week at Pillsbury State Park in New Hampshire. Happy Father’s Day. Enjoy the loons.
The recent camping trip to Pillsbury State Park in New Hampshire was a blast, as expected, with good birding every day of the outing. The loons, of course, were the highlight and we heard them from our waterfront campsite day and night.
One morning — the one when it wasn’t raining — I got great views of three loons as I noticed them from far away and just drifted in my canoe and let the loons come to me. It took a bit of time and a lot of patience, but they eventually came toward me and offered close views. At one point, one surfaced very close to me and started preening. They dived and surfaced in the vicinity of my canoe for several minutes before continuing about their day. I didn’t give chase as loons face enough struggles as it is without any added pressures from photographers.
So, here are a few of the loon photos. More to come soon, in addition to some other birds I saw on the trip.
An eastern phoebe finally built a nest on a large piece of wood I had nailed to the underside of my porch three years ago.
Unfortunately, a brown-headed cowbird egg is among the five eggs currently in the nest. Brown-headed cowbirds are brood parasites and lay their eggs in the nests of other birds. Conventional wisdom says to remove the egg, but that would likely result in the vindictive mother cowbird coming back to destroy the other eggs.
Also, a new line of thinking says to let nature take its course and not let human values interfere with nature. It’s difficult, but I’ll leave the nest alone. I’ll check it daily to see how this all shakes out.
The first egg was laid on Tuesday, June 11. On Wednesday, another phoebe egg and the cowbird egg was discovered. Thursday and Friday brought one phoebe egg each for a total of four phoebe eggs and one cowbird egg.
Here’s the progression of the nest …
Well, I did it again. Apparently I’ve been using the wrong name for a bird for the past year or so.
Recall a few weeks ago when I wrote about the common gallinule that had been seen near the Dillant-Hopkins Airport. Many people, myself included, initially referred to the bird as a common moorhen, the name previously used for the bird. In 2011, the American Ornithologists’ Union changed the name to common gallinule after splitting the species from a similar bird in Europe and Asia.
I’m not as far behind on this latest name change. In May 2018, just about a year ago, the union changed the name of the gray jay to the Canada jay. The handsome, bold bird of the north was historically called the Canada jay anyway, so it was really a change back to an old name.
I wrote a column back in November about a trip to Pittsburg, during Continue reading
I’m heading to New Hampshire for a few days of camping. It’s been a while since I’ve paddled any lake, pond, or river in the Granite State and I’m looking forward to seeing what wildlife will be around. Of course, I’ll let you know when I return. In the meantime, here’s a For the Birds column from 2004 about this very subject …
A great blue heron lifted its skinny four-foot frame out of the water and used its six-foot wing span to carry it to another spot on the lazy river. It was spotted again around the next corner.
A wood duck skulked into the vegetation and disappeared without a trace. Once a wood duck vanishes into the sea of huge green leaves, you can forget about seeing it again.
A muskrat braved a crossing at a swelled portion of the river, using its tail as a rudder. Marsh wrens proudly belted out their peculiar, almost comical, song.
Meanwhile, there were many constant companions. Red-winged blackbirds boisterously claimed various plots of the river’s edge as their own, dragonflies zigged and Continue reading
The sightings emailed in from readers have been so interesting that they have warranted being the topic of columns for several weeks in a row now. It’s creating a backlog of column ideas for me, but that’s a good problem to have. Besides, spring is the most active time for birdwatchers, so I shouldn’t be surprised.
A quick rundown of my own highlights as spring migration trails off and the birds get down to the important business of nesting:
I haven’t seen my rose-breasted grosbeaks in a few weeks. I’m hoping they are hunkered down on nests. I have, however, seen my ruby-throated hummingbirds Continue reading
She’s not as flashy as the male, but quite a looker anyway.
I got this shot a few weeks ago of one of my favorite New England summer birds, the bobolink. They are black, white and yellow (like the Steelers) and have a crazy song that sounds like R2D2. What’s not to like?
One thing not to like is that bobolinks are in decline throughout their range because of habitat destruction. Bobolinks nest in fields of tall grass and that habitat is disappearing fast as developers eye it for condos or shopping centers, or towns see the potential for more soccer fields instead of critical wildlife habitat. Bobolinks aren’t alone as many field species are in similar peril. All one has to do is walk through a field or meadow in the summer to appreciate how valuable that habitat is to wildlife.
It took a few seconds for us to unravel the scene in the above photo but it eventually became clear it was a large northern water snake eating a fish and a smaller northern water snake clinging close to the larger snake. Although we happened upon the scene at this stage of the battle, I’m fairly certain the fish was a catfish. To give credit where it is due, my 12-year-old son Will was the one who discovered the scene and called the rest of us over.
The snake had pulled the fish onto the shore and the fish continued to fight with everything it had. It was quite the battle and we watched for a good 15 minutes. Not having my camera equipment with me, I did the best I could with my iPhone while at the same time being respectful of the natural scene unfolding. The struggle took place a few weeks ago at Lake Waubeeka in Danbury, Connecticut, along the same shore where I often launch my water tube for a relaxing day on the lake. Guess I’ll watch where I’m stepping next time I do that.
Northern water snakes are large and intimidating looking, especially when moving through the water, but are non-venomous and harmless. They do bite but only when antagonized. They aren’t going to aggressively pursue a human and attack. They are often mistaken for copperheads or water moccasins (cottonmouths). Copperheads live in Connecticut but are snakes of the forest and mountains. Water moccasins are snakes of the southeastern U.S. and do not range into New England.
After about half an hour the snake was able to completely swallow the fish. By that time, the other snake had disappeared. The larger snake, complete with a bulging body behind its head, retreated to the water and hid under a rock along the shore. I’m pretty sure it’s the same rock I use for footing as I launch my tube. Good thing water snakes are harmless.
Here are some more photos to get you ready for summer …
Below, the marking of the harmless northern water snake.
Here are the last two For the Birds columns, mostly focused on what readers have been seeing this spring.
If the past season was the Winter of the barred owl, this is the spring of the indigo bunting.
I’ve heard from numerous readers and friends throughout New England and even Canada about this bright blue bird visiting their backyards. The cause for excitement is obvious as it is one of our more colorful birds, flashing a brilliant blue plumage. The brilliance of the blue plumage is dependent upon the light.
It is also nice to hear that so many of these birds are around and delighting backyard birders in large numbers. Rose-breasted grosbeaks are another popular bird this spring. I’ve had limited luck with indigo buntings this spring, but for me, it’s been a banner year for rose-breasted grosbeaks. I’ve seen as many as three males in a tree overhanging my feeders. A female visits the feeders often as well.
It’s also been a good spring for warblers and nearly every walk last week yielded yellow warblers, common yellowthroats, black-and-white warblers, chestnut-sided warblers, American redstarts and yellow-rumped warblers.
I’m not the only birdwatcher enjoying a productive spring. Here’s what Continue reading
Birds of New England.com 