Two Black-crowned Night-Herons, including this one, were a nice find for a South Portland Big Day on the 21st. Unfortunately, we didn’t have enough good finds to make up for a slow morning at the favored migrant traps.
I had just a handful of observations of note over the past six days before I head out to Monhegan, including the following:
On Tuesday, John Lorenc and I did a South Portland-only “Big Day,” trying to see as many species as we could within the city’s boundaries. With limited migrants at Hinckley Park, we clawed our way to a decent tally of 94 species by day’s end with a lot of regular migrants being undetected. Highlights for the city and the date were limited to Long-tailed Duck, Black Scoter, Glossy Ibis, Black-crowned Night-Heron, White-throated Sparrow, and Red Crossbill. We unfortunately did not turn up any rarities. My personal FOY’s were limited to Swainson’s Thrush (1 each at Clark Pond Trails and Trout Brook Preserve) and Common Nighthawk (two over John and Terez’s yard at dusk for our last species of the day, followed by 4 over our yard in Durham when I returned home).
Two tours over the weekend and private guiding on Monday were likewise fairly slow for passage migrants, but there was a distinct increase in territorial birds with each passing day, as it seemed birds were dropping into their desired habitats and not migrant traps. A big overnight flight on 5/22-23 yielded more territorial birds, but surprisingly few passage migrants on the ground.
2 American Bitterns, surprisingly high over the yard in the evening on 5/22. Really threw me off at that altitude!
3 Greater Scaup, Wharton Point, Brunswick, 5/23.
Additional personal first-of-years this week also included:
1 briefly glimpsed MOURNING WARBLER, Capisic Pond Park, Portland, 5/19 (with Birds on Tap Roadtrip! Warblers and Wort! Tour group).
One of the many stunning Baltimore Orioles that performed for us on our visit to Capisic Pond Park in Portland during May’s “Warblers and Wort” tour.
Join us for the much-anticipated return of the Birds on Tap series, a unique collaboration between Maine Brews Cruise and Freeport Wild Bird Supply. In 2024, we’re excited to bring back these special birding and beer tours, perfectly blending nature exploration and craft beer tasting.
These unique, relaxed birding and beer-ing adventures that you have come to love combine great local birding at seasonal hotspots with approachable opportunities to sample the delicious creations of some of our favorite Maine breweries. These events are a perfect introduction to birding and/or craft beer, and a great opportunity to enjoy our favorite pastimes with significant others, friends, and family that have interest in one topic, while your interest is primarily in the other (for now!). Educational, enjoyable, and eye-opening, our unique Birds on Tap series enters its 10th Year!
Seasonal birdwatching meets Portland Maine’s finest craft beverages–all with the convenience of being chauffeured!
We’re offering three tours this year, with each trip report being posted here.
Warblers and Wort, May 25th.
May means warbler migration, and the destination for Warblers and Wort visited two of Maine’s most famous springtime migrant traps, Portland’s Evergreen Cemetery and nearby Capisic Pond Park. Oases in the urban jungle, featuring water sources and a mix of various habitats, help concentrate migrant birds that found themselves in or over the city come sunrise. After migrating all night, tired travelers look for refuge: food, water, and shelter, and urban greenspaces are absolutely critical for refueling.
Beginning at Evergreen Cemetery, we confirmed our suspicions from the overnight radar images that it was going to be a slow morning for migration. But wow, it was slow! We enjoyed some good looks at Red-eyed Vireos and lots of Gray Catbirds, practiced our birding by ear, and discussed urban ecology, but I had seen (not) enough.
We then ventured over to Capisic Pond Park, where our luck instantly changed. While passage migrants were still few, it was downright pleasantly birdy. And birdy with vivid colors from some of our most beautiful birds. Blinding Baltimore Orioles were everywhere as expected, but we had some great quality time with battling males and affectionate pairs. We had lots of great views of male and female Yellow Warblers and the range of plumage variation in American Redstarts. Great looks at Warbling Vireos were enjoyed, but orioles kept distracting us! Northern Cardinals refused to be ignored.
In addition to a couple of Wilson’s Warblers and an uncooperative Magnolia Warblers, passage migrants included the world’s worst look at the awesome Mourning Warbler as it darted down the trail, never to be seen again, but also one of the best looks you’ll ever get at a Cape May Warbler as a female foraged in the grass and low branches of a grove of Eastern White Pine. You don’t often look down on a Cape May Warbler!
We saw a lot of birds well at Capisic today, using even the most common birds to hone our identification skills while taking the time to appreciate the beauty of even some of the most common birds around us. For example, we became intimately familiar with how Common Grackles are anything but black birds! This particular individual stood out because of the perfect lighting showing off it’s glossy, structural colors, but also the unusual white flecks in the head caused by some limited leucistic feathers.
After struggling to see birds at Evergreen, we struggled to leave Capisic on time! It was a lot of fun, but it was time for the second half of the tour as we made the short trip across town to the Bayside neighborhood. Our first stop on the beverage portion of the tour was Freedom’s Edge Cider. After observing migrant birds in the crabapple trees at Capisic, it was only appropriate to enjoy cider, as the creation of hard cider was what led to the creation and diversity of crabapple trees! Focusing on the traditional, drier range of ciders, we began our tasting with their flagship “Original,” a nicely balanced semi-dry cider with a crisp finish. The unfiltered, modern “The Juice” was a touch sweeter thanks to the concentration of sugar via the freezing and thawing of the apples. I definitely picked up musty grape in the “Marc de Marquette,” a very flavorful cider aged over Marquette grapes. And finally, we were able to pick our own fourth sample. I am a sucker for maple, so I went for the “Pick Your Own” (coincidentally and appropriately) that complemented our birds of spring with flavors of spring in Maine: maple syrup and strawberries. The flavors were subtle, but the maple was really evident on the nose. However, the “Sweet Mullet,” a delicious cider steeped with mulling spices seemed to be the crowd favorite.
