Kicking off a celebration of our common backyard birds

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Photo by Chris Bosak A Tufted Titmouse perches on a branch of a fading sunflower before heading to a nearby birdfeeder.

Photo by Chris Bosak
A Tufted Titmouse perches on a branch of a fading sunflower before heading to a nearby birdfeeder.

This photo of a Tufted Titmouse is pulling double duty. It accompanied my latest column in The Hour (Norwalk, Ct) and The Keene Sentinel (Keene, NH), which may be found here.

It is also being used on this post to kick off a celebration of our common backyard feeder birds. This is a great time of year for feeding birds as the feeders are active with titmice, chickadees, nuthatches, cardinals and other birds. Under the feeder, birds such as White-throated Sparrows and Dark-eyed Juncos have returned. So to celebrate that, I’ll post a series of photos highlighting some of our more common, but beloved, backyard birds.

A few more northern New England photos

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Photo by Chris Bosak A Common Loon at a pond in northern New Hampshire, Oct. 2014. This loon is transitioning between summer and winter plumage.

Photo by Chris Bosak
A Common Loon at a pond in northern New Hampshire, Oct. 2014. This loon is transitioning between summer and winter plumage.

Here are a few more shots from my recent trip to northern New England. I’m already looking forward to getting up there again.

I call this one “The one that got away.” I was canoeing on a pond in New Hampshire and focusing so heavily on the loon pictured above that I wasn’t aware of the rest of my surroundings. Suddenly I noticed a Bald Eagle flying away from scene. It had been perched on the top of a pine tree and I completely missed it — well, almost completely. I managed this quick shot of it flying away.

Photo by Chris Bosak A Bald Eagle flies across the autumn scene in northern New Hampshire, Oct. 2014.

Photo by Chris Bosak
A Bald Eagle flies across the autumn scene in northern New Hampshire, Oct. 2014.

Finally, here’s an American River Otter. There were two of them and it was the first time in years I’ve seen otters while I was canoeing. Unfortunately, this particular morning was very dark and gray, hence the not-so-good quality of the photo.

Photo by Chris Bosak A River Otter looks around a small pond in northern New Hampshire, Oct. 2014.

Photo by Chris Bosak
A River Otter looks around a small pond in northern New Hampshire, Oct. 2014.

A great night at the nature center

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Photo by Chris Bosak The entrance to the "Our Meadows: Alive and Buzzing" exhibit at the Darien Nature Center.

Photo by Chris Bosak
The entrance to the “Our Meadows: Alive and Buzzing” exhibit at the Darien Nature Center.

Friday was the reception for the “Our Meadows: Alive and Buzzing” photo exhibit at the Darien Nature Center. It was a great night that would not have been possible without the hard work of many people. Also, thanks go to everyone who attended. It was a good crowd and a good time.

The exhibit features photos that I took on Darien Land Trust meadow properties. The photos include subjects such as flowers, insects and, of course, birds. The photos may also be found on the “Meadow close-ups” page of this website.

Here is a link to a photograph taken during the reception by The Hour photographer Alex von Kleydorff.

The exhibit will run through Nov. 16 at the Darien Nature Center at 120 Brookside Road (within Cherry Lawn Park) in Darien, Conn.

Gray Jay: Friendly bird of the northern woods

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Photo by Chris Bosak A Gray Jay perches on a branch near a pond in northern New Hampshire, Oct. 2014.

Photo by Chris Bosak
A Gray Jay perches on a branch near a pond in northern New Hampshire, Oct. 2014.

Gray Jays are quickly becoming one of my favorite birds. Their range does not stretch into southern New England, but on my last several trips to northern New England, I’ve seen these handsome and friendly birds. I have been visiting the northern reaches of New Hampshire for more than 20 years now and I started seeing Gray Jays only in the last few years. They appear out of nowhere and offer close views. They seem to be as curious about you as you are about them. From what I’ve seen, they hang out in small flocks (3, 4 or 5 birds.) Gray Jays are one of those boreal species that makes the Great North Woods so special. I took the above photo while canoeing on a small pond in northern New Hampshire. This one flew right up to the pond’s edge to check me out.

 

Walking into work this morning: Great Blue Heron in Norwalk

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Photo by Chris Bosak A Great Blue Heron stands on a piling along the Norwalk River on Tuesday, Oct. 14, 2014.

Photo by Chris Bosak
A Great Blue Heron stands on a piling along the Norwalk River on Tuesday, Oct. 14, 2014.

