Sandra Talanian reports: “I couldn’t believe my eyes when I saw a hummingbird in downtown Vineyard Haven on Dec. 2! Unfortunately, it quickly disappeared behind a building and could not be identified.” At this time of the year it could be a western species. Remember that 12 years ago in December and January we had an unprecedented three hummers: an Allen’s and two ruby-throateds. Watch your feeders and any flowers still in bloom. If you see a hummer get a photo and report it as soon as possible.
Bob Shriber spotted an ash-throated flycatcher (a species similar to a great-crested flycatcher) near Squibnocket Beach on Dec. 3, close to where Nancy Nordin spotted one last year. He also spotted a Baltimore oriole there, which Margaret Curtin found again the next day.
Another unusual bird is a “Thayer’s” Iceland gull, an extremely hard-to-identify subspecies of Iceland gull. Charles Morano found one at the Herring Creek in Aquinnah on Dec. 5.
The MV Bird Club led a field trip to the Oak Bluffs pumping station on Dec. 7 where they had great looks at a red-shouldered hawk. Other highlights they saw include two long-tailed ducks, 26 laughing gulls, one red-throated loon, 20 double-crested cormorants, 42 black-crowned night-herons, two great blue herons and one bald eagle.
Lingering shorebirds include two American oystercatchers, which I observed at Sarson’s Island on Dec. 3 and which Derrob Hagy-Weatherbee found again on Dec. 7.
Also lingering are greater yellowlegs. On Dec. 1, Margaret Curtin counted seven in Menemsha Harbor and Philip Edmundson watched two at Watcha Club Road. On Dec. 8, Derrob Hagy-Weatherbee saw one at State Beach and I found two at Safe Harbor Marina on Lagoon Pond. Allan Keith reports three killdeer in the fields of his Chilmark farm on Dec. 6.
The black-headed gull is still hanging around the jetties into Menemsha Harbor, observed by Margaret Curtin on Dec. 1, Bob Shriber on Dec. 4 and Dec. 7 and Nancy Weaver on Dec. 6.
Wait a minute, there are now two black-headed gulls in Menemsha. The quintet of Luanne Johnson, Nancy Weaver, Margaret Curtin, Janet Woodcock and Shea Fee observed and photographed both an adult and an immature on Dec. 8.
Numbers of ducks are increasing. Nancy Weaver observed the lingering northern shoveler at Crystal Lake on Dec. 3 and Philip Edmondson had two northern pintails and at least 60 ruddy
ducks in Watcha Pond on Dec. 2. The next day Phil counted 150 ring-necked ducks on the same pond and Robert Sawyer found a common goldeneye on Crystal Lake on Dec. 4.
It was a good day on Dec. 8. Chris Scott located one immature male common merganser at Crackatuxet Cove, and I found 80 greater scaup and seven common goldeneye off Hines Point and a flock of 66 American wigeon in Mud Creek.
Bob Shriber found the lingering Lapland longspur with 15 snow buntings near the Gay Head Cliffs on Dec. 4. On Dec. 7, Derrob Hagy-Weatherbee counted 28 snow buntings there, the high count for the week.
Will Costick counted eight red-winged blackbirds at Felix Neck on Dec. 1. Nancy Weaver and Lanny McDowell found a bald eagle at Squibnocket Pond on Dec. 4, while Derrob Hagy-Weatherbee observed two adult bald eagles at State Beach on Dec. 8.
Woodpecker abundances can be approximated by examining the 95 checklists submitted to ebird over the first eight days of December. Downy woodpeckers were the most frequently sighted, as there were 11 reports from nine different locations: one in Aquiinnah, one in Chilmark, three in West Tisbury, one in Vineyard Haven, three in Oak Bluffs (two at the pumping station) and two in Edgartown (both at Felix Neck).
Next are red-bellied woodpeckers. There were nine reports from eight different locations: one in Aquinnah, two in Chilmark, one in West Tisbury, two in Vineyard Haven, one in Oak Bluffs (two at the pumping station) and two in Edgartown (both at Felix Neck).
Northern flickers had seven reports from six different locations: one in Aquinnah, one in Chilmark, one in West Tisbury, one in Vineyard Haven, one in Oak Bluffs and two in Edgartown (both at Felix Neck).
Hairy woodpeckers were observed less frequently. There were six reports from five different locations: two in Aquinnah, one in West Tisbury, two in Vineyard Haven and one in Edgartown. No yellow-bellied sapsuckers were observed during early December.
Compare these numbers to those of the common white-breasted nuthatches, with nine reports from eight locations: one in Aquinnah, two in West Tisbury, two in Vineyard Haven, one in Oak Bluffs and three in Edgartown (two of them at Felix Neck).
If this analysis is correct, downy woodpeckers are the most abundant of these species, with the nuthatch and red-bellied woodpecker only slightly less common.
We have a similar analysis for owl abundances. Screech owls are the most abundant, with 37 sightings in ebird in 2024, with the most recent sightings being of a screech owl peering out of a nest box in Jerry and Sandra Twomey’s Katama yard (a daytime roost site at this time of the year). There have been two sightings of a barred owl this year, both in November. There was only one September sighting of a saw-whet owl, and one likely sighting of a short eared owl. There were no sightings of a great horned owl, long-eared owl or snowy owl. Where are the big owls?
Don and Linda Sibley are happy to report the first ever sighting of a golden-crowned kinglet at their West Tisbury home.
And finally, Luanne Johnson reminds us that there is a fairly new public path that provides excellent opportunities to view the middle and northeastern end of that waterfowl haven. It is on the East Chop Drive side of Crystal Lake, and the southwestern end is easily visible from East Chop Drive.
Please email your sightings to birds@vineyardgazette.com.
Robert Culbert is an ecological consultant with Nature Watch living in Vineyard Haven.
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