We’re all about the new and different on these Roadtrips, and our second stop was the very new (opened about 3 months ago) Argenta Brewing, Portland’s first lager-only brewery. Their delightfully named “Generic American Lager” had all the crushability and cleanliness of a traditional American Lager, but with a focus on Maine-grown ingredients. Learning the difference between lagers and ales while discussing topics ranging from glassware to bird conservation, we also learned all about Portland’s newest brewery. We were able to choose our second (very!) generous pour, and I joined others in the “Dark Lager” which had those nice roasted chocolate and malty flavors but with the lighter body and clean finish of a lager.
And with that, our first Birds on Tap – Roadtrip! Came to an end, but it’s not the last one in 2024, and definitely not the last one in years to come. It was good to be back on the road, and the combination of introductory birding with an introduction to Maine’s finest craft beverages is a recipe that has not lost its luster after a COVID-years hiatus.
Shorebirds and Steins, Aug 11.
We began our introduction to shorebirds with the basics, such as plover verses sandpiper, before moving into great depth such as yellowlegs vs Willet. Shape, size, and especially bill size and length are among the “bigger picture” tools we have to learn our shorebirds, such as with some close Willets – the “tringas of the 90’s steroid era in baseball.”
The original BoT Roadtrip! in 2015, our most popular tour returned to Scarborough Marsh at prime time for a good variety of migrant shorebirds. We learned how to identify our common species and searched a bit for the rare.
Birding began at Pine Point as the tide just began to flow. And as the mudflats were slowly inundated, a nice diversity of shorebirds soon appeared, and with each inch of incoming water, many of the birds moved closer and closer.
In Jones Creek, we were able to closely study the eastern subspecies of the Willet, later in close proximity to the closely related Greater Yellowlegs. And wow, did these two yellowlegs put on a show! Demonstrating their entertaining, aggressive feeding style that is highly suggestive of the species, they chased baitfish through the shallows. They were eventually so satiated that they sat down within about 15 feet of us and allowed for close looks at their bill structure and color without any straining through the scope. One spiffy Black-bellied Plover was joined by several dozen more in all stages of molt, and two awesome Whimbrels dropped in for the duration of our stay, nicely demonstrating the wide differences in shape and bill structure of our sandpipers.
Short-billed Dowitchers demonstrated their sowing-machine feeding technique – helpful as feeding style is an important part of the shorebird identification toolkit. But before we got that far, we started with the basics of plover vs sandpiper, nicely demonstrated by a flock of 150+ Semipalmated Plovers and 100+ Semipalmated Sandpipers that were concentrated before us by the incoming tide.
Two additional stops at the outskirts of the marsh gave us a sample of a different micro-habitat at high tide, yielded some Lesser Yellowlegs for our shorebird list, and gave us more looks at non-shorebirds, such as Great and Snowy Egrets, Glossy Ibis, and much more.
Then it was time to head over to Nonesuch River Brewing, where owner Michael and his wife Kristen graciously greeted us with a sample of their Summer Session – a nice light, refreshing welcome. We then enjoyed sips of their summery and bright Mojito IPA with lime and mint, followed by their Solstice hefeweizen with a little bit of ginger prickliness and hint of lemon. As we enjoyed those beverages, we thoroughly enjoyed an all-in tour in the brewhouse, learning the basics of brewing, and some of the house techniques to make Nonesuch such a popular brewery. I saw several four-packs of Mojito return to the bus with us, and the location can’t be beat for a post-Scarborough Marsh celebratory toast!
Returning to Portland, our second beverage destination was the newly expanded home of Blue Lobster Urban Winery. Once again, we felt privileged to get the tour from the owner and winemaker! Chris walked us through the winemaking process, the rational for canning it, and the history of the company. We began with a taste of their Tightline cider, a very dry cider made from local apple juice and wild yeast from the winery. Their sparking Rose was up next: very lightly carbonated with a strong strawberry nose but just a slight sweetness on the palate. Bayside Blend red was nice and dry, as I prefer my reds.
Chris then treated us to a special surprise – a barrel tasting, where we were privileged to be the first member of the public to sample an upcoming bottle release that has been conditioning for two years, and was made from grapes grown on 121 year-old vines in California. This was a special wine, and it was absolutely delightful. Our only complaint was we couldn’t buy any yet! Last but not least, we tried their blueberry infused red, with Syrah and merlot grapes infused with Maine blueberry juice. Especially after Chris suggested making a spritzer or Sangria with it, multiple four-packs were purchased to go.
Nice species of shorebirds, three beers, 4 wines, and 1 cider -now that’s a well-rounded Birds on Tap – Roadtrip!
Birds on Tap – The Boat Trip! Rare Birds and Island Exploration.
Yellow-rumped Warblers were the dominant species, not surprisingly given the date and island’s habitat, but the number present today was still most impressive. This one is nicely showing off its namesake.
The final Birds on Tap event of 2024 was a special one indeed. This day, we not only took to the water for the first time in the series, but we were able to visit the private House Island and its historic Fort. In fact, we were the first birding tour ever on the island! But this trip was not just about the birds.
We began with some birding, walking the trails and checking all of the nooks and crannies the island and fort had to offer. Yellow-rumped Warblers were simply everywhere, with dozens popping up with limited pishing, and countless others darting around. A few Song and White-throated Sparrows were here and there, and 1-2 Northern Mockingbirds were perhaps delineating winter territories on the island.
Surf Scoters and Common Eiders were offshore, a pair of Common Ravens flew by, and then, in the cemetery, we found an uncommon migrant: a single Field Sparrow.
We also learned about the food resources of the island, such as native Arrowwood Viburnum and especially the Northern Bayberry that all of these Yellow-rumped Warblers depend on and the invertebrates that can be found in the wrack line on the tiny beach.
