It was not an ideal day for finding birds, but it certainly could have been a whole lot worse. Dec. 16 started out partly sunny but cold, with maybe two inches of snow on the ground and temperatures below freezing, with a five-mile-per-hour wind out of the northwest. Eight children and an equal number of birders were at Felix Neck to participate in the second annual Junior Christmas Bird Count.
We started inside the visitor’s center with an introduction to birding before we headed outside to watch the many birds visiting the feeders. We had been hearing the red-winged blackbirds in the distance and then they showed up and descended on one of the bird feeders, putting on quite a show.
We headed out on the trails to see more birds, visiting the frozen turtle pond with its numerous otter holes and tracks, continued on to the frozen duck pond before we headed out the orange trail to Sengekontacket Pond. We returned to the visitor’s center an hour later, where we warmed up and tallied the results. Some of the children even managed to throw a few snowballs.
Our highlights included a brown thrasher and the red-winged blackbirds. Everybody had a great time as we tallied 163 birds of 29 different species: black duck 3, mallard 1, bufflehead 32, common loon 2, red-tailed hawk 1. turkey vulture 2, black-bellied plover 5, sanderling 2, dunlin 12, herring gull 4, great black-backed gull 1, mourning dove 14, red-bellied woodpecker 2, downy woodpecker 5, northern flicker 1, blue jay 4, American crow 6, black-capped chickadee 17, tufted titmouse 5, golden-crowned kinglet 1, white-breasted nuthatch 1, American robin 2, yellow-rumped warbler 5, song sparrow 6, northern cardinal 5, brown thrasher 1, red-winged blackbird 19, house finch 2, and American goldfinch 1.
And now a reminder, on Friday Dec. 29 there will be 60 or more birders out scouring all corners of the Island for birds in the 58th annual adult Christmas Bird Count. There is still room for your participation. Contact Luanne Johnson of BiodiversityWorksMV for more information about how to participate as a feeder watcher.
Bird Sightings Far and away the most unusual bird spotted this week was an adult Ross’s goose. It looks nearly identical to the snow goose but is smaller and has a different beak structure. As far as my records go, there has been only one other record of this species, and that was in Oct., 2001 when it was observed in the fields of the Keith Farm and stayed around for a few days.
The trio of Ken Magnuson, Lanny McDowell and Jeff Bernier were the first to spot the Ross’s goose on Dec 11, a single individual within a flock of Canada geese at the Farm Institute. Donna Cavallo, Allan Keith, Ned Casey and Susan Whiting each spotted the goose on Dec. 12, while later that afternoon Lanny McDowell spotted it at the northern end of Sengekontacket Pond. Jeff Bernier found it at the Farm Institute again on Dec. 13 while Ken Magnuson spotted it that day at the Edgartown Golf Club. The Ross’s goose identifies this flock of Canada geese, and the extent of their wandering around the Island is illustrated by the diversity of these sightings. Intriguingly, a small white goose was spotted by Hatsy Potter at Pimpneymouse Farm on Dec. 4. We can not tell from the photograph whether it was the Ross’s or a snow goose.
There is a Ross’s goose on Nantucket as well. There also is a snow goose on the Island, as John Nelson spotted one in Katama on Dec. 10.
There have been at least two bald eagles around. Gus BenDavid spotted an immature over his house on Nov. 27, and he saw it (or another one) the first weekend of December as it was flying over the Oak Bluffs Pumping Station. Bea Phear observed an adult eagle as it flew over Indian Hill Road on Dec. 9, and both Jarrett Campbell and Michael Marcus spotted an eagle flying over Keene’s pit on Old Stage Road and across North Road, respectively, on Dec. 11. Nancy Weaver reports an adult eagle on the slush ice at the upper end of Lagoon Pond for two hours on the afternoon of Dec. 16, and she saw it again on the morning of Dec. 17. These sightings are now expected, as in recent years there have been multiple sightings of both adult and immature bald eagles throughout the winter.
Lisa Bibko-Vanderhoop spotted a red phase screech owl roosting in a cavity in a tree in Chilmark on Dec. 17.
Four robins and a northern flicker descended on Sioux Eagle’s birdbath the morning after the first snowfall on Dec. 14. Dionis Montrowl also found robins in her yard that morning. And Lanny McDowell had chipping sparrows appear at his feeder that morning. Snow will cause many birds to visit additional locations when there is no snow on the ground.
Snow buntings are in the news too. There is a report of 50 snow buntings in a dirt parking lot at the Gay Head Cliffs, while Susan Whiting spotted a dozen of them at the Farm Institute around the same time she spotted the Ross’s goose on Dec. 12.
Bill Jones reports a Baltimore oriole at his feeder on Dec. 8.
And finally, Rick Dwyer reports that he found six snowy owls on Norton Point and Cape Pogue on Dec. 10. This is an irruption year for these owls, which disappoints no-one, although we do not know why so many are heading south this winter.
Our winter residents are becoming increasingly abundant; please keep us up-to-date by reporting your sightings to birds@mvgazette.com.
Robert Culbert is an ecological consultant living in Vineyard Haven.
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