It looks as though we may be in for another irruption year of snowy owls. This time the theory proposes that last breeding season was so successful that large numbers of snowy owls were born, survived and are hunting in the tundra. The congestion of owls being severe, the older, wiser owls are driving the youngsters out of their territories. Thus, the young snowy owls are beginning to appear along the New England coast, and even venturing as far south as New Jersey looking for their own hunting grounds. I heard that a snowy owl was even found on Bermuda on Nov. 30!

Greater scaup sometimes hard to identify.

So, there was no surprise when David Joyce posted a photo of a snowy owl that he took on State Beach on Dec. 6. Hoping the owl was still there, Ken Magnuson and Kelly Spencer drove over to State Beach on Dec. 7 and Kelly found the snowy owl on the Oak Bluffs side of the Big Bridge around 8:50 a.m. Ken took several nice shots of the owl. Sharon Simonin found and photographed the owl around 10 a.m., and Lanny McDowell found and photographed it later in the day. So far that is the only sighting for snowy owls on the Vineyard, but it will be interesting to see if this past northeaster blows more owls south. Meanwhile, three snowy owls were spotted on Chappaquiddick.

Fish crows were not reported from the Island until the Christmas Count of 2010, when several were heard and seen in a crow roost off North Road; actually, there was one other sighting of three fish crows seen flying over Tisbury Great Pond in 1892. Now fish crows are beginning to creep into the bird news more regularly. The fish crow appearance is more obvious in the winter months when crows tend to roost in large flocks and migrate between the mainland and the Vineyard. So, again there was no surprise when on Dec. 2 David Stanwood heard fish crows by Shirley’s Hardware in Vineyard Haven. Lanny McDowell heard fish crows over his Tashmoo home around noon. Later in the day Bob Woodruff remarked that a flock of about 300 crows, half of which were fish crows, were "wildly flying about" his North Tisbury yard. They would land for a bit, then rise up and fly off and return shortly thereafter. Eventually, they all flew off to find a proper roosting area. Bob could not only hear the two distinct calls of the American and fish crows but he also noted the size differences between the two species. It may be that all three men were observing the same mixed flock as they arrived from off-Island to roost for the evening. On Dec. 4, David Stanwood heard and spotted around 500 “commuter” crows and heard both American and fish crow by his Lambert’s Cove Road home.

Robert Culbert watched a flock of greater scaup flying from Trapp’s Pond on Dec. 6. Scaups have always been a difficult duck to tell apart, so when Rob was able to see the birds at close range in flight, he was able to definitely identify them as greater scaup because of the white stripe that extends all the way down the trailing edge of its wing to the tip of the wing. Lesser scaup have white stripes down half of their wing only. The next day Ken Magnuson and Lanny McDowell went back to the Cow Bay/Trapp’s Pond area and took many photos of the greater scaup. Their photos showed other characteristics that help separate the greater from the lesser scaup. The larger, flatter bill with a large “tooth” on the end and a rounded head are the characteristics for the greater scaup. The lesser scaup have smaller bills and a more pointed or peaked head. The head shape characteristics are more difficult to use than the amount of white on the wing of the bird in flight. Hopefully, if you see scaup, they will be in flight.

Bird Sightings:

Lisa Wright emailed a report from Cuttyhunk, where she spotted an American bittern on Dec. 2. Lisa added that a great blue heron is still on Cuttyhunk.

Nancy Weaver, Margaret Curtin and Greg Palermo found a peregrine falcon on Dec. 5 at Wasque.

Greater scaup have white stripe extending to wing tip. — Lanny McDowell

Rob Bierregaard’s latest osprey report shows that the Vineyard’s ospreys have settled for the winter. Snowy is spending the winter enjoying Cuban rum and cigars, Belle is in Rio Madiera, Brazil, and DJ is in northwest Venezuela.

Lanny McDowell photographed a winter wren that was visiting his Tashmoo home on Dec. 4. David Stanwood counted six eastern bluebirds near his piano shop on Lambert’s Cove Road on Dec. 8.

Jeff Bernier counted 70 Bonaparte’s gulls flying around Edgartown harbor on Dec. 4.

Bert Fischer watched around 1,000 common grackles fly into and out of his West Tisbury yard on Dec. 7. Happy Spongberg emailed that a flock of American robins stripped down 90 per cent of the winterberry in her Tea Lane yard on Dec. 6.

Wendy Weldon sent a photo of an immature red-tailed hawk that a friend had found in the Squibnocket parking lot around Thanksgiving. Unfortunately, the hawk had become tangled in monofilament fishing line. Maura FitzGerald and Allen Carney reported their first red-bellied woodpecker at their Aquinnah feeder. Usually the only visiting woodpeckers are downies.

Please report your bird sightings to birds@mvgazette.com.
Susan B. Whiting is the co-author of Vineyard Birds and Vineyard Birds II. Her website is vineyardbirds2.com.