Pete then expertly guided us into and through the historic Fort Scammel and the history of House Island. The first English settlement in Maine, it was the only island with a house on it, hence the name of the island. While primarily used for drying cod, fishing operations continued through 1907, when the buildings became part of an immigration station that operated until 1931. On the other half of the island, Fort Scammel was constructed in 1808. Four years later, it became Maine’s only coastal defense fort to fire a shot in aggression when it fired on a British privateer in the War of 1812.
The fort was upgraded in 1840 and again in 1870, when a concrete cap was added, and it was insulated with dirt and sand. While the fort was obsolete by the Spanish-American War, anti-aircraft guns were placed here in World War 1, and in WWII, anti-submarine nets were stored here. Pete guided us through its corridors, described the cannon placement and usage, and we checked out the gunpowder magazines. We learned about the Battle of Portland Harbor, the furthest north battle of the Civil War, and we even found a roosting Big Brown Bat. Even though this was my second visit to the Fort, I was still in awe of the handiwork and the pristine condition.
Wait, what year is this?
Then it was Tom’s turn to take over, and on such an insanely beautiful day, we took advantage of the comfy chairs above the parade ground for some more Portland history…but this time, it was the history of craft beer in the area. While Orange Bike is one of Portland’s newest breweries, this gluten-free brewery was developed with the help of Alan Pugsley – one of the Godfathers of the Maine craft beer movement. Starting with a refreshing and crisp pilsner, we also paid homage to a classic style.
Few beers say Portland more than Allagash White, and this was up next. The flagship of Maine’s largest brewer, its countless national and international accolades helped put Portland, Maine on the beer map. Speaking of, our next beer was Bissell’s flagship The Substance, one of the pioneers of the “New England IPA,” the hazy, juicy regional endemic that has since colonized the world.
A Horned Lark called as it unfortunately departed the island as we sampled our last beer, Mast Landing’s famous Gunner’s Daughter. A peanut-flavored stout rich in coffee, chocolate, and peanut butter notes, this was a perfect example of how creative modern beer has become.
While it was all-too-soon time to depart the island, our special tour was far from over. With such a gorgeous day (it was in the low 70’s with very little wind), Captain Pete decided to take a little ride out to the mouth of Portland Harbor. We motored past Chief Whitehead…
…and over to Ram Island Light, where Great Cormorants lined the old walkway. We compared their shape and size to the smaller, more common Double-crested Cormorants we passed on our way back inshore, while taking the time to enjoy the view, more Common Eiders and Surf Scoters, and scattered Black Guillemots.
A Gray Seal ushered us into the dock on our return.
John Lorenc and I finally caught up with this continuing WHITE-WINGED DOVE at Donna Cundy’s feeders on Monhegan Island in our brief visit on the 17th. It appeared minutes after we walked away for the” last time,” but we were alerted by friends and raced back. My photos have a twig in front of that beautiful powder blue eyering, so I’m borrowing Kristen’s photo.
My observations of note over the past seven days also included:
15 species of warblers, led by only about 20 Black-and-white Warblers and about 15 Northern Parulas, Evergreen Cemetery, Portland, 5/12 (with Down East Adventures Spring Songbird Workshop group).
1-2 Blue-gray Gnatcatcher, Evergreen Cemetery, 5/12 (with Down East Adventures Spring Songbird Workshop group).
15 species of warblers, led by 9 Ovenbirds and 7 American Redstarts, our property in Durham, 5/13.
18 species of warblers (FOY), led by 40+ Yellow-rumped and 13 Common Yellowthroats, Florida Lake Park, Freeport, 5/14 (with Jeannette).
15 species of warblers, led by 10+ each of Ovenbirds and Black-throated Green Warblers, our property in Durham, 5/14.
15 species of warblers, led by 19 Common Yellowthroats and 10 Ovenbirds, Florida Lake Park, 5/15.
5 Red Crossbills, around the store’s yard, 5/15. More impressive was the 23 that Jeannette had fly over early in the day on the 18th.
A very productive ferry crossing from Port Clyde to Monhegan on 5/17 included 4-6 ATLANTIC PUFFINS (FOY), a group of 6 (or possibly 9) RED-NECKED PHALAROPES (FOY), 6 Black Scoters, several Long-tailed Ducks, etc. (with John Lorenc, Jess Bishop, Ron Joseph, Kristen Lindquist, Bill Thompson, et al). On the trip back, John and I had a total of 10 ATLANTIC PUFFINS and more Long-tailed Ducks.
1 continuing WHITE-WINGED DOVE (photo above) and 1 female-type SUMMER TANAGER, Monhegan Island, 5/17 (with John Lorenc).
Additional personal first-of-years this week also included:
1 Blackpoll Warbler, Evergreen Cemetery, Portland, 5/12 (with Down East Adventures Spring Songbird Workshop group).
1 Red-eyed Vireo, Evergreen Cemetery, 5/12 (with Down East Adventures Spring Songbird Workshop group).
1 House Wren, Evergreen Cemetery, 5/12 (with Down East Adventures Spring Songbird Workshop group).
2 Bay-breasted Warblers, Florida Lake Park, 5/14 (with Jeannette).
2 Eastern Wood-Pewees, Morgan Meadow WMA, 5/16.
4 Laughing Gull, ferry from Port Clyde to Monhegan, 5/17 (with John Lorenc).
4+ Indigo Buntings, Monhegan Island, 5/17 (with John Lorenc).
It was a great week of birding on our Durham property this week, including local breeding birds on territory often put on a show. Jeannette photographed this Yellow Warbler on our property on the 15th, for example.
Tours and Events:
There will not be a Saturday Morning Birdwalk on 5/25 as I’ll be on Monhegan with our tour group.
This Ovenbird on our property paused for a moment as it enjoyed a snack it pulled from the leaf litter.