I parked the car at work this morning (Tuesday, Oct. 14), looked to my right and there’s a Great Blue Heron standing on a piling a few dozen yards away. All days should start this way.

Coincidentally, I posted last night photos of a Great Blue Heron that I took during a recent trip to northern New Hampshire. Great Blue Herons are found throughout the U.S., and beyond. So, in consecutive days, here are photos of Great Blue Herons taken from the top to the bottom of New England.

Here’s one of the heron with South Norwalk (Conn.) as the background.

Great Blue in the Great North Woods

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Photo by Chris Bosak A Great Blue Heron flies across the scene at a pond in northern New Hampshire, Oct. 2014.

Photo by Chris Bosak
A Great Blue Heron flies across the scene at a pond in northern New Hampshire, Oct. 2014.

Here’s a Great Blue Heron I found while I was canoeing on a small pond in northern New Hampshire during my recent trip to the “Great North Woods,” as the marketers have dubbed the area.

Many of the birds there had already moved south, but a few bird species were still around. I’ve already posted photos of Belted Kingfishers and Common Loons, and now here’s a heron. I have a few more to post before closing the books on my annual trip up north.

Photo by Chris Bosak A Great Blue Heron hunts on the shore of a pond in northern New Hampshire, Oct. 2014.

Photo by Chris Bosak
A Great Blue Heron hunts on the shore of a pond in northern New Hampshire, Oct. 2014.

Belted Kingfisher in Maine

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Photo by Chris Bosak A female Belted Kingfisher perches in a branch near a small pond along the Golden Road in Maine, fall 2014.

Photo by Chris Bosak
A female Belted Kingfisher perches in a branch near a small pond along the Golden Road in Maine, fall 2014.

Here’s a female Belted Kingfisher I saw near a small pond along the Golden Road in central Maine during a recently trip up north.

Photo by Chris Bosak A female Belted Kingfisher leaves its perch near a small pond along the Golden Road in Maine.

Photo by Chris Bosak
A female Belted Kingfisher leaves its perch near a small pond along the Golden Road in Maine.

Latest For the Birds column: Loons in the fall

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Photo by Chris Bosak A Common Loon in transitional plumage swims on a pond in northern New Hampshire in early October 2014.

Photo by Chris Bosak
A Common Loon in transitional plumage swims on a pond in northern New Hampshire in early October 2014.

I recently took my annual trip to northern New England in the hopes of seeing moose and few boreal bird species. The moose were scarce _ I saw a grand total of zero _ and Gray Jays were the only real boreal species of birds I saw. Nonetheless I did see plenty of Common Loons, which makes for a successful trip in my book. My latest For the Birds column addresses loons and their summer and winter plumage (and in-between plumage).
The full column may be seen here. 

Over the next several days I’ll post photos from the trip, which included stops in central Maine and northern New Hampshire.

What will this late-fall/early-winter bring?

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Photo by Chris Bosak An Eastern Towhee calls from his perch at Selleck's Woods in Darien, Conn., April 2014.

Photo by Chris Bosak
An Eastern Towhee calls from his perch at Selleck’s Woods in Darien, Conn., April 2014.

For years I’ve struggled to get decent shots of Eastern Towhees. Either I couldn’t find them or they remained in thick brush, rendering them unphotographable (but safe from predators, which I guess is way more important than me getting a photograph of one.)

But last fall and early winter, I saw plenty of towhees. The best part is they occasionally came out into the open to be photographed. It was one of the highlights of last fall/early winter. Then, remember, the Snowy Owls came in force into New England.

What will this year bring? I guess we have to wait and see. If you see something interesting out there or you’ve taken a neat photo of a bird (or other wildlife), drop me a line at bozclark@earthlink.net. I’d love to put more photos on my “Reader Submitted Photos” page.

A few more Green Heron shots

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Photo by Chris Bosak Green Heron in Darien, Conn., Nov. 2013.

Photo by Chris Bosak
Green Heron in Darien, Conn., Nov. 2013.

Here’s a few Green Herons photos I got last November. That is late for a Green Heron. I’m posting now because my latest For the Birds column was about Green Herons and we are heading into fall. The universe seemed to be telling me to put a few more Green Heron photos out there.

Photo by Chris Bosak Green Heron in Darien, Conn., Nov. 2013.

Photo by Chris Bosak
Green Heron in Darien, Conn., Nov. 2013.