Downy Woodpeckers in the snow

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Photo by Chris Bosak A female downy woodpecker perches on a birdfeeder stand before heading to the suet feeder during the Dec. 14, 2013, snow fall.

Photo by Chris Bosak
A female downy woodpecker perches on a birdfeeder stand before heading to the suet feeder during the Dec. 14, 2013, snow fall.

The snow always brings a lot of birds to the feeders. The Dec. 14, 2013, snowfall was no exception. Here are a few shots of Downy Woodpeckers in the snow. Juncos, White-throated Sparrows, Mourning Doves and Northern Cardinals ate seeds on the ground below. The Downy Woodpeckers owned the suet cake, other than when a much larger female Hairy Woodpecker swooped in to take over.
Send me your snow bird photos at bozclark@earthlink.net and I’ll post them on my “reader submitted” photo page.

Photo by Chris Bosak A male downy woodpecker perches on a birdfeeder stand before heading to the suet feeder during the Dec. 14, 2013, snow fall.

Photo by Chris Bosak
A male downy woodpecker perches on a birdfeeder stand before heading to the suet feeder during the Dec. 14, 2013, snow fall.

Latest For the Birds column

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Photo by Chris Bosak Female Hooded Merganser at Holly Pond in Stamford, CT, Nov. 2013.

Photo by Chris Bosak
Female Hooded Merganser at Holly Pond in Stamford, CT, Nov. 2013.

Here’s the latest For the Birds column, detailing my annual “duck hunt” with my boys.

Click here.

Young Peregrines gotta eat, too

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Photo by Chris Bosak An immature Peregrine Falcon sits on prey at Veterans Park in Norwalk, CT, Dec. 2013.

Photo by Chris Bosak
An immature Peregrine Falcon sits on prey at Veterans Park in Norwalk, CT, Dec. 2013.

Here’s a young Peregrine Falcon eating something or other in the field at Veterans Park in Norwalk, Conn., on Wednesday, Dec. 18. A pair of adult Peregrines and a young one “hang out” near where I work up the river a mile or so. I wonder if this is the same young falcon. At any rate, I didn’t want to close the distance for this photo too much. Young birds — and big ones, too, for that matter — need all the nutrition they can get, especially in winter.

Photo by Chris Bosak An immature Peregrine Falcon sits on prey at Veterans Park in Norwalk, CT, Dec. 2013.

Photo by Chris Bosak
An immature Peregrine Falcon sits on prey at Veterans Park in Norwalk, CT, Dec. 2013.

Eurasian Wigeon video

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Here’s a short video of a Eurasian Wigeon I saw at the Mill Pond in East Norwalk, Conn., on Sunday, Dec. 8, 2013.

Eurasian Wigeon, as the name suggests, are not native to the U.S., but they occasionally show up in flocks of American Wigeon, as was the case here.

Thanks for visiting http://www.birdsofnewengland.com

Nothing like a Peregrine Falcon …

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There’s nothing like a Peregrine Falcon flying past your window at work and landing on a sailboat mast to brighten a drizzly, gray day. I love these little surprises nature throws at us every once in a while. (Photo taken along Norwalk River, Dec. 6, 2013)

Photo by Chris Bosak A Peregrine Falcon rests on a sailboat mast in Norwalk, Conn., Dec. 2013.

Photo by Chris Bosak
A Peregrine Falcon rests on a sailboat mast in Norwalk, Conn., Dec. 2013.

Latest For the Birds column

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Photo by Chris Bosak A Snowy Owl sits on a rock on an island off the coast of Norwalk in November 2008.

Photo by Chris Bosak
A Snowy Owl sits on a rock on an island off the coast of Norwalk in November 2008.

This one’s hot off the press (in fact not even off the press yet, but will be on Thursday morning.)

Here’s a link to my latest For the Birds column about the Snowy Owl irruption in New England. Click Here.

 

Purple Sandpipers on Long Island Sound off the coast of Darien

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Photo by Chris Bosak Purple Sandpiper on rocky island off the coast of Darien, CT. (Dec. 2013)

Photo by Chris Bosak
Purple Sandpiper on rocky island off the coast of Darien, CT. (Dec. 2013)

Snowy Owls and a Fork-tailed Flycatcher are grabbing all the headlines in Connecticut this week _ and deservedly so. Snowy Owls are being found up and down the coast and that flycatcher has been entertaining birders in Hadlyme.

I haven’t seen either species yet this fall/winter, but I thoroughly enjoyed a canoe trip on Long Island Sound this weekend. I launched from Pear Tree Point in Darien and canoed over to Green’s Ledge Lighthouse and back along the Darien coast. Common and Red-throated Loons were abundant. Long-tailed Ducks were constant companions and even uttered their unique song over and over.

But, for me, the highlight was Purple Sandpipers. I came across two flocks _ one a sizable flock of about two dozen; the other just two birds. Purple Sandpipers are hearty birds that live on rocky islands and breed in the Arctic. They winter on isolated rocks off the coast of New England, including Long Island Sound. 

(Way more photos below. Click on “continue reading.”)

Continue reading →

Latest For the Birds column: Tracking down a towhee

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Here’s my column from this week in The Hour and Keene Sentinel.

Photo by Chris Bosak An Eastern Towhee at Selleck's/Dunlap Woods in Darien, Nov. 2013.

Photo by Chris Bosak
An Eastern Towhee at Selleck’s/Dunlap Woods in Darien, Nov. 2013.

 

It was one of those walks I probably shouldn’t have taken. I had only a smidgen of wiggle room if I wanted to arrive at an appointment on time. The woods beckoned, however, and I’ve always felt that a few minutes in the woods was better than no minutes in the woods. The danger, of course, is that I find it very difficult to spend only a few minutes in the woods. One good bird to follow and there goes my couple of minutes. Oh well, I figured, it’s cold and breezy. The birds will be hunkered down and making themselves scarce. I can knock out a quick walk no problem. The plan was working Continue reading →

Hooded Mergansers all over

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Photo by Chris Bosak A male Hooded Merganser in Holly Pond in Stamford, CT, Nov. 2013.

Photo by Chris Bosak
A male Hooded Merganser in Holly Pond in Stamford, CT, Nov. 2013.

Hooded Mergansers are usually found in large numbers here in southern New England, but this fall seems to be particularly good for “hoodies.” Hooded Mergansers, which have long been one of my favorite birds, are found on both fresh and brackish water. They eat a variety of small prey, mostly fish, they obtain by Continue reading →

Time to clean the bird houses

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Darien Land Trust member Denis "Den" Frelinghuysen removes a Tree Swallow nest from a bird house at Mather Meadows as Darien Land Trust Executive Director Shirley Nichols looks on in this Nov. 23, 2013, photo.

Darien Land Trust member Denis “Den” Frelinghuysen removes a Tree Swallow nest from a bird house at Mather Meadows as Darien Land Trust Executive Director Shirley Nichols looks on in this Nov. 23, 2013, photo.

If you haven’t already, this is a good time to clean the bird houses. Birds will still use the houses for winter shelter without the nests. Old nests hold a variety of parasites and could be harmful to the birds in the spring. Cleaning the boxes will also give you the opportunity check if any unwanted visitors have used the house, such as wasps.

In the above photo, Darien Land Trust member Denis Frelinghuysen removes a Tree Swallow nest from a box at the Mather Meadows property in the northern part of Darien. Land Trust Executive Director Shirley Nichols looks on.