The migratory floodgates really opened this week, as expected, with the diversity of Neotropical migrants increasing dramatically. Days like the 7th and 8th are truly special, but any day birding – especially in May! – yields its own rewards. My observations of note over the past seven days also included:
10 species of warblers (FOY) led by ~40 Yellow-rumped Warblers and 25+ Black-and-white Warblers, Morgan Meadow WMA, 5/6 (with Jeannette).
15 species of warblers (FOY) led by 100+ Yellow-rumped Warblers and 13 Black-and-white Warblers, Florida Lake Park, Freeport, 5/7.
~40 Chimney Swifts, over downtown Portland at dusk, 5/4 (with Jeannette).
4+ Common Terns, Curtis Farm Preserve, Harpswell, 5/5 (with Harpswell Heritage Land Trust birdwalk group).
1 Ruby-throated Hummingbird, our property in Durham, 5/6.
1 Cape May Warbler, Morgan Meadow WMA, 5/6 (with Jeannette).
5 Common Yellowthroats, Morgan Meadow WMA, 5/6 (with Jeannette).
1 Solitary Sandpiper, Morgan Meadow WMA, 5/6 (with Jeannette).
1 Chestnut-sided Warbler, our property in Durham, 5/6.
1 YELLOW-THROATED VIREO (a little early), Morgan Meadow WMA, 5/6 (with Jeannette).
3 Least Flycatchers, Florida Lake Park, Freeport, 5/7.
3 Magnolia Warblers, Florida Lake Park, 5/7.
2 American Redstarts, Florida Lake Park, 5/7.
1 Scarlet Tanager, Florida Lake Park, 5/7.
1 Veery, Florida Lake Park, 5/7.
1 Blackburnian Warbler, Florida Lake Park, 5/7.
Since I had not been in Scarborough Marsh in a few weeks, a number of personal first-of-years on 5/7 for me that have been present for a while now included Lesser Yellowlegs, Glossy Ibis, Willet, and Least Sandpiper, while more recent arrivals included 1 Least Tern (Pelreco Marsh) and 1 Spotted Sandpiper (Pelreco Marsh).
1 Warbling Vireo, our property in Durham, 5/8.
1 Wilson’s Warbler, our property in Durham, 5/8.
2 Bobolinks, Wharton Point, Brunswick, 5/9 (with Dan Nickerson).
Yellow-rumped Warblers have been inundating our feeding station in Durham this week, feasting on nut blocks, insect suet, mealworms, jelly, and just about everything else.
Feeder-watching continues to be great, with lots of Pine Siskins, new arrivals, migrant White-throated Sparrows, and, at our home in Durham, up to a dozen Yellow-rumped Warblers daily – especially during the cool and often wet days we had this week. Meanwhile, Red Crossbills continue to be widespread in the area. There were no huge flights of migrants this week, but new arrivals were trickling in.
My other observations of note over the past seven days also included:
1 LOUISIANA WATERTHRUSH, Morgan Meadow WMA, 5/1.
6 total LOUISIANA WATERTHRUSHES, via “The Louie Loop” (Site AN4 in Birdwatching in Maine: The Complete Site Guide), Androscoggin County, 5/3 (with Noah Gibb).
One of the six individuals, a singing and mate-guarding male, paused just long enough for a snapshot in Mechanic Falls on the 3rd.
As is typical of the season, new arrivals were the headliners of most days of birding. Additional personal first-of-years this week also included:
1 Bank Swallow, Bradbury Mountain Hawkwatch, 4/29.
1 pair Rose-breasted Grosbeaks, our property in Durham, 4/30.
4 Black-and-white Warblers, Florida Lake Park, Freeport, 4/30
1 Great-crested Flycatcher, our property in Durham, 4/30.
1 Northern Waterthrush, our property in Durham, 5/1.
1 Common Yellowthroat, Morgan Meadow WMA, 5/1.
1 Wood Thrush, our property in Durham, 5/2.
1 Gray Catbird (first of spring), our property in Durham, 5/2.
Although it had moved further away by the time I arrived, I managed a few phone-scoped photos of the Loggerhead Shrike that graced Chandler Brook Preserve and nearby yards in North Yarmouth on 4/21.
It was a great week of birding, with an impressive fallout on Saturday morning, a local mega rarity, and more new spring arrivals. My highlight of the week was catching an incredible early-season fallout at Florida Lake Park in Freeport on 4/20 (with Saturday Morning Birdwalk group). I eventually settled on a guestimate of 400 Palm Warblers and 125 Yellow-rumped Warblers. The full report can be found here. 75+ Palm Warblers and 50+ Yellow-rumped Warblers were present on the 24th, but on both dates the only other warbler – as expected for the date – were Pine (3 each day).
My other observations of note over the past seven days included:
1 Fish Crow, over our property in Durham, 4/20 (Yard Bird #150!)
1 LOGGERHEAD SHRIKE, Chandler Brook Preserve, North Yarmouth, 4/21. Found earlier in the afternoon and seen by several of us in the evening. I don’t chase very often, but when I do, I prefer it to be only 15 minutes out of the way on my way home from the store! It was only my second in Maine.
6 Red Crossbills (1 male, 2 female, 3-4 juvenile. Type 12 as per Matt Young), here at the store, 4/24.
Additional personal first-of-years this week also included:
*1+ CLIFF SWALLOW, Florida Lake Park, Freeport, 4/20 (with Saturday Morning Birdwalk group).
1 Northern Rough-winged Swallow, Florida Lake Park, 4/20 (with Saturday Morning Birdwalk group).
1 Blue-headed Vireo, Morgan Meadow WMA, Raymond, 4/21.
1 Black-throated Green Warbler, Papermill Trail, 4/26.
*Numerous very early arrivals of regular migrants are likely also tied to the overshoot event that brought southern vagrants to locations up and down the state’s coast.
TOURS AND EVENTS:
Feathers Over Freeport This Weekend!
Saturday, April 27th at Bradbury Mountains State Park and Sunday, April 28th at Wolfe’s Neck Woods State Park. All events FREE with park entry!
From birdwalks and a hawkwatch workshop to kids’ arts and crafts and a food truck, join us for two activity filled days in the 13th year of Feathers Over Freeport! A full schedule of events can be found here.
Note our regularly scheduled Saturday Morning Birdwalk meets at Bradbury on the 27th.
The deceiving very Little Egret-like Little Egret x Snowy Egret hybrid is back for another season on the Portland-Falmouth waterfront. Jeannette and I saw it for the first time this year at Tidewater Farm Preserve in Falmouth on the 14th. Details below.
My birding was limited during this period, unfortunately, especially considering a significant “overshooting” event from the most recent storm. Southern vagrants and some exceptionally early arrivals were detected. Unfortunately, we were out of town for the days in which most of the rarities were detected early this week. I did try to make up for it by finding something later in the week, but I struck out.
Overall feeder activity decreased as the snow receded, but we noticed an uptick in Purple Finches and Pine Siskins in our yard in Durham, along with the arrival of Pine Warblers at our feeders in Durham and here at the store. My other observations of note over the past nine days included:
1 LITTLE EGRET X SNOWY EGRET HYBRID, Tidewater Farm Preserve, Falmouth, 4/14 (with Jeannette). Back for another year, this very Little Egret-like individual is a tricky and misleading ID at any distance. Luckily, it was close to the point today, providing great studies. In the photo above, you can see the very long, LIEG-like plumes. Also apparent today in comparison to a nearby SNEG was the slightly longer and thinner bill and the somewhat thinner and more elegant neck, and it did appear to be a touch larger overall. However, up close, you can see the handful of wispy, SNEG-plumes on the back of the head and neck, and in most lights, the lores gave a distinctly yellowish appearance, especially near the eye.
Additional personal first-of-years this week were limited to:
1 Chipping Sparrow, feeders here at the store, 4/13.
1 Field Sparrow, our property in Durham, 4/14.
2 Pied-billed Grebes, Florida Lake, Freeport, 4/17.
Birds on Tap! Kick-off event at the Portland Beer Hub!
Thursday, April 25, 2024; 5:00 – 7:00pm – Portland Beer Hub – 320 Fore St. Portland, ME 04101- FREE!
Join Birding Guide and owner of Freeport Wild Bird Supply Derek Lovitch, and Brew’s Cruise owner Zach Poole, for an exclusive gathering at the Portland Beer Hub to celebrate the 10th Anniversary of Birds on Tap! and kick off our new tour lineup.
During this casual meetup, guests will mingle with other bird and beer enthusiasts, discuss the exciting lineup of upcoming Birds on Tap tours, and can enjoy flights of bird-themed local beers (for purchase).
It’s the perfect opportunity to immerse yourself in the world of birdwatching and craft beers. For a bit of fun, be prepared for some impromptu bird trivia and birding games.
2. Feathers Over Freeport!
Saturday, April 27th at Bradbury Mountains State Park and Sunday, April 28th at Wolfe’s Neck Woods State Park. All events free with park entry!
From birdwalks and a hawkwatch workshop to kids’ arts and crafts and a food truck, join us for two activity filled days in the 13th year of Feathers Over Freeport! A full schedule of events can be found here.
Note our regularly scheduled Saturday Morning Birdwalk meets at Bradbury on the 27th.
Using our Durham yard as a case study, I wanted to check to see if there were indeed fewer birds this winter than last year, as some (but no longer a majority) of folks have continued to mention to us at the store.
Stuck at home last winter while recovering from shoulder surgery, our feeding station provided my primary source of entertainment. I occupied my time with mugs of tea and enjoying the activity, and occupied my mind with figuring our exact counts, keeping tallies, and watching behavior closely. I wrote about my counts and observations in a pair of blogs, the first one is here, and the second one is here.
This past fall, everyone saw a very slow fall at feeders in Maine, and throughout the East, as discussed here. That was changing for a lot of people – but not all, by December, which I talked about in this follow-up blog.
In January, a series of strong storms, unseasonable heavy rain and flooding, a few cold spells, and eventually, by month’s end, solid snowcover helped change the narrative. Winter food resources were being consumed, ground-feeders were being forced out of the woods, finches were moving about, and so on. Furthermore, I believe that those strong storms knocked a lot of cones – especially those of Eastern White Pine – to the ground where they were subsequently consumed and/or buried.
At least here at our feeders in Durham, a slow start to the winter was a thing of the past, as we were filling almost all of our feeders daily by the end of January. Some impressive tallies included over 70 American Goldfinches and over 50 Dark-eyed Juncos at the end of the month.
American Goldfinches have been absolutely ravaging Nyjer at our home this winter. Fresh Nyjer makes all of the difference!
While some factors remain true from the fall – an abundance of natural food overall, relatively limited snowcover, low movement of irruptive species, etc – clearly most people were reporting to the store that things were “back to normal” or “tons of birds all of the sudden,” and so on. Our seed sales more than doubled by the end of January from what they were at the beginning of the month (by overall poundage).
Just how “normal” have things returned to, and what anomalies are out there? While our home in Durham is only two years old, and we’re a long way away from baseline data or long-term averages, we can at least compare February of 2024 to February of 2023. And since I had nothing better to do last winter, I already had some data to compare to.
So, for the last 10 days (not including the two that we were out of town for), I have once again returned to the window for dedicated sessions of feeder-watching and counting. Like last year, I used the standard methodology of using “high counts” (maximum number of individuals seen at any one time, unless they were readily identifiable as being different), and I was sure to count for at least one hour a day each day.
February 5 – February 15 (minus 2/12 and 2/13).
