A few vulture shots to start off the new year

Posted on January 6, 2019 by Chris Bosak

Photo by Chris Bosak
A turkey vulture rests on a board at a DMV work area in New England.

What better way to kick off 2019 than with a few vulture photos! I couldn’t resist passing up the spot again. A DMV pull-off area is a magnet for vultures because that’s where the deer carcasses are unloaded. Makes sense, right? I wrote about this at more length in this post from late 2017. Click here to read that post.

Long story short, it’s not an area I should be pulling my passenger car into, but I drove past the other day and saw an inordinate number of vultures. So I circled back to the highway for a closer look. They were nearly all black vultures with only a very few turkey vultures. I grabbed a few photos (and maybe a quick video) and went on my way. If you look closely, they’re actually kind of cute.

Photo by Chris Bosak A group of vultures gather around a deer carcas at a DMV work area in New England.

The 2018 birding year in review: Part V

Posted on January 5, 2019 by Chris Bosak

Photo by Chris Bosak A male indigo bunting eats seeds from a platform feeder in Danbury, Conn., in May 2018.

My latest For the Birds column releases my personal top 10 birding moments for 2018. Recapping the previous year is my favorite column to write each late December or early January. This year, instead of blasting out the top 10 all at once I’m going to spread it out and reveal two each day, starting today (Jan. 1, 2019.) This post will include Nos. 2 and 1. This is the finale!

Feel free to comment or send me an email with some of your 2018 birding or nature highlights.

Photo by Chris Bosak An indigo bunting visits a feeder in New England, spring 2018.

2. Indigo bunting at feeder. I had two visit, actually. One was a male in a blotchy transition plumage and one was an adult male in its splendid bright blue coat. I knew these sought-after birds visited feeders, but this was a first for me.

Gray jay on snowy bough in Pittsburg, N.H., Nov. 2018.

1. Gray jays. An early November trip to Pittsburg, N.H., yielded some interesting bird sightings, such as bald eagles, ruffed grouse, and an evening grosbeak. The highlight for sure, however, were several small groups of gray jays that ate seeds right from our hands.

Of course, the big highlight of the year was continuing to be able to share my outdoor adventures through this column and my website. Thanks for your support in 2018 and I can’t wait to see what 2019 has in store. Also, feel free to share your nature highlights of 2018.

The 2018 birding year in review: Part IV

Posted on January 4, 2019 by Chris Bosak

Photo by Chris Bosak Male rose-breasted grosbeaks chase each other at a feeding stating in Danbury, Conn., May 2018.

Feel free to comment or send me an email with some of your 2018 birding or nature highlights.

Photo by Chris Bosak A Bald Eaglea fies over Little Merganser Lake in Danbury, Conn., Sept. 2016. — Photo by Chris Bosak
A Bald Eagle flies over Little Merganser Lake in Danbury, Conn.

4. Rise of the bald eagle. I continue to hear of several new bald eagle nests throughout New England. My own personal sightings have greatly increased as well. The comeback is not on par with the osprey success story yet, but it’s nice to see that our national symbol appears to be trending upwards.

Photo by Chris Bosak A Rose-breasted Grosbeak visits a feeder in Danbury, Conn., May 2016. — Photo by Chris Bosak
A Rose-breasted Grosbeak visits a feeder in Danbury, Conn.

3. Two male rose-breasted grosbeaks at feeder. I’m happy enough when one of these beauties visits, but one day in early May two of them shared a hopper feeder. “Shared” is a bit of a stretch as they spend most of their time bickering and chasing each other around.

The 2018 birding year in review: Part III

Posted on January 3, 2019 by Chris Bosak

Photo by Chris Bosak A purple finch eats seeds at a feeder in New England, Nov. 2018. — Photo by Chris Bosak
A purple finch eats seeds at a feeder in New England, Nov. 2018.

Feel free to comment or send me an email with some of your 2018 birding or nature highlights.

6. Winter birds at feeder. They were really late fall sightings, but happened after the leaves had dropped so it felt more like winter. It started with a female purple finch, continued with several fox sparrows, and ended with a ton of pine siskins. There is still plenty of time left in winter to add to that list. Anybody want to send me their evening grosbeaks?

Photo by Chris Bosak
Common loon on Long Island Sound during winter months.

5. Christmas Bird Count. It’s going on 20 years now that I’ve participated in the annual bird census. As usual, I did a count in southwestern New England that features varied habitat — from wooded areas to freshwater ponds to Long Island Sound. A few highlight species include: great egret; common loon; merlin; and red-breasted nuthatch.

The 2018 birding year in review: Part II

Posted on January 2, 2019 by Chris Bosak

Photo by Chris Bosak A nothern bobwhite seen at Happy Landing in Brookfield, Connecticut, fall 2018.

Feel free to comment or send me an email with some of your 2018 birding or nature highlights.

8. First New England northern bobwhite. I saw one of these ground birds in Delaware many many years ago, but I finally got my first New England sighting this fall. It is a species in serious decline and would be nice to see them thriving again.

Photo by Chris Bosak A Black-capped Chickadee clears out a cavity in a tree for a nesting site at Selleck's/Dunlap Woods in Darien in spring 2014. — Photo by Chris Bosak
Black-capped chickadee clearing out cavity for nest.

7. Breeding Atlas. Connecticut is undergoing an ambitious three-year survey of its breeding birds. The state is divided into more than 100 blocks that are covered by volunteers. My block features lakes, marshes, mountains, and woods.

The 2018 birding year in review: Part I

Posted on January 1, 2019 by Chris Bosak

Photo by Chris Bosak A male bobolink perches in a small tree and overlooks the fields at Happy Landings in Brookfield, CT. — Photo by Chris Bosak
A male bobolink perches in a small tree and overlooks the fields at Happy Landings in Brookfield, CT.

Feel free to comment or send me an email with some of your 2018 birding or nature highlights.

10. Bobolinks at preserve. Happy Landings is a huge, protected field in Brookfield, Connecticut, where bobolinks thrive. Fields and meadows are a critical and disappearing habitat so it’s nice to see some still exist and are maintained for the wildlife that depend on them.

Photo by Chris Bosak A luna moth clings to a screen in Danbury, Conn., during spring 2018. — Photo by Chris Bosak
A luna moth clings to a screen in Danbury, Conn., during spring 2018.

9. Visit from a luna moth. May brought several bird surprises to my yard, but also a visit from another interesting creature. I went to refill the bird feeders one day and noticed a luna moth clinging to a screen. I’ve seen the large green moth only a few times previously. It hung around all day and was gone the next morning.

Merry Christmas from BirdsofNewEngland!!

Posted on December 25, 2018 by Chris Bosak

Photo by Chris Bosak Merry Christmas 2018 from BirdsofNew England.com

Merry Christmas everyone and thanks for your support of BirdsofNewEngland.com in 2018.

Christmas card number 5 from BirdsofNewEngland

Posted on December 24, 2018 by Chris Bosak

Photo by Chris Bosak A fox sparrow perches on the snow in Danbury, Conn., Nov. 16, 2018.

Southern New England is green as of December 20th and the forecast calls for rain and above-freezing temperatures for the foreseeable future. That’s good news for travelers, but not-so-good news for those dreaming of a white Christmas. To make things a bit easier for those folks, I’ll post a few photos left over from our mid-November snow storm. I’ll post one photo a day until December 25. Merry Christmas everyone and thanks for your support of BirdsofNewEngland.com in 2018!