Species
Average per day 2023
Average per day 2024
Difference
Wild Turkey
0.2
0
-0.2
Mourning Dove
13.5
26.5
+13
Sharp-shinned Hawk
0.4
0.2
-0.2
American Goshawk
0
0.1
+0.1
Red-bellied Woodpecker
1
1
Same
Downy Woodpecker
2.4
2.9
+.5
Hairy Woodpecker
2
2
Same
Pileated Woodpecker
1
0.1
-0.9
Blue Jay
7.8
3.0
-4.8
American Crow
0.7
0
-0.7
Black-capped Chickadee
7.4
2.9
-4.5
Tufted Titmouse
4
3
-1
White-breasted Nuthatch
2
1.4
-0.6
Red-breasted Nuthatch
0.7
0
-0.7
Brown Creeper
0.4
0
-0.4
Carolina Wren
0.9
1
+0.1
European Starling
1.1
2.7
+1.6
Eastern Bluebird
4.4
3
-1.1
House Finch
2.1
0
-2.1
Purple Finch
0.5
0.3
-0.2
Pine Siskin
0
0.2
+0.2
American Goldfinch
26.6
46.8
+20.2
American Tree Sparrow
8.0
4.2
-3.8
Dark-eyed Junco
16.6
30.3
+13.7
White-throated Sparrow
2
2.3
+0.3
Song Sparrow
0
0.9
+0.9
Northern Cardinal
5.2
3.8
-1.4
Total individuals/day
110.9
138.6
+27.7
*Addendum: I guess I should have continued the study for a few more days! By 2/17, we had a whopping 72 Dark-eyed Juncos and an increase to 13 American Tree Sparrows, and by the next day, the American Goldfinch flock returned to well over 60 birds!*
Every year is different, and every yard is different. Controlling here for time and place, we can make some comparisons however. It was much colder in this period last year, with an average morning low of 19.6. This year, the average morning low for the ten days was 23.9 and there is a lot less snow on the ground, even after the fresh inch and a half Friday morning; there were three light snowfall events during the “study period” last year.
Clearly, there are plenty of birds at our feeders at least! And, contrary to conventional wisdom, we actually have more birds overall than last year! The dearth of feeder birds from the fall is no longer true for us. Similar conclusions can be reached from comparing data on our feeder birds at the store, and from conversations with friends and customers. Therefore, I believe the overall pattern fits what many are observing throughout the area.
As discussed in the aforementioned feeder blogs from the fall, Black-capped Chickadees are in low numbers. I saw 4.5 fewer per day at the feeders than last year. This goes with the idea that our local residents were not augmented by irruptives from points north, but also suggests that they did not have a great breeding season. Same for Red-breasted Nuthatch and Blue Jays.
But native sparrows are in larger numbers than last year, especially Dark-eyed Juncos (and elsewhere, like our store, significantly more White-throated Sparrows with a new winter record of 24 on 2/16). My guess is because the mild fall, abundant seeds from a productive growing season, and benign start to the winter kept those around to be pushed to feeders as the season wore on.
And yes, there are indeed a lot of goldfinches around! But very few other finches – at least at feeders. I am not sure where these European Starlings came from, however, and I’m not overly pleased by it!
Raptors are another part of the equation. This time last year, we had more consistent presence from two different Sharp-shinned Hawks. This winter, we only recently confirmed the presence of a single Sharp-shinned Hawk (seen on 2/15 and 2/16, but she likely took a Mourning Dove on the 14th). There was also an all-too brief fly-through of an immature American Goshawk on the 6th. Also this winter, a Red-tailed Hawk has been more frequent around the feeding station, but its focus is primarily the squirrels and voles. So we’ve had enough native predator presence both years that it shouldn’t be a huge factor in comparing feeder counts.
There you have it. 2024 does not have fewer birds at feeders compared to the same period in 2023, at least not in our yard as a single case study. With continued improvement of our yard’s habitat (most of which was put on hold this year due to my shoulder issues) planned, we would hopefully be increasing our yard’s carrying capacity, as feeders remain only a supplement and a relatively small percentage of a bird’s diet, even in the depths of winter.
Next winter, we also might not find a single Eastern White Pine cone in the entire state, and a lot fewer Red Oak acorns and Balsam Fir cones. And if that’s true to our north, perhaps this will increase the amount of irruptives around the area. But we’ll see! And maybe I’ll repeat this exercise next year, if I can force myself to sit still long enough!
Last winter, we had a male Red-bellied Woodpecker nearly every day, while this winter it has only been this female. We hope they find each other!
The long-staying hen American Wigeon offered a good, close study as part of the Winter Waterbird Workshop with Down East Adventures tour that I conducted on the 14th.
While I didn’t get as far afield as last week, I enjoyed a productive six days of birding, especially for early January! Here are my observations of note over the past seven days.
Our feeders in Durham have been incredible, led by a growing flock of Dark-eyed Juncos that peaked at 41 on 1/8 and 40+ continuing American Goldfinches. There was a big movement of sparrows after the weekend snow storm, with flocks of Dark-eyed Juncos and White-throated Sparrows common and widespread in the area, along with an increase in American Tree Sparrows. During Tuesday’s snowfall, a careful inventory during the snowfall on the 16th yielded 127 individuals of 16 species, led by 41 American Goldfinches and 37 Dark-eyed Juncos.
At least one Turkey Vulture still continues in the I-295 corridor between Cumberland and Freeport.
1 DOVEKIE, Sandy Point Beach, Cousin’s Island, Yarmouth, 1/13. Patch Bird #198! Healthy fly-by apparently turning around upon seeing the bridge, then turning northeast and following the Cousin’s Island shoreline. I lost it in the fog, but presumably rounding the island to return to sea. A Black Guillemot to the south of the bridge was one of my few ever from this location.
1 continuing female American Wigeon, York Duck Pond (Abbott’s Pond), York, 1/14 (with Down East Adventures Winter Waterbirds Workshop tour group).
Small number of Red Crossbills, Bear Mountain, Hartford, 1/15 (with Jeannette). Mostly single fly-overs and one small heard-only group, so quantification was impossible.
Freeport Wild Bird Supply is very excited to partner with Down East Magazine’s Down East Adventures for the fourth year of offering exclusive birding workshops focused on gaining greater knowledge and field skills in a focused group of seasonally accessible birds. Focused on skill-builder rather than list-building, there will be plenty of “life birds,” but also more knowledge and education about birds, habitats, birding, and much more about the natural world. We’re happy to bring back the complete slate of tours from our 2023 season.
The full list and descriptions, along with registration information, for all of our upcoming tours (and an outline of 2025 options) can be found here. At the conclusion of each tour, I’ll post the trip report here.
Winter Waterbirds Workshop, January 14th.
I mean, really, what’s better than a Harlequin Duck?
For the second year in a row, very strong winds greeted us in the morning. So the game of the day was finding sheltered coves and respites from the wind. Therefore, we adjusted our itinerary accordingly, making a further adjustment based on parking lot closures from storm damage.
While we had high hopes of finding alcids that were blown closer to shore and were seeking refuge after the strong storm of the previous day, we didn’t see a single one – not even a Black Guillemot! However, we did see just about every other regularly occurring winter waterbird, from Red-necked and Horned Grebes to Buffleheads and Long-tailed Ducks Not surprisingly, Harlequin Ducks were the star of the show, with about 10 along Marginal Way in Oqunguit and abut 20 at The Nubble. Large rafts of Black Scoters were seen at several locations, with Surf and White-winged Scoters seen nearby for careful study.
We had a lot of Common Loons today, and we practiced learning their shape and size to separate them from other waterbirds at any range. Great Cormorants at The Nubble were nice to see, and we did a little introduction to gull identification with a mixed flock at Short Sands Beach.
Finally, a stop at the York Duck Pond introduced us to another group of waterbirds: dabbling ducks. There, we had close studies of Mallards, American Black Ducks, and hybrids thereof. Practicing our “feather birding” we used the hybrids of an example of what to look for beyond the general impression of size and shape we were focused on throughout much of the day. The icing on the cake was the hen American Wigeon that has been here all winter – you may never see one as close and as well as that again! Enjoying the fine black detailing on the steely blue bill was a highlight for me.
Spring Migrant Songbird Workshop, May 12th.
Honestly, I am not sure if we could have dialed up a more productive morning for an instructional workshop designed for learning about migrants – from identification to natural history, habitat to visible migration. “Slow” by mid-May standards, we eventually tallied 15 species of warblers (including a few “heard only”), but we had absolutely remarkable “quality time” with so many of the species we did encounter today.
We were greeted by a Great-crested Flycatcher and finished with Maine’s most confiding Great Egret. In between, a wide range of species included an uncommon Blue-gray Gnatcatcher and a family of Wood Ducks. I particularly enjoyed the quality time spent with a pair of Black-capped Chickadees who were busy gathering moss for their nest lining.
But it was the Neotropical migrants who were the stars of the show, as predicted and hoped for. My first Red-eyed Vireo of the spring was uncharacteristically low and cooperative, but the single early-ish Blackpoll Warbler was most definitely not. However, almost every other warbler was just shockingly well seen. In one willow thicket, we watched – often without binoculars and often within 10-15 feet of us and below eye-level – two each of stunning Magnolia Warblers, gorgeous Northern Parulas, charismatic Common Yellowthroats, and distinctive Chestnut-sided Warblers. A short distance down the trail, our patience with Ovenbirds was rewarded with one walking out into the open a short distance ahead.
In between bird sightings, we discussed habitat, NEXRAD radar, and the big picture of what we were and were not seeing today and why. We noted how American Crows mobbed a Red-tailed Hawk but barely bothered to call at the sight of a less-threatening Broad-winged Hawk. OK, fine, those aren’t songbirds, but we learned a lot from them anyway.
More birds of more species can and will be seen under different conditions at Evergreen Cemetery and similar urban green spaces as encountered today, but we would be hard pressed to see so many birds so well, for prolonged periods of time to allow for thorough study. While we encountered one wave of migrants all moving together, which can easily become frustrating when getting started, many of birds came one or two at a time allowing for in-depth observation -exactly want we want in a songbird workshop!
Not a songbird, but this Great Egret that frequents the ponds here also poses in interesting places.
Shorebird Workshop, August 15th.
Nothing wrong with starting out with the easy ones, like dapper Ruddy Turnstones!
Recent rainfall, approaching thunderstorms, and current observations all combined to make me throw our itinerary out the window this day. Sometimes audibles work…and today, it most definitely did.
While I prefer to start with smaller groups of birds so as not to overwhelm, we took advantage of the lovely morning and high tide to soak in an estimated 2000 shorebirds at our first stop! Biddeford Pool Beach did not disappoint, and we began our lessons with the basics: shorebird vs everything else, plover vs sandpiper, and eventually each species. We compared Semipalmated Sandpipers (~1750 individuals) and Semipalmated Plovers (about 200 individuals), then teased out several White-rumped Sandpipers from the masses. We noticed how white Sanderlings look, and what little bulldozers the distinctive Ruddy Turnstone can be. Spotted Sandpipers nicely demonstrated their shallow short-distance flight wingbeats as well.
Nearby Great Pond allowed us to compare Semipalmated Sandpipers vs Least Sandpipers at nearly arm’s length, while giving us better looks at a couple of Spotted Sandpipers. A single Lesser Yellowlegs was also added to the list.
By using habitat cues and tide charts, we maximize our shorebirding productivity. By studying birds near (like these side-by-side Least and Semipalmated Sandpipers) and far, we can learn to quickly recognize most shorebirds, most of the time, using a range of tools that we worked on together throughout the day.
Next up was Hill’s Beach, on the prime outgoing tide. Unfortunately, thunderstorms were rapidly approaching, and after a short check (more Sanderlings and a growing number of Semipalmated Sandpipers and Plovers), we decided to play it safe, return to the cars, and head into Saco for lunch. Good thing, too, as while we were eating, it was pouring outside!
White-rumped Sandpiper.
Returning to the field, we poked around the edges of Scarborough Marsh as we waited for the tide to begin rolling back in and for the rain to finally come to a stop. After a 10-minute rain delay in the cars while we waited out the last of it, we returned to the field to take in the flats of Pine Point. Good looks at Black-bellied Plovers (75+) allowed us to compare their shape, size, and feeding style to the estimated 300 Semipalmated Plovers that were here. Another 1200 or so Semipalmated Sandpipers contained at least a dozen White-rumped Sandpipers, which we practiced sorting out at a distance using shape and size, especially those long primaries. 14 Willet were new for our list, and the 90’s steroid-era-baseball-players of the greater Tringa family nicely contrasted with 4 slim Lesser Yellowlegs that alighted with some of them. Four not-so-short-billed Short-billed Dowitchers were our 11th species of shorebird of the day. And finally, as we continued to grow and practice our shorebird identification toolkit, we also took note of some non-shorebirds, such as Common Terns and a variety of gulls which today included 2 very-uncommon Lesser Black-backed Gulls!
Monhegan Birding Workshop, September 13th – 15th.
Cedar Waxwings were often with us, alighting on trees, eating native fruits, and avoiding marauding Merlins. Few things bring as much pleasure to the birding day as a “Waxwing Christmas Tree.”
Arriving on a glass-calm sea on Friday the 13th, luck was most definitely with us today and the entire weekend. We were greeted at the dock by a darting Merlin, a sign of things to come. After checking in and a relaxed lunch, we began our workshopping. While overall songbird activity was slow, we enjoyed plants, butterflies, and the weather as we wandered around and spotted birds here and there: a Northern Waterthrush in an isolated bush in a yard, a female Black-throated Blue Warbler in the woods, and lots of Cedar Waxwings in small flocks, overhead and landing in trees. Merlins continued to perform, and several Peregrine Falcons and Sharp-shinned Hawks joined the show, although it did not help us detect skulking warblers!
A late afternoon walk to Burnt Head to take in the cliffs and sample the habitat of the island’s interior produced a 1st-winter Lesser Black-backed Gull, but more importantly perhaps, allowed us to enjoy such a beautiful day on the island for mid-September.
On Saturday morning, we stepped off the porch at the Monhegan House, and it was ON. A great Morning Flight (morning redetermined migration) was underway, with dozens upon dozens of warblers zipping overhead as the sun slowly rose. As we did a short stroll to some favored early-morning micro-habitats, we ground-truthed the morning flight, finding that Cape May Warblers were indeed the dominant migrant of the morning. In fact, we often had 3 or 4 (as many as 5 in one tree) in the top of nearly every spruce we checked, and the entire range of plumages was on display. Northern Parulas were also numerous, but we estimated about 3 of every 5 warblers we encountered this morning were Cape May!
It was such a great morning it was hard to come inside to break for breakfast. Or so one thinks until they have had the Monhegan House Breakfast…and this was just the final of three courses!
Although the day’s activity peaked in the morning as many of the birds in Morning Flight continued on back to the mainland with a light northwest wind becoming northeasterly by noon, we continued to find pockets of activity and mixed-species foraging flocks throughout the day. There were a few Eastern Kingbirds and Eastern Wood-Pewees scattered about, often giving very good looks, and we had a nice mixed vireo flock that included 2 Philadelphia Vireos, 1 Blue-headed Vireo, and several Red-eyed Vireos for nice comparison. Northern Harriers put on a performance for us in the late afternoon over the marsh.
While our afternoon walk through the woods to the lighthouse was as much for pleasure and learning about habitats as it was for birds, the result was the discovery of a rare Lark Sparrow! We covered a lot of ground today, and definitely earned our delicious dinner. Before that, however, we had a little workshopping session to recap the day and compare what we saw (morning flight) with what the overnight radar image had suggested.
One of the new migration skills we learned was how to monitor and plan your birding accordingly by looking at NEXRAD weather radar. For comparison, here are the 1am images from Saturday and Sunday morning, respectively, showing the greater density of birds in the air and offshore on Saturday morning – and confirmed by our morning flight observations come sunrise.
Another clear and calm night resulted in a very strong flight of birds, but with fewer birds drifting offshore, the morning flight was slower than Saturday, as we forecast. However, there were plenty of new birds around, and we repeatedly saw birds we had not yet seen and many rather “fun” species. It started with a drift-vagrant Dickcissel in Morning Flight, followed by a Whimbrel flying around. A likely Clay-colored Sparrow disappeared before we could confirm it in poor light, but warblers such as Bay-breasted, Blackburnian, and Wilson’s were more confiding. Unexpected offshore and always a surprise on Monhegan, an immature Cooper’s Hawk flew over us on our way to lunch.
There was a noticeable turnover in species, with more sparrows and many fewer Cape May Warblers. We had some unusually cooperative Lincoln’s Sparrows to study, such as this one that perched in a bush with a Song Sparrow for comparison (and later, the same bush held a Swamp Sparrow next to a Song for further study of the entire genus!).
Since we were focused on learning bird identification and the nuances of migration’s ebbs and flows (and mechanisms thereof), we did not keep a running bird list. We did count our warbler tally and finished the trip with a very respectable 17 species of warblers! We found a couple of “good birds” (and jokingly disparaged the use of the descriptor) for ourselves and ate way too much good food. We learned a bunch about migration, plants, birds, and insects, and a little about the island. So instead of trying to add one more bird to the non-existent list, we brought the tour – and the 2024 Down East Adventures Birding tours season to a close with lunch and a toast at the brewery!
Maine Birding Field